This weekend we had a lot of fun. We went hiking in the mountains and got some good outdoor time.
The kids sleeping after a big game of soccer.
Tag Archive for 'Arjan Kaur'
This past weekend we celebrated and remembered the life of SSS Harbhajan Singh Khalsa (aka: Yogi Bhajan). This birthday event has always been a joyous occasion and serves to bring many people together. It is especially a great event for inviting the local community to learn more about us as Sikhs. There are normally quite a few political figures and local citizens who have a chance to get to know us better.
This year the Langar hall was transformed into a beautiful gallery for the event. There were all kinds of pictures, art work, jewelry, stories, videos, magazines, etc. showing the history of Sikh Dharma in the west and the life of Yogi Bhajan.
The entry way to the gallery with the "introduction"
It’s been a while since I posted family pictures….so here a few from the past week or two.
Having dinner outside as the sun is setting.
Earlier this summer a photographer friend named Fiona Aboud took some pictures of our family (in New York and in New Mexico). She is planning to create a book about Sikhs in North America and has been taking pictures in different places of Sikhs. You can see some of her photography and a few of the Sikh related pictures online at: http://www.fionaaboud.com ( Portfolios / Projects). During her visit to Espanola, New Mexico she took lots of pictures of the sangat, but there are a few of the pictures that were of my family that she sent me.
"The family"…after Gurdwara
Well Summer Solstice Sadhana Camp is over and like always it was an awesome experience! Me and my son Narayan, along with over 1500 people were at the camp. Narayan had so much fun and didn’t want to leave. He and his friends would roam wild most of the days having fun and enjoying the freedom. By the end of the day he would crash (sleep) hard and then do it all over again the next day. I had walky-talkies for the first few days to keep track up him, but then the batteries died. Oh well, so much for the high tech gadgets.
One thing which I think is cool about solstice is that everyone from all backgrounds, countries and status all come together to meditate and work on their self spiritually. Everyone takes part in the camp and has a karma seva, so everyone helps with something. Summer Solstice is not an easy "relax" camp at the beach. Everyone camps out in tents and has to deal with the harsh elements of New Mexico. The camp is up in the mountains at around 7,000 feet above sea level and the sun can be quite hot and intense. New Mexico is a dry climate so mixed with the summer heat and being outside in the elements all day for a week can be intense. You have to drink lots of water and electrolytes and stay out of the sun to keep cool. Getting up early in the morning for Sadhana and then many going to sleep late from all the night time fun and activities. By the end of the week one is ready for a vacation. hahaha!
When I was up at camp I remember thinking about how it is such an equalizer being there. Rich, poor, famous, unknown, etc all go through the same thing and have to deal with it all. There is no luxury suite for the unprivileged (unless you bring a maharaja tent with generator, fridge, bed, A/C… Hahaha) . Also because of the environment you have to dress a certain way in order to stay cool and comfortable. Everyone tends to just blend in. The person next to you could be a movie star millionaire and you wouldn’t know it. There are so many people it would be hard to know them all anyway!
In previous years I have taken a lot of pictures and videos, but this year I needed a break from it all so didn’t really capture much. Here are some of the pictures that I did take. The people in the sound booth recorded a bunch of the audio, so when I get the files I’ll post them too.
I’ve been in New York visiting with my family and having a chance to relax away from work. It’s nice having a break and getting away. Here are a few pictures from today as we played at the park and just took it easy.
Up close and personal with Charanjeet. If you look close you can see the reflection of me in her eyes.
Narayan and his friends the morning after a sleep over at our house. They look pretty wild don’t they :)
Arjan and Narayan riding on the back of the bike, Indian style. Heading to the park for some fun.
Charanjeet loves to climb. Here she is climbing this big slide.
Charanjeet loves animals. Whenever she saw a pigeon should would chase after it trying to get closer to it. She would get very excited watching the birds.
Narayan watching the kids play "red rover".
A rare picture that I am in, with Charanjeet on the swings.
Cutey…
Super Cutey
Charanjeet doing what babies love doing best. Here she is eating spaghetti noodles and then playing with the food.
Triple decker bus heading to the bedroom for sleep time.
Amaji with the kids..
Swinging fun…
I think today most of us celebrated Vaisakhi and I am already starting to see tons of pictures online from everyone’s different celebrations. Here are some pictures from our Vaisakhi Nagar Kirtan, before Gurdwara. The morning started with breakfast at Pritpal Singh and Kaur’s house, and then we all participated in the Nagar Kirtan till we got to the Gurdwara.
The kids sitting on the truck trailor, waiting to go on the Nagar Kirtan.
This is Prabhujot Singh, who is one of Narayan’s friends
Narayan and more of his friends.
My friend Gurudarbar and his son.
Arjan and Charajeet
Siri Chand looking great with his new bana and sparkling gold/blue turban.
Gurujot, Lakhmi Chand and Hari Bhajan
Prabhu Singh
I realized that most of the pictures I take are of the younger generation. We have lots of grey beards in our community too :)
The Panj Piaray and the Siri Guru Granth Sahib arriving for the Nagar Kirtan.
The Panj Piaray and the Sangat with Siri Guru Granth Sahib
Gurujot Singh doing gatka
Gurudham Singh playing the dhol for the gatka sparring/
One of my favorite spots…with mamma.
More pictures of Siri Chand Singh. He just looked so good that I couldn’t resist taking a bunch of pictures of him. I love the sparkly gold in the turban. I have to get some more stylish turban cloth.
Gurudham Singh doing some freestyle gatka with swords.
Still going? Hopefully those of you who have taken on the 40 day Sadhana challenge are still going! It’s been a real challenge for me (to say the least). Sometimes I hear my friends who are not married tell me how busy they are. I always smile to myself thinking, “You don’t know what busy means until you have kids“. One doesn’t know how busy and how their life will change until they have kids. I’m sure it might be easier for some parents, but no doubt in can be a challenge.
- Challenge 1 - Lack of Sleep: I started the 40 day sadhana with the understanding that it would be a challenge, but I didn’t realize how much so. It wouldn’t be so hard if I was able to go to sleep early. It’s just that my daughter Charanjeet Kaur wakes up so much in the night and as a result we don’t get much sleep. I normally take Charanjeet in the first part of the night till about 11PM (sometimes later) and then head off to sleep. Then wake up at 5AM, do my Sadhana routine (which takes close to two hours) and then try to get a mini nap before everyone else is up and about. I have to say that right now 5-6 hours of sleep is a bit hard for me to function on. Short term it is ok….. I’m used to that…. but after a week or so…it catches up to you.
- Challenge 2 - Getting Sick: A few days before I started the Sadhana, Arjan and Charanjeet got some type of throat sickness (sore throat, mucous, cough, etc.). After a few days into my Sadhana I caught whatever they had. I think because I was tired from getting less sleep my immune system got weak. So, there I was sick and feeling lousy; but I knew I had to keep getting up every morning and doing my routine. It was hard, but I pulled through it. I think I am on the tail end of being sick, but am still pretty tired. I’m hoping that once my energy comes back (after I am totally well) I will be better able to function.
- Challenge 3 - Kids: Narayan and Charanjeet Kaur are both very strong willed kids. They know what they want…and try to assert themselves. While this can be a good trait later in life, it can be such a challenge (to put it lightly) to teach and discipline them (mostly Narayan). Overall I think we do a really good job, but sometimes it can be a strain and difficult to maintain one’s “sanity”; especially when the adults are not getting much sleep. Narayan’s sun sign is Leo, and like the “lion” of this sign he doesn’t like to be told what to do and only wants to do things on his own terms.
What can I say…it is hard to tame or train a lion! Not only that, but being the son of Guru Gobind Singh that makes him extra strong. All I can do is be patient, calm and keep working at it.
Continue reading ‘Day 9 - 40 Day Sadhana (Challenges, Parenting, etc)’
Many of you have seen all the pictures of my 7 month old daughter Charanjeet Kaur, however there are quite a few babies that were born all around the same time. Every month or so a new baby was born. One might think that all the married couples got together and planned to have babies… but…no….it just happened this way. I guess the next wave of Sikhs were meant to come at this time in our community :)
Here are a couple pictures that I took of some of the mother’s and babies…
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