Arriving in Ahmedabad was like arriving in India for the first time all over again. While it was wonderful to see all our classmates again in situ, I couldn't help but feel somewhat disconnected from the Indian experience. My first meditation explored this. How was I, staying in a beautiful hotel by Western standards, with its security guards, uniformed staff, and front gates, detached from Indian society? For me it was the separation not only of space (the physical distance and lack of access to the hotel from regular society), but also the sense of privilege I felt. I am by no means wealthy, but I can afford to spend a night or two in a posh hotel back home or have a nice dinner out. Our hotel in Ahmedabad is rather affordable by Canadian standards (about $80 a night) but disconcerting to know that the vast majority of Indians would never be able to stay there, even on a splurge.
While change is difficult, I seem to have increased my resilience to change as I quickly adjusted to my new environment of fluffy duvets, central air, spacious room, and hot water shower. J
Trooper!
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