A Letter To My Daughter Aaradhya - How To Live

My Dear Daughter,

You are almost 2.9 years and a pretty smart girl. You are growing up and gaining a lot of wisdom. Here are some things that I want you to always remember:

• You are loved! By everyone in the family and so many others. You have lots of friends – some will stay with you for a lifetime and many will come and go. This is life. You are a really good girl.

• Love your body. You are beautiful. Take care of your body – exercise and eat healthy and you will be beautiful.

• Love yourself. No one is perfect and we always have something we could be better at; sometimes we make mistakes – learn from them and move on. Take responsibility for your part, resolve to not make the same mistake again and forgive yourself.

• Do the best you can in school and don't worry so much about what your grades are. Believe in yourself. I believe in you. You are going to be a great at whatever you choose to do; the only thing you have to do is believe in yourself.

• If you can’t find the perfect path in life, create one. Ask for a job that doesn’t exist. Define your own identity, even if the universe doesn’t agree. Never stay static in something that doesn’t challenge, terrify and elate you, congruently. Life demands change.

• Don’t be afraid to work hard. I know sometimes it sucks to have to work hard at something, but if you can work at it, without giving up, you will find it gets easier. I promise. But you can’t give up! You are only giving up on yourself. I will never give up on you.

• Don’t be defeated by “NO”. You will hear it many times before you hear “YES”. But also know that sometimes no means no and it’s important to respect that. When you respect the “NO” of others, they will respect yours. Learn to know when you should push or when you should respect a “NO”. I know it’s confusing now, but with practice you will learn to know the difference.

• You can’t change people. Not men, not your friends. Accept the ones you want to accept, move on from the ones you don’t. You won’t look back, I promise.

• When you feel down, find something that makes you happy, listen to music, draw, write a song or a poem. You are very creative and when you are doing something creative, you will find peace and happiness. Put more into the world than you take away. Never stop creating things: write, read, draw, dance. Try new things and never stop trying.

• Know that you are in charge of you and you can choose to feel any way you want to. It takes work to be your own master – don’t let the thought monsters control you! You can control them! Don’t accept defeat, just keep working at it. Even I struggle with those buggers from time to time. Know that it will all be ok, especially if you love yourself and remember that your dad will always love you no matter what- you are never alone.

• Don't believe the negative thoughts and stories that sometimes pop into your mind – they aren’t true. Go back and read all of this again- this is the truth!

• The love I have for you can never be broken or taken away from you. It is a constant you can always count on.

Dear Aaradhya, on December 18, 2016, it was really a panic day for me. You burned you right arm with the hot water when you were with your mother. She never care about you and always blame you. I can feel your burn pain but she? no way....

Love you my Cheeku :). I love you with all my heart. You are my greatest gift.