My Name

In ancient Sanskrit, it means non-duality.

It reminds me of a bright blue sky.

Or even a lone bird flying above a forest.

The first time that it's read, it comes out like jargon from another planet.

"Adiwhite? Adivith? Bubbaith?"

Raising my hand slowly, I correct all of them.

When my family says it, it sounds perfect like all the pieces of a puzzle fit in.

Sounding like a fresh lemon's zing in your mouth, "Advaith" is said.

It was the name of an ancient saint who shared his ideas with the world courageously.

Having this name, I know that I have courage too like a brave warrior.

Nobody else in the world is like me: distinct and unreplaceable.

I know that for everything, I am capable.

By knowing my name's might.

Unique and one and only; that means Advaith.

The Big Blue

    6:00 p.m.

    The Maldives

    The sunlight shimmered on the bright blue waters of the Maldives. It was early evening, about 6:00. The locals from the town nearby called this hour,  “The Time of Colors.” It was rightly named as it looked like there were a thousand pieces of gold on the ocean surface and that someone painted the sky in a beautiful array of colors. Orange, red, pink, it couldn’t get any better than this.

    “Alright divers, are you ready?” asked Captain Phillips. My dad works for National Geographic as an oceanographer. He’s supposed to take pictures and record different and new species of marine life. He’s kind of like an explorer but under the sea. I was lucky enough to be invited to go on a dive here in the gulf. We were supposed to do he usually does, but I was hoping to find a new species.

“I’m ready alright. Are you ready?” I asked my dad.

He chuckled. “Yep, I’m locked and loaded. You ready for your first dive in the open sea?”

“I have been waiting a long time for this moment.” I exclaimed.

    After several months of diving school, I was very excited. This would be my first wild dive. My dad and I put on our breathers and goggles and positioned ourselves on the edge of the boat.

“3,....2,.....1, you are cleared for the dive.” said Captain Phillips.

    I let myself fall into the water and I cannot explain what I saw next. It was like a whole ‘nother world down under. Except that this world had so many vibrant colors and life. Schools of tropical fish swam by me and dozens of manta rays glided across the waters. Marine life has always amazed me but this was something else. My dad was taking pictures of several bright orange and red coral. I decided to explore a bit. I went through arches of rock and sand. Turtles swam nearby me looking for food. I could see parrotfish, clownfish, angelfish, and so much more. I even saw a lionfish which looks really cool with its spines but I knew not to touch it as it’s poisonous.

    Then, I saw it. The one thing I was hoping to avoid. A whitetip reef shark coming towards my direction. I froze and my eyes opened wide in horror. I knew that this species of shark did not attack humans. They were even used to divers. However, I was still terrified. Anybody would be. I knew the key. Do not provoke it, and you’ll be fine. I just stayed very still and waited for the shark to pass. Luckily, it didn’t even notice me and was just looking for smaller fish.

    I let out a big phew. That was close. I turned around and swam towards my dad. I decided to tell him once we got on the boat. The coral reef that he was looking at was a nice sea green. I paused and looked very closely. I realized that two very rare fish were in one coral reef at the same time! That was amazing. I motioned towards him to quickly note them and take their pictures. I couldn’t believe it! It was a red long nose hawkfish and a black striped and spotted oriental sweetlip. I was overjoyed as I helped find two very rare fish. My dad gave me a thumbs up. We both checked our oxygen tank levels and realized we were running low. I gestured to go back up and he nodded. Once we got back on the boat, my dad gave me a pat on the back and was beaming.

    “Great job! You actually found two rare endangered species. I tagged both of them so Nat Geo will keep a track.” he said

“Thanks a lot. I also encountered a shark but made sure to let it be.”

“You did? Wow, that’s amazing and you knew what to do. I’m proud of you son.”

Captain Phillips then came out of the cabin. “Well kid, how was it?”

“I will never forget this beauty of a place. It was exhilarating.” I said smiling.

“Ah, it’s a wonder.” the captain said as he started the motor.

As we were going back to the island we were staying at, I felt the setting sun on my face. I knew that diving will always be close to my heart.

The Chase

 10:30 a.m., June 6th, 1944

English Channel

D-Day

It was terrifying. I could hear the rounds being fired one after another all around me. The glass cockpit of my Hurricane protected me from the intense, chilly winds of the English Channel but couldn’t defend against the sound of the loud machine guns of the opposing Messerschmitt fighters. I was racking my brain. How can I, Lieutenant Robert McRogan of the Royal Air Force of Great Britain, be afraid? I’m part of the ruling air force in the world! But it truly was scary. 

At any moment, bullets could be going straight through your plane and you would be diving towards the dark blue waters in an instant. Everybody was hoping for the best. This was the day where we would save Europe. We, the Allies, were pushing back the Germans out of France. I could make out the landscape of the Normandy beaches where our boys along with the Americans were storming the German turrets and defenses. I knew that I had to help them. 

As part of the No. 122 “Eagle” Squadron, we had to defend the British and American armies on the ground from incoming German fighters. Without any protection, Operation Overlord as it was called would go to waste. Beep, beep, beep! The one sound I dreaded had finally rung. It was the aircraft detector and I looked behind me. Sure enough, it was a German Messerschmitt fighter chasing after me. I took a deep breath, zipped my bomber jacket, put on my air mask, and dove down. 

I was the best pilot in my squadron. I had 10 recorded kills which I was proud of. Apparently, I was one of the best in all of England which I was amazed as I didn’t feel special. As I dove down with my heart still pounding, I waited until I heard the elevation alert screaming as it was urging me to increase altitude. I decided to pull up as quickly as I could until I was at a decent 10,000 feet. I frantically looked behind, checking if the German aircraft was still pursuing me. My heart started accelerating again once I saw the dark green wing. He’s good. I thought. I needed some expert maneuvers to outmatch this one.

10:45 a.m., June 6th, 1944

English Channel

Maneuver after maneuver ensued. I did a yaw spin, my opponent did a barrel roll. I unleashed a torrent of bullets, he sent a barrage of rockets. But not one weapon would hit each other’s plane. I knew that he also was trying his best to defeat me. But I would not go down without a fight. Just a few weeks back, I had created my own tactic. I called it the “Diving Eagle” and practiced it for hours on end in the free time that I had. I had never used it on the battlefield but I knew that I needed to use it now. I hoped that it wouldn’t fail, but in the air, you never know what could happen. I closed my eyes for a quick second, and dove straight up. As usual, the fighter followed me. But, I shifted the joystick and in a split second I was right behind him. I pressed the trigger as hard as I could and finally, the plane and its pilot dove down.

Rest in peace pilot. I thought to myself. He seemed like a good one and I did respect him. But sadly, he was the enemy. I looked around me and it seemed like my squadron was done with finishing off the opposition. Then, the radio rang.

*Kzzccchh* “Eagle Squadron, our boys on the beach are having a real tough time getting the turrets down. We need you to go to Omaha Beach and support the bombing planes so that the Army can cross the sandbar. Over.”

“Roger that Commander. We’re on our way. Over.” I said.

It was time to go to the center of it all. The beaches.

3, 100, 1700

 Trying to find a pattern between these numbers? Well let me tell you, when you find out what they stand for, you'll be shocked. This winter break, my family and I took a expected 5 day long trip to Los Angeles. We did lots of fun things there such as meet my cousin Siddhanth, go to Disneyland, the LA Museum of Natural History (the biggest in the west coast), The Malibu Hindu Temple, Universal Studios, and more. I had lots of fun. 

Sunday

The day we were supposed to leave which was Sunday, we went to the LA Museum of Natural History. There were many cool exhibits and artifacts in there such as dioramas of African and North American mammals and even skeletons of dinosaurs. We couldn't view the whole museum as it was very large but after we had our fill, we were heading towards the parking lot when my dad got a text message. The message was from Allegiant airlines and it said that our flight was cancelled! We were kind of expecting this since many flights across America were being cancelled due to insufficient crews, the new Omicron COVID variant, and severe snow in Washington. We panicked but calmly decided to eat lunch and then drive to Palm Springs Int. Airport where our flight was supposed to take off from. For lunch, we ate sandwiches from a well known Californian chain called Togo's sandwiches. My mom used to love eating from this shop and the sandwiches were pretty good. After that, we started our drive towards Palm Springs. It took 2 hours to reach the airport. Once we reached there, it was around 5 and it was dark. We had to return our rental car so we did that and then reached the airport. We spent another 2 hours there trying to book a flight the next day and asking the attendants at the booking desks for flight opportunities. Sadly, all the flights for Monday were fully booked. Because of the scarce options, we decided to stay that night at Motel 6 and decide what to do from there. We got a new rental car and drove to the motel. For the next 2 hours, we scoured Expedia, Kayak, Delta, and other airline/travel websites for flights. Not only were they not available, but they were also not coming to the Palm Springs Airport. We looked at many airports from my former house at San Jose to Burbank to San Diego. One airport was available though. Harry Reid Int. Airport at Las Vegas. There were no flights for Monday or Tuesday so we booked an Allegiant flight for Wednesday morning. Also, Las Vegas was only 4 hours away compared to the 7 hours to San Jose. Las Vegas was also where my aunt on my dad's side lived. We could stay at her house until Wednesday and then take the flight back home. My dad then called my aunt and she was overjoyed that we were staying with her. With this good plan in mind, we had a good night's sleep.

Monday

My parents and I got up early so that we could reach Las Vegas fast. We had to return our rental car since we only booked it for one night. But we had another ready. Once we got in the car, we zoomed away from LA. We had to cross the Yucca Valley and Mojave Desert which is between Southeastern California and Southwestern Nevada. The area was so dry and there was barely anybody around. The clouds' shadows created mirages that made it seem like there was water in the distance. It was pretty mind-boggling but cool. I was pretty tired from waking up so early so I took a quick power nap. After 2 and a half hours or so, I woke up to the bright lights of a sign. I looked at it and it said "Wild Bill's Casino and Amusement Park". From this one sign, I knew that we were in Las Vegas. After dropping off our third rental car (we had one before the flight cancellation) at Harry Reid Int. Airport, we called my aunt to let her know that we had arrived. She said that she was here to pick us up and we met her. My dad was super happy to meet her since he hadn't seen her in quite some time. On the drive to my aunt's house, I could see an excellent skyline of The Las Vegas Strip which is a famous road that has a lot of casinos and shops. The rest of the night my family and I just talked and we called many of my relatives. My uncle and cousin were on a skiing trip while my other cousin was doing her medical work in Chicago. I was happy that we were almost going to go home.

Tuesday

On Tuesday, we didn't do much. My aunt helps work at the ISCKON temple in Las Vegas. What is ISCKON? Well it is a Hinduism organization that stands for the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Followers of ISCKON worship and celebrate Krishna and Radha. We went to the Las Vegas ISCKON temple and had some very good food there. After that, we all just went home and relaxed. My parents and aunt watched a movie while I watched the new Disney movie Encanto. The movie was really good. For dinner, we just had chaat and bhel puri.

Wednesday

Finally! The day had come where we were going home! Everyone got up early so that we could catch the flight even though it was only at 11:00. As we packed all our bags and were eating our breakfast, my dad got another message. It told us that our flight had been cancelled. Oh no! All of us were super disappointed and angry. Why did our flight have to be cancelled!? As we were searching frantically for flights again, we found one! We quickly looked at the flight details and decided that it was perfect. It was a Delta flight that had one stop at Oakland. We didn't want a stop but we took what was available. It was a 2 hour layover and then from there we would reach Bellingham Int. Airport where we originally left from. We quickly booked the flight and were happy. For the rest of the day, we didn't do much. We just relaxed again and watched movies. In the evening, we got Mediterranean falafel bowls and for desert we got a really cool Japanese/Korean ice cream and cookie.

Thursday

We got up early again and luckily our flight wasn't cancelled. After my aunt dropped us at the airport we said our goodbyes and thanked her for letting us stay at the house. We got through security and then reached our gate. For lunch we bought taco bowls. But as we finished them, we noticed that our flight was delayed by 2 hours! We didn't want to come back very late so we changed our flight once again and then at 2:00, boarded it. After 1 and a half hours, we reached Oakland! Step 1 out of 3 was complete. What were the other two? The other two were board the flight to Bellingham, and then from there complete the 2 hour drive back home to Sammamish. We had a 1 hour layover so we bought Subway for dinner and hungrily ate it. Finally, after what seemed like a long time, we boarded the Bellingham-bound flight and took off! After 2 hours and 20 minutes, we reached the airport! I was overjoyed to be back in Washington. Step 2 out of 3 was complete. My uncle had come to pick us up and he also brought some shovels to get the snow and ice off our car. The whole airport and parking lot was covered in snow and it took 20 minutes to get the snow off our car. Once that was done, my mom and dad hopped in our car and I drove with my uncle since I wanted to talk to him. After telling my uncle all about our trip, I was pretty sleepy so I slept for most of the ride. I eventually woke up right before we reached our community, Timberline. I was amazed since the whole place was covered in lots of snow; more than the previous years. When we reached home, fireworks and celebration music played in my head since we finally reached home! Step 3 out of 3 was complete. The house was cold but after letting the heater on for a couple of minutes, the place warmed up. I slept very soundly after coming back home.

Phew! That was quite an adventure. The mysterious numbers stand for 3 cancelled flights, 100+ hours spent overdue in our trip, and 1700 miles travelled in total. I enjoyed writing about my winter break trip and I'll see you in the next post. See ya!

                                                                                  Sincerely,

                                                                                      Adi

Happy New Year

Happy New Year everybody! I am look forward to the new 2022 year and am happy that there are many chances and opportunities for good things in this year. I believe that this will be a great year and I'm looking forward to spending this year with my friends and family and you readers via my blog. Have a great year and I will see you in the next post!

                                                                          Sincerely,

                                                                               Adi