August 6th
Day 14: Until we Meet Again
I was eight years old when I moved to America. I didn’t cry when I left India and my extended family behind, I was more excited about moving to a new country. I was nine years old when I was in the last day of third grade. I remember that day vividly. My classmates were crying (bawling, actually) and hugging our teacher. I remember trying to cry to fit into the vibe, but I genuinely did not experience the sadness the rest of my classmates did. I was too eager to watch TV and paint my way through the whole summer. I was 25 years old when I moved to Los Angeles for work. My parents helped me set up my apartment and flew back to Dallas a few days later. I didn’t cry then either, I was really hyped up to go to the beach everyday (not that I did - I flew back often, and spent more time in Dallas than my apartment in LA). Leaving Harithachala behind for the summer, however, was a whole different story.
I thought I would spend the last day of camp sulking about leaving everyone behind. But in reality - I was still happy to be there and to have gotten the opportunity to experience it. Was I sleep deprived? Absolutely. In order to make the most of the last 24 hours of camp, we all stayed up the whole night with Sruti Akka sharing stories, fears, experiences, everything that we could think of. All the while, we were jittery off our minds, and jumping off the walls on the caffeine we ingested to stay up the whole night. We succeeded, and went straight to the Mandiram in the morning at 6:15 am.
We followed our daily routine that day again - went to the Mandiram, spent some time Dragon Fruit harvesting, and thoroughly enjoyed the food made by Ammagaaru and all the aunties. Best part of the day? Sruti Akka’s brain child that our aunties executed perfectly - sliced up Dragon Fruit mixed with a scoop of Hazelnut Ice cream and 1 gulab jamun served in a scooped out Dragon Fruit. I tried to replicate the flavor profile, but it’s obviously impossible to replicate the taste and nutrition from Harithachala anywhere else. With that - the community kitchen for this summer camp was officially closing. The campers slowly started heading home with tons of memories and bountiful love.
My name is Sweety, I’m from Dallas, TX. I was a Volunteer at the Giggling Geckos Camp.
That didn’t stop the fun there, though. After every little success at camp, Sruti Akka, Jahu and I celebrated with some sugar - the sweet smell (and taste) of success. As a sugar fiend, this was obviously the time I looked forward to most. So, we took the party to Nandini’s. Nandini’s is a cozy corner cafe across the street from Harithachala. Not only is it special for the most amazing desserts (mango cheesecake, I’m coming back for you), it’s also extremely special for a big picture of Gurugaaru they have inside of the shop. On the last day, it truly felt like we were in Baba and Gurugaaru’s presence no matter where we were. As my final activity in Tiruvannamalai, Sruti Akka took me for Giripradakshana in her car. I spent the time talking to Akka about anything and everything. Primarily promising Akka that I will be back and the Mount Shasta room is mine (sorry Malini Aunty, love you, but I call dibs!) There’s a lot of things I will miss about Harithachala: Baba’s Mandiram, Gurugaaru’s library (I’m still in disbelief that I touched a book that Gurugaaru physically held and read), Ammagaaru’s cooking and her loving nature, Sruti Akka for absolutely everything, the aunties and uncles who left behind their families for a whole month to look after the wellbeing of the participants, the nutritious food, the peaceful environment, the staff constantly smiling and asking me “Nalla irruka, Akka?” and many more.
As much as I would miss Harithachala, I was left with numerous core memories and teachings I will cherish forever. I will never forget Sruti Akka teaching me how to ride her Scooty, the endless rooftop conversations with Akka and Jahu. I will, certainly, never forget Sruti Akka giving me her portion of the sweets (I’ll be back for more, Akka). Most importantly, I will never forget the love and the inner peace I experienced every day. I’m extremely grateful to Baba and Gurugaaru for this opportunity.
On that day seeing Haritachala in the rearview mirror invoked some of the strongest emotions I’ve felt. I turned around in my seat to see Sruti Akka, Aunties, Uncles and Jahu waving to me. Finally, I couldn’t stop myself from shedding tears. I was excited to go home, but I would’ve given anything to stay in Haritachala longer (in the Mount Shasta room, of course).