Category Archives: Well-being

Dear friends, It has been just over nine months since I began composting within my home. Everyday I segregate waste and follow the process of composting. Over these months, I have witnessed my garden grow and just last week, we harvested our first ever tomatoes born as compost gifts. This entire process which is slowContinueContinue reading “The Commune: Responding to the Climate Crisis”

Dear Friends,On 9 August 2021, The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its latest Report rather mundanely titled, ‘Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis’. Its contents however were far from mundane. It pointed out: “It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land. (…) Human-induced climate change is already affecting many weatherContinueContinue reading “The Commune: A Code Red For Humanity”

Dear Friends, Even as I was urging myself to sit down to write this, I was inexorably drawn to the news coming in from Afghanistan and Meghalaya. Some days, it feels difficult to hold onto hope in the face of all that is unfolding around us. As I stared into my screen, each news reportContinueContinue reading “The Commune: Circles of Care”

Dear friends,As someone who’s been on Twitter for more than a decade now, I recently had a moment to pause and think about all the relief work for disasters and crises I’ve seen on there over the years. From #AssamFloodRelief in 2012 to #NEFloodRelief in 2014 to #JKFloodRelief in 2015 and so on till our most recent crisis, #COVIDEmergency. Seeing communities comeContinueContinue reading “The Commune: Communities of Aid”

Dear Friends, Right in the thick of the second wave, my family and I, despite every possible precaution found ourselves swept into the raging storm of covid. One after the other, we fell sick through a period of one and a half months. I still remember that instinctive tightening in my chest and jaw asContinueContinue reading “The Commune: “I’ll light up my soul with a match and let it sing.””

Dear Friends, A few days ago, I was listening to the On Being podcast by Krista Tippett in conversation with clinical psychologist Christine Runyan. They were talking about the physiological impact of the pandemic and the stress response of the nervous system. In the wake of the heartbreak of the past few months, it was comforting toContinueContinue reading “The Commune: A Space For Grief”

Dear friends, In late November, my sister set up a small library in the building for all the kids that lived here. Ever since then, the children in the building would come to the library to sit and read; colour and paint; play board games or just chat in the safety of this new spaceContinueContinue reading “The Commune: Children’s Experiences of COVID-19”

Dear friends,On March 15, my grandmother celebrated her 94th birthday halfway across the world with my aunt and uncle in whose care she now lives. It’s been three years since we’ve seen each other in the flesh. To mark the day and tend to the strong urge to see and hold her again, I foundContinueContinue reading “The Commune: Women On The Front Lines”

Dear friends,Many years ago I came across a quote and it immediately reminded me of a very specific moment and the very specific faces of women and young girls standing in a long snaking line that seemed to extend till the horizon of my sight. It was maybe a week after the terrible floods ofContinueContinue reading “The Commune: ‘To never look away. And never to forget.’”

Dear friends, According to C. E. A. Winslow, well known for creating one of the most used definitions for public health said: “Public Health is the science and the art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting physical health and efficiency through organized community efforts (…)” With such a huge healthcare crisis looming over us,ContinueContinue reading “The Commune: Healthcare Inequalities”