Hare Krishna Guru Mahraj,
Please accept my most humble obeisances, all glories to Srila Prabhupada! All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga!
It was so nice to read about your time in India. Radha Padmini and Kish sent pictures from Mayapur. I was elated to read the South Indian yatra with NIOS went well!
I’ve been keeping up with your updates and posts of my godbrothers/sisters and felt compelled to write to you after some time... Your response on their questions has also shed some light in my ignorant state of mind.
Nothing new or exciting has happened. My Japa is getting stale actually. I sometimes switch to a finger clicker when in public places (like when riding on the metro in DC –which is now sadly emanating Trump's energy. Could chanting on that vs. Tulsi affect the potency?)… Also frantically attempting to wake up during Brahma Murat to chant effectively. *please send blessings so it becomes a habit!*
Things are a tad chaotic (for one, because I over think)…and two –it’s time for a change. My cap for growth at work currently is stagnant- no promotions, no more learning, no growth… I’ve been applying my energy to look for more job opportunities. I have filled out maybe 200+ applications in DC area (no bites) and now trying my luck in New York City as well. (I visited for a weekend during Presidents day weekend and just felt so much mercy there. It's fast-paced but there's Sanga events almost every day of the week! So much association!)
Since the application- response isn’t strong- I’m thinking of taking some boot camp courses to gain some credentials that make me more marketable. It’s like months of info condensed into a week’s worth of classes. They’re really expensive (like 2000 per class and then the test and books are extra...) and since IT is so broad- I’m struggling to find the right path to investing in (ie. servers, cloud, applications, security, database…it’s all that I think about lately) Everyone says 'which do you enjoy more' and its all similar to me. I'm already "settling" with IT as a profession so it doesn't make a difference to follow which Im "passionate" about. Like who wakes up and says " Oh Boy I can't wait to manage databases today or backup servers !?" My stomach is uneasy due to the stress it seems. On a kichari diet to cope with it.
As far as outreach- I’ve been helping a local group with sankirtan at local yoga studios on weekends. We did a few workshops on kirtan and chanting (felt just like college with the bhakti yoga club again ^_^) and then I tried to set up an event at the temple but it wasn’t as successful as I’d hoped. There’s a lot of hand-holding that newcomers require which I don’t think I’m best suited for since I'm out of practice. But will try to be more engaging in sankirtan- maybe old school kirtan and book distribution.
That’s about it as far as updates. I hope you’re having a beautiful time with SS Radha NilaMadav <3 Please pardon the petty struggles that I waste your time with. Please keep me engaged and thank you for your mercy.
Your attempting servant,
Sugopi Dd
P.S. On Valentines my parents and I watched this Telugu movie called Om Namo Venkatasya. I never was exposed to this incarnation of Visnu but am slowly developing a love for His form... it was a very nice devotional film. Based on the story of Hathiram Babaji.
HpS - Nice to hear from you. Join us on-line for FMP - 5.30AM New York time. Mangala arati - NOD in Spanish and 30-minutes Japa/chat. www.startmeeting.com, Meeting # 992 055 489.
Ideal material career, Dharma, with a female vehicle is to get married, right! Pray to God to send a decent (we are not expecting Kardama Muni) Dude and then life is simple. You help him in his career (maybe he will become President of the United States).
If that does not work out, and even if it does, then ask Radharani if she'll share Krsna with you. 16109 Princesses married to Krsna.
That means having your Deities and worshiping them. Hmmm? Of course, no harm developing occupational skills. You can use them in marriage also. Talk to a lot of people about career paths.
If you get up early and get your rounds done well, then Krsna can so the MAGIC! (We are struggling with this also).
Have you seen this? - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXFq_X6AdCM
When we checked in to Delhi we did not get an upgrade to 1st Class, but we got a seat with a little more leg room. Thank your friend!
Respects to your father and Family!!
Yeah, the clicker is not as good.
