exploring traditions, cultures, beliefs… whether studying roots or planting new cross-pollinated seeds, or exploring traditions outside our own….
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This past weekend I found myself in a situation that was equal parts ironic and meta: struggling to encapsulate a person’s existence in a few words, in a post that was meant to show that expressions of values do not align with
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When our coffee table broke 6 years ago, I never rushed to replace it because if there are books on it (which I find to be half the reason to have a coffee table), my husband would not allow feet resting on
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No nail cutting at night! And not on Tuesdays! My husband grew up in India with these rules, under threat of evil coming to him and his family, and never really questioned them until I pressed (much like many of our ingrained
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A few days ago, an old friend reached out to me, asking for help with a meal blessing he was asked to give at a lesbian wedding this weekend. He said he looked at all sorts of Irish blessings, and none seemed
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Recently a friend told me about a pre-cooking ritual her mom performed, in order to ensure a positive state of mind, lest the negative emotions make their way into her food This was an entirely new concept and it grabbed me, and
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This Mother’s and Father’s day, bolstered by a podcast and an NY Times piece, we gained the confidence to break cultural norms and borrow from a tradition outside our respective/collective cultures in order to remember an unborn child, lost in pregnancy. In
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Celebrating Holi in NYC can be tricky. The weather here in March can basically be opposite that of India, which makes throwing colors a messier affair (what with all that winter gear to wash!). But the intrepid among us will find ways
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Go Sox! Nice to start the season off with a win. We are a site that celebrates culture, and depending on where you are, certain sports are a big part of that. In my case, you take the girl out of Boston,
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I’ve been hosting chai sessions at our home in Brooklyn, where invite someone over to talk cultures, holiday traditions, bi-/multi-/inter-X life, identity…. over a big pot of masala chai. Sometimes the chai is accompanied by cookies or upma or pulau w/ a
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Somehow till now I’ve never had the occasion to comfort grieving friend or family member who happens to be Hindu. When it happened last week I was at a bit of a loss as to how to properly comfort that person, properly
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I was struggling with how we should celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi this week. Sure, we went to the temple yesterday, but what were we going to do as a family? And how pull the essence of the holiday into something a 19-month-old would
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(“I love you, Daddy!” in Telugu) While I was certainly happy with the Telugu twist we were able to add to father’s day last year, I was jumping out of my skin for this year’s idea! We finally gave it to nana
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