Sisterhood of the World Blogging Award 

I am honored to announce that Buddhaful Britt was nominated for the Sisterhood of the World Blogging Award by Crystal of ForeignIndianWife.com.

When Crystal nominated me she had no idea, but I have been secretly stalking her site for quite some time. She has been a mentor of Indian life and culture during many of my desperate and confusing internet searches. But the REAL honor has been becoming friends with such an inspiration.

Although her site is about a western girl moving to India to marry her true love, her talents go way beyond writing; she also designs logos and a variety of other digital images.

Look what she drew for me!

She calls it “A Whole New Jersey,” because the running joke in my own mind is that when I met Manpreet, it was like Snookie met Aladdin.  This Jersey Girl fell in love with the most unlikely man and our lives have been one big adventure ever-since.

“The Sisterhood of the World Blogging Award” asks that I answer a few short questions about myself for my subscribers, because I know YOU ARE DYING TO HEAR MORE ABOUT ME, LOL… so here it goes.

1. What inspired you to blog:

I hate the word blog, but…

My best friend Kelly did. We met when I lived in New York City and have been besties for more than 20 years. Although I have always been a writer, it was more of a private, anonymous thing.

I was obsessed with writing travel stories for a site called BootsNAll.com before “blogs” were even thought of. But it was Kelly, and her site, TheRheelDaze.com, that inspired me to give it a try.

I have a weird philosophy though, I hate the idea of writing sponsored articles because it feels like selling-out and I don’t worry about “pay per click” methods. My passion is writing, and as you can tell by my lack of marketing skills, I’m completely broke.

You can read my article “Giving Blogging a Bad Name” <— Click to read

2. What is the most rewarding experience about sharing your life with readers?

Sharing your inner most thoughts is terrifying. I am learning that no matter how nice and kind you try to be, there will always be someone who sees the negative or chooses hate over love.

This has been a difficult lesson to learn.

The one thing that keeps me going is the love and positivity I receive from my subscribers. BuddhafulBritt.com was created to share my own journey of self-discovery, but along the way I realized that writing has brought me much more than I could have ever imagined.

I met my fiancé Manny though my writing.

It is as if all the events in my life prior to now have aligned perfectly; not to get too cheesy, but I definitely feel a certain “Kismet” brought us together.

I have also met dozens of inspirational people from around the world who have not only shown me kindness but each one has contributed their own special insight to my journey. I am thankful for all of them; like my friend Prasanna who helped bring relief to the people of Nepal after the devastating earthquake.

3. What is the most important piece of advice you could offer someone? 

STEP OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE!!! Just do it.

Go on that trip. Go back to school. Say yes to that guy who isn’t your type… LIVE YOUR LIFE. Don’t let fears hold you back. Say hello to a stranger. Donate your time to charity, you never know who you will meet or what you will gain from it.

STEP. OUT. OF. YOUR. COMFORT. ZONE.

4. Are you happy?

No. I am beige.

I wrote an article about this; I feel have “evolved to beige.” <—click to read

I believe true happiness is a simple beige, with peaks of red, green and sometimes valleys of intense blue… As long as you stay focused, a life lived “beige” is drama-free.

I think it’s weird that only recently humans seem to think we deserve this eternal state of pure bliss, where we are dancing on clouds with these big smiles twenty-four hours a day.

It’s kind of creepy to be honest. We are trying to achieve something that does not realistically exist.

Beige is a beautiful place to be.

5. Ideally, what would your life be like 5 years from now?

Usually my imagination is far-less creative than reality, so I can’t get attached to the outcomes of a five-year plan.

What if I had stuck to a five-year plan five years ago? I had planned on moving back to New York City; to my old life, my old job; my old… everything. The path I ended up with has been an extremely hard one, but rewarding in ways I could have never achieved had I moved home.

Ditch the five-year-plan, make a five-year “vision board” and keep adding to it.

6. What was/is your most difficult challenge in life, and how did/do you overcome it?

Algebra. Really…

But also, leaving New York City was and is the hardest thing I have ever had to do in my life thus far.

My original dreams were demolished and I fight resentment daily. It’s my personal belief that a certain person with an alcohol-addiction ruined the future I had planned; circumstances were beyond my control. Without acknowledgement, apologies and therapy it’s difficult to say I will ever completely forgive and “overcome” it.

I’ve re-focused my dreams and I’m extremely thankful for miracles such as my son and Manpreet, in them I’ve found a far-better dream of a future and that gives me peace.

As for Algebra, I got hypnotized to overcome my fear of that… So, TAKE THAT quadratic equations!  I Ain’t scurred. Read about it –>HERE

7.Would you say that your experiences have made you a better person?

I don’t know about a “better” person.  I’ve grown, of course.

I do believe that everyone grows by travelling, mostly because you see things that scare you; real life shocks you and amazes you.

Travel forces you to learn about how similar we ALL are on a very basic level.

You learn compassion when you come face to face with a begging child. They aren’t something on a late-night infomercial of some far-away place. They are real and it’s inhumane to ignore them.

Travel opens your eyes and gives life-lessons more than any formal education possibly could. If I have become “better” it’s only because I travel. I believe everyone should; I believe it’s imperative for growth.

Without experience we don’t learn… we only memorize what we are taught.

8.What brings you the most happiness?

Cairo. My son. Hands down. He is my entire reason for living and the coolest little guy I could have popped out of my loins. NUFF SAID.

NEXT QUESTION!

9.Who inspires you the most?

My mom.  She has had a rough life at times, but you would never know it. She has taught me to be strong, but humble. We all have pain or hurt, but we don’t need to dwell on it. My mom is the most positive person I have ever met.

She has taught me that age is just a number. She will always say “If I did it yesterday, then I can do it today,” and “If you treat me like I’m old, then I become old.”

I take the lessons she gave me and give them my own special twist of course.

I make her absolutely insane, but I could not be who I am if it were not for her.  She gave me wings when she herself had none. She gave me freedom to make up my own mind, even if it was different from hers.

My mom is truly unique and I would not be who I am today had it not been for her.

10.The journey tends to change all of us, in good and bad ways. What about yourself would you like to improve?

Many don’t know this about me, but I battle intense anxiety and have several health-issues going on. I try not to lament over these things though, as I believe that we all carry a dysfunction of some sort. I am no different.

We are not the same person we were yesterday; we are always evolving and changing. We won’t ever again be who we are tonight, so… I’m pretty damn happy with who I am becoming and working feverishly in therapy on my anxiety.

Thank you for this nomination Crystal. Like, really Crystal and Kelly are my only blogger friends. SO, if any of you would like to start a conversation I am always open to get to know other bloggers and “civilians” around the world. By looking to the right column you can check out some of the blogs I follow. —>

Leave a comment, SUBSCRIBE, lets get to know each other… I don’t bite.

NAMASTE

Follow our story in the links below:

Read about when I met “My Indian Boyfriend “—>HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: Prelude —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: Showtime —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: Indian Astrology —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: The Dress —> HERE

Surviving Long Distance Love—> HERE

 

Open Letter to my Husband—> HERE

Our Story, Retold —> HERE

Culture Shock: What to Expect?-–> HERE

Our Honeymoon: Rishikesh India—> HERE

K1 Fiance Visa: The Process—> HERE

K1 Fiance Visa: The Inteview —> HERE

Cr1 Spousal Visa: The Timeline —> HERE

Cr1 Spousal Visa: Interview Questions —>HERE

A Journey to:  New Delhi—> HERE 

A Journey to:  Jaipur India —> HERE

A Journey to: Dubai UAE —> HERE

Our First Diwali—> HERE

Giving Thanks, Shukryia  —> HERE

Being Sikh in America—> HERE

The Indian Grocery: Natural Products—> HERE

A Path to Happiness—> HERE 

Buddhaful Britt: Most Interesting Travel Blogger —> HERE

Buddhaful Advise: As We Think, So We Become —> HERE

Buddhaful Advise: Inner Peace —> HERE

Buddhaful Advise: Everyday Stress —> HERE