Recently I got a mail asking me what keeps me inspired to keep blogging. It’s not the first time I have received such a mail. Generally I blurt out things like I love travelling and I love sharing, helping people plan their trips better, something similar to what I have written in my ‘About Me’ section and get away with my answers. I don’t know why but this time the same question took me deeper. Perhaps, it was the effect of the 4 year mark that I was going to hit in a couple of days. Or may be perhaps, it was my own curiosity regarding the entire thing.

For the record, I never answered that e-mail. The question stuck in my mind though for many days to come until this week, of thanksgiving as well as my blog anniversary, when I thought it was high time I expressed my gratitude to all those things that keep me inspired to keep blogging. Next thing I knew, I had pulled out my diary and started scribbling some notes. My thank you notes. Here they go, my humble gratitude to all those awesome people who make My Yatra Diary... tick and tick... and tick with every passing year:

1. Thank you, Mummy, Papa and Bhaiyya:

As a little girl, I always travelled with my parents and enjoyed my journeys with them. They have been ardent travelers all their life with a wide range of cities and states dusted under their shoes: Gangasagar, Vaishno Devi, Kanyakumari, Rameshwaram, Dwarka, Ashtavinayak, Somnath, Uttarakhand, and so many more. However, most of these happened at a time when I was still very young to understand the finer nuances of a yatra. A real one. Or perhaps I was just too busy. Running the rat race of life. Yet as any traditional Indian family set up, I was with them, following them, tagging along wherever they went. Little did I know then that this would be the same thing that would give me, my life a whole new direction some day...

My strength

Having stepped out fresh from my graduation with flying colors, like any other young girl, I found a whole range of options waiting for me: further studies, MBA, job, what next? Everyone my age seemed to be doing those very things, and I tried treading on the same path yet I felt empty, I felt incomplete, I missed that exciting pull. My journeys continued, meanwhile and one fine day, while having a hard time searching for a good hotel on the internet as part of our travel planning, this idea of blog germinated. Soon enough, I started blogging, documenting my personal experiences, where to stay, what to eat, etc. with an intention to help people with whatever I knew. And look, where it's taken me since then.

I still remember how excited I was when I had called my dad to read the first article, proofread that is before I published it, with me and my brother standing by his side. And guess what? He read and he liked it. An immediate boost to my confidence. 4 years later, he continues to read my blog and my brother still stands by me. My mom prefers to work from behind the scene though, you can think of her as my marketing manager, she is the one who really gets the word out there as far as her voice can reach.

2. Thank You, IndiBlogger:

IndiBlogger - an Indian Bloggers community was the next to come into the picture. It was the place where I was to find the most valuable things of my blogging life: friends, smiles, joys and above all, an identity. Having been a reserved personality of sorts, it was the platform of IndiBlogger where I initially found my voice – An unwavering belief in my communication. An eclectic mix of seniors and juniors, I learnt the most important lessons while interacting with all the wonderful people there: the value of truthfulness and credibility for a blogger over money, respecting one and all for what they do, being passionate about what you do, for taking pride in what you are. I absolutely enjoyed my interactions over there (and I still do) and learnt a lot many things; I received a lot of love and appreciation for my work from various people from different walks of life, was blessed with a lot of exciting opportunities; every single step I took there bolstered my confidence and boosted my morale several many notches further.

My Badge of honor and pride

That’s the place I have grown up in, so much as a blogger, also as a person that it has today become my second family, a place I feel I belong, a place I love, a place that is binding with so many bloggers under a single roof, and yet it is different... it gives me freedom, freedom to be me. And that is what I will always love about this community. That is what I will always be thankful for.

3. Thank You, My Yatra Diary…

One, two, three... four. FOUR years! How time has flown and how it’s taken me along! So much as it might be hard to believe but it’s true. I stand at this point, here today, still typing, still searching for the right words (yeah, some things never change), still looking forward to travel, share, learn, grow... And, what an incredible journey it has been. I have enjoyed every bit of my sharing, every bit of my writing, every bit of my travelling. Varanasi, Allahabad, Mathura, Japan, Melbourne, Rajasthan, Shirdi, Mumbai Ganpati pandal hopping ...

My humble journey

 I am deeply grateful to you, my diary for coming into my life. I love you, I will continue to write to you as and when I travel. I hope my shares will always help people who are coming to you or will give others a nice arm chair travel. All this through your eyes. And mine. I look forward to an exciting journey with you, today, tomorrow and always. Thank you so much for coming into my life.

4. Thank you, My Ultimate Gift

As I am looking back at the pages of My Yatra Diary..., I feel a sense of pride and worth at the progress this little travel scrapbook of mine has made, I feel amazed at the number of pages that have been written.

Is this me who has filled all these pages?
Is it me who has been writing here continuously for the last 4 years?

Yes, it’s me but I am quick to realize that the real inspiration for all this comes from elsewhere, a much more powerful source which has guided, inspired and supported me all along. My very own ultimate gift.

And, THAT is YOU.

My ultimate gift

Without your love, this wouldn’t have been possible. I wouldn’t have been here, I wouldn’t have lasted this long perhaps; and there would have been no celebrations. Thank you for encouraging me throughout this journey, thank you for waiting for me at all those times when I was out for a break, thank you for gracing my little corner with the dust of your footprints... Thank you for making me fall in love with my blog. As every corner of my heart fills with gratitude and thankfulness today, I really don’t know what to say, so I guess, I will cut all the frills and simply say a simple ‘Thank You’.

How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.
 

~ A.A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Though we have never met yet to be blessed with this precious bond of ours really means a lot to me. I wish and pray this friendship of ours keeps growing and getting stronger and stronger with each passing day, every passing birthday.

So here's something for you! YOU, for EACH AND EVERYONE reading this right now, for my dear friend Mohini (who has also given me this beautiful birthday gift), for my mom... all feathers, all credits, achievements, My little Yatra Diary... dedicates them all to you. You are it's inspiration, it's motivation, it's joy in this journey of ours... you will always be.

I can no other answer make, but, thanks, thanks and ever thanks.

~ William Shakespeare

This world will always be a beautiful place for me because of people like you, Thank you!