Hello everyone! Welcome to The Peace Stories. Today we have Payel Dutta to share her story and message of Peace. Let’s hear her peace story.

Tell us something about you.

In few little words, I love to dream and I am an awfully lazy person. Saying this, since both of them aren’t sufficient enough to live life, I somehow manage to work hard, save some of my earnings and try to tick my Solo-travel bucket list off one by one. Apart from that I am a typical bong, who loves her tradition, culture and her beautiful old city, Kolkata.

Living a simple healthy life is all I wish for, and every day I try making an amendment to it. A Bengali can’t be kept away from good food, so am I and I am obsessed of having tasty, delicious food in a healthy way. Other than my interest for travel, food and writing, I love reading stories, listing to music and watching cartoon.

How did you embark on the journey of self-discovery? How does travelling help you in this journey?

The journey of self- discovery began when I actually asked for it, maybe someday I will be ready to share the story. But (even though it sounds very philosophical) sometimes we have to be ready to listen or understand the universal sings, let go of unnecessary attachments and let your heart and mind get aligned. I guess this is complicated to explain, but until we are ready to understand our own mind, listen to our heart, how can we discover ourselves, isn’t it?

But overall, I am happy that I could realise the subject matter of self discovery and it’s a continuous process (which makes it all interesting) and I am also thankful that it happened, which is why my solo-travel dream came into action. There is one more thing I recently realised, that is, travelling to us means going to an unknown place, seeing something new, having great experiences, new people, culture, shopping and all that. But think like this, travelling can also be coming out of your familiar shell and be open to learn from the changes, chaos, constant events around us! Travelling has taught me to broaden the mind, be more acceptable, and learn to adjust where possible.

Please share with us some of your traveling experiences. Where have you traveled so far? Tell us something memorable from your travel memories that you would love to cherish forever.

Ohh my solo- travel experiences are still at an infant stage, but whatever little they are, they are beautiful, colourful and precious in their own way, and I don’t mind memorising them on a regular basis, replaying them in my mind. I really cherish those experiences where I learn, re-learn that there’s nothing wrong in bowing down, being humble, being thankful to others. I really value those memories which have influenced me to change my perception, my behaviour towards others. I ended up writing a book on my travel memories.. but here are 2 very very short and simple experiences I had but they taught me big time. & I actually remind them myself everyday so that I never forget those learnings.

 First was in Kerala, I was having lunch at a restaurant, it was a weekend and most of the foreign tourists in the restaurant were enjoying their late, laid back breakfast in that afternoon. I saw one young girl, tucking some bread butter, omelette and juice with her family. Once the rest of the family had finished eating and paid for the food, the girl done with the juice and omelette, had left a small portion of the bread on the plate. While they were about to leave, she took out a napkin paper from her bag and wrapped the bread in there and left the place. It was a raw and an honest revelation of ‘don’t waste food no matter what’; I am never in favour of wasting food, but that was in a way facing some usually-ignored reality, and after that day I try to be more careful.

Next was in Cambodia. So I was waiting at the lobby of a hostel waiting for the tour guide; after some waiting, I was asked to follow a lady who would have taken me to the tour-bus which was waiting little walking distance away from the hostel. Another young, jolly couple (most probably from one of the European countries) had joined me as well. The lady whom we were to follow was of small stature and was carrying 2 small crates of water bottles in both her hands and we were walking in the pan fried heat. The couple without thinking a bit or discussing between them, just took one crater each from the lady and started walking ahead with a broader smile on their face leaving the lady at utter surprise. & that’s the end of the story. I told you these are very simple stories and at times they make so much sense to someone like me.. who is so introvert, always living in my own watery bubbles, always so hesitant to communicate with people. These experiences have always taught me to stay grounded.

What is peace for you? What gives you peace?

For me peace is getting a sound night’s sleep and wake up to see a new day. I don’t think there can be anything better for me to be in peace.

I think the possibility of living my moments, getting to live some of my dreams, being able to understand myself… all of these let me be in peace and I can’t ask for more.

If you are told to write a letter to your younger self, what would be that one thing you would love to tell her must?

I don’t think I have anything as such to tell to my younger self, not that so far however life has been it’d been way too perfect, there have been mistakes, way too many, there have been misdeeds, wrong judgements and everything which can prove that I am too far from being someone ideal. But like this life has been self-taught & self-built. Nevertheless, if there’s still something which I could tell my younger self, would have been, be more open to learning new things; be more easily acceptable to changes.

A stranger whom you can’t forget from your travelling memories and the lesson you have learned.

There are loads.. And my book is also on few of those people I met and I don’t have any intension to forget them. Let me share something from my very recent trip from Assam. SO I went for work and due to the season’s work pressure, neither my office nor I could make any travel arrangements on time. So basically the night before my flight we woke up with a start that hotel was to be booked, car was to be arranged! It was a mess..

So a friend helped me to book the hotel, the person who actually booked my hotel just took my friend’s word as a guarantee and paid the hotel straight away, I had to insist on speaking to him, apologise for this last moment hassle, but he was most assuring. But I was already at the 24^th hour, so the car couldn’t be managed, so I still didn’t know how I was to commute in the city.

The hotel gave a reference of a rental company upon arrival.. lately the state is getting a huge tourist footfall, it was difficult for the car company to arrange a car for me at the moment, but the owner sent a car on time anyway. Later on that day while communicating with the driver I got to know that the driver was actually the owner’s own brother, who decided to assist me for the day.. The next two days the gentleman had to replace himself with another driver as he was too busy with his work. But they made sure that they would send one of their best drivers at my service and I don’t have any complain here.

So it wasn’t one person in particular but the community who came together to help me in every possible way even though I proved myself to be so irresponsible. When things fall in place better than you are least hopeful for, you can’t be grateful enough, can you?

A message that you want to share with the world.

There’s nothing wrong in dreaming, we dream all the time even without realising most of the times.. what is important among all these dreams is, finding the one which is yours and which you want to make come true.. Make those dreams happen that make you ‘YOU’.

Is there any beautiful thing that you have discovered along the walk of life and you would like to share with us?

I think everyday is a new learning for me.. there’s no end to it, thankfully. But what I realise repetitively is we cannot change everything or maybe most of the things around us and we have to accept it then move along rather than cribbing about them, it doesn’t help but trolls our own emotion leaving us ambivalent.

What are you grateful for in life? Or, name the person or the people you are grateful for in life. We will add your gratitude notes to our Big Gratitude Jar, where we are collecting all the beautiful things we are grateful for in life.

With all my heart and belief, I am grateful for everything. Be it the Almighty, my wonderful free spirited parents, people who haven’t been just to me, people who try to thrust their judgement on me, strangers who held my hand at the time of need.. everyone I am grateful for.. I am not trying to make any interesting quote here.. but I am.

Because they have had their own contribution in building my character. I may not a good sweet girl as others want me to be, but whatever I am, I have grown mentally in all these years, have learnt to be strong, be more adaptable; I did take my own time to learn all these, but it happened with all their influence.

And most importantly I am always thankful to be able to see another tomorrow, there’s nothing like it.. right?

(Thank You, Payel, for your contribution to The Peace Stories Initiative. We wish you more power to your future endeavors. May you be guided by peace and purpose. Gratitude.)

(As received the response from Payel Dutta and edited by Swarnali Nath.)