This book is the tapestry of my life. As the master weaver, I have woven complex, unique patterns into it without a blueprint to guide me.

I have recorded the journey of my life in eight chapters, each one a colourful strand stretched between my past to my present. Each chapter has a theme that journeys alone as well as intertwines with all the others. The overlapping of strands and themes create an amazingly harmonious design of diverse colours and patterns.

Like an onion being peeled layer by layer, so does each chapter begin by addressing the outermost reality. Bit by bit, the inner contents are exposed. I didn’t peel the onion perfectly, but I approached each layer with joyful anticipation. I also had to accept that tears and blurred eyes were a part of the deal.

The peeling of the many layers of the onion is the most difficult part. There certainly is joy in having the tears pour down without any shame, anyone who has peeled an onion would agree. Even though the tears sting and the eyes burn as the tears pour out, the sinuses clear up. It is the ultimate process of healing.

In crying we release. In releasing we let go. In letting go, we start accepting. In accepting we are. In being we become. In becoming we fly. In flying we see ourselves as the tiniest beings, a mere speck on this planet and the universe.

That is when we are willing to put aside our bad moments and look at the whole picture.

As we see our tapestry from a distance and notice it in its entirety for the first time, we see that it has a unique pattern to it. The patterns are familiar too. It is the beautiful design of our life and very dear to us. All parts of it. Even the parts where the design was woven wrong.

The good, the bad, and the ugly. The happy moments are appreciated more because we have known what sad is. The giving and the receiving. The joy of finding your love and the sorrows of having lost your loved ones. The wows and the hows. The yes has more meaning because of the previous no. The complete picture. At a glance. We don’t have to rework the strands, we get the ability to see it all at once in all the hues and get all the insights at one go. When you reach the core, everything is heightened. Even the silence has definite sound to it.

Then everything else ceases to matter and we are able to live in the now. We finally accept. With unconditional love, to anything that has been or will be we can simply say, SO BE IT.