Hello and welcome! My name is Shalini and this is a place for me to compile thoughts and ideas I’ve collected on a variety of subjects.

My concept for this site has evolved a lot with time. Originally, I had planned on creating a food blog with specific details on why I focused on incorporating certain foods into my diet and doing so with recipes that were both tasty and nutritious. I wanted to provide information and outside sources for why I was making the choices I made and how I thought they could be beneficial. However, I was ignoring how even though food is a large aspect of overall health it’s not the only component to it. I want to use this space to speak on my thoughts regarding overall well-being—whether it be through food, habits, or attitude—and how to implement it into our lives in a practical way.

One of my goals here when I present my thoughts is that it be based off of the more current and up to date information available. I’m not a fan of baseless general statements nor am I a fan of a reluctance to challenge the status quo or of immediately denying conflicting evidence. In that spirit, my thoughts and opinions are always open to changing just as sufficient data changes. Nothing here is truly concrete—it’s me trying to put together pieces of a puzzle the end of which I’m not entirely sure. Oftentimes walking through life I feel like I’ve been given the parts for a piece of furniture but no directions on how to make it and no picture for what it should end up like; this sentiment is expressed in a lot of what I talk about on here. I want to be transparent about both what I know and what I don’t know.

The one true purpose of this blog is to serve as a collection of new information as I find it. Growing up, my parents were never particularly religious despite both coming from traditional Bengali Hindu families. When my father would speak on Hinduism he’d have less to say about the deities themselves and more on the abstract concepts that serve as pillars of the faith. One of those concepts was that the purpose of life is the pursuit of knowledge, and it’s only when you know everything there is to know that you can achieve enlightenment. I don’t think it’s possible to learn everything, but I do think it’s a worthwhile endeavor on which to embark. It’s only through improving our knowledge that we can increase our understanding, our compassion, and ultimately our love. It’s my hope to successfully and effectively reflect those intentions.