Allow us to Walk you through Today: a Rainy Day with Lots of Smiles, Volunteer Appreciations and Three Awards

What we had for Breakfast? Not sure, but we know what we served right after: our online 100 Seeds of Joy Projects’ Meeting followed by a well appreciated online Collective Meditation

Today we had many important news to share with our team of volunteers! Just a day earlier we received a powerful response from the Mayor of Burlington, followed by an invite from a community partner to collaborate on two meditation programs for teens in the summer, and April has many events while May is the around the corner with our Festival of New Beginnings.

That’s no wonder that we decided to be together in the morning (online) and share the 100 Seeds of Joy projects from April and some big news, as well to get ready for the Saturday CDH event and for our Sunday public seminar for Earth Day.

Our garden decided to open its doors to this timid Spring and it was nice to observe that the flowers chose to bloom precisely on the Orthodox Easter Sunday – noticed them after we returned from our wonderful Inner Peace Meditation seminar celebrated so joyfully on the same day.

Based on the photos shared above you might jump to the wrong conclusion. Today was indeed a very cloudy and rainy day!

Yet, as our breakfast included a joyful meeting and collective meditation (online, still we loved it!) we got ready for the ride to attend the Halton Hills Fair event dedicated to volunteers and to the larger community

Surprise: Just before leaving the house Ioana received an Invite to Attend the Awards Ceremony and the Photo Exhibition at the Laureate College College happening also Today

Backstory: having the honor of being part of Burlington Today’s community advisory board, I am taking seriously my responsibility of keeping an eye on the articles published online and a few months back I noticed a recurring announcement about the photo contest launched by this college. I decided spontaneously to submit three photos, one for each of the three categories that were mentioned in the ad. I never did this before, but somehow it felt that “I’d like to share the beauty I see in the world”, and I went with the flow.

For months I did not hear back from the organizers – I completely forgot about this contest!

What to do? I received the invite in the same day when our team of volunteers committed to participate in a fair that was at least one hour drive away, and the timing was overlapping, plus today only Isabelle was able to accompany Ioana for the fair.

The Halton Hills Volunteer Fair 2026 & Community Celebration Event organizers welcomed our 100 Seeds of Joy Team. We had a Lovely Time connecting with the Vendors & Fellow Volunteers.

Glad to Know that our FREE Online Meditation Classes appealed to people from that area that visited the Fair, and that We were Invited to other Organizations to Offer a Meditation Class

Let us share some highlights from the time we spend at the fair. Despite our best efforts, because it was almost 1 hr long ride from Burlington to that location, and we had to carpool, we arrived late. Yet both Heather and her colleague from the CDH organizing team, welcomed us with their beautiful smiles! It felt really good and our team was able to complete the set-up in less than 1 minute; everyone around was smiling and were ready to help. Such an Awesome atmosphere!

Soon after our arrival, we already started receiving people interested to find out: What are You offering?! It was wonderful to hear that people recognized either our logo (100 Seeds of Joy), or they remembered the Meditation Program offered last year at the Annual Halton CDH Congress, or were telling us that they know the Founder of Sahaja Yoga Meditation — in all these cases, it seems that the Good Reputation preceded this encounter and led to deeper positive conversations.

A gentleman’s confession and strong desire to attend our in-person and online meditation classes really moved me: he was in fact a volunteer and it seems that the hard situations he encountered led to his depressions and anxiety; we chatted a bit more and after explaining to him the science behind sahaja yoga meditation and how we can evaluate and determine from case to case what a person requires to ahieve the inner balance,he said : “This is Exactly what I need! I will join you soon!“.

A reputed vendor invited our team of volunteers to “present & help” at their location in that very town, at a later date!

Another takeaways was the quote that we noticed on one of the flyers received from another vendor:

“I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become“ from Carl Gustav Jung, who we – as practitioners and teachers of sahaja yoga meditation – know to be a realized soul (such as Dante Alighieri and Kahlil Gibran too).

We hope that you enjoyed the photos that we shared so far, all from our Spring in Halton this year, including the smiling volunteers, Isabelle and Ioana that brought to the Fair spring flowers from their gardens! Enjoy the quote below – Doesn’t speak a recognizable truth?!

“The flowers are beautiful, so they don’t have to beautify themselves; and  this is what one has to understand, that innately, if you are ‘that’, if you have already ‘become’, then what is the need to put in any more effort ?!”

(Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi – the founder of Sahaja Yoga Meditation, when speaking about one’s self realization during a lecture offered in 1984 at an international yoga seminar)

What about Today’s Promised ‘Three Awards’? Where are Those? You might Rightfully Wonder.

Indeed, we owe you that too.

Let’s share with you some personal details: without knowing nothing else other than it will be an Award Ceremony and a beautiful photo exhibition, Ioana felt compelled to take the road again, for another long hour and return to Burlington.

The address also, “told her something”, as it was 1921 Snake road, and March 21, 1923 is the birthday of the founder of Sahaja Yoga Meditation; also, Kundalini energy (the life force energy in the yoga system) is many times called as the “snake energy” as it moves upwards in spirals, helping our evolution and inner transformation.

Therefore, Ioana took the serpent road on a heavily rainy afternoon, also made arrangements for Kruti (another 100 Seeds of Joy volunteer) to replace her at the fair and help Isabelle with wrapping up the event.

She managed to arrive late .. but again, that is a debatable notion because when on flows on the wave of “meant to be at the right place on the right time”, then it’s better to arrive ‘late’ or ‘early’ via rational standards, while being at the precise moment as per the timing of The Play (or Leela -Sanskrit language for the ‘divine cosmic play’ intended by the Creator).

The Laureate College was such a beautiful Surprise, as Location and Historical building!

Laureate College of Burlington is representing the former School Sisters of Notre Dame Canadian Provincial Motherhouse, a landmark that has served as a centre of education, community, and leadership since its completion on February 14, 1927.

When I arrived at its doors, the rain was falling heavily and I rushed inside, also because I was terribly late or so I thought.

The rain was still drumming loudly in my ears when I heard the soft voice of the lady who offered to help me with my coat, gave me a label to write my name on and gently inserted me into the room where the Awards Ceremony was in full action and display.

Surprise, Surprise, actually Three Times Surprise!

After taking only two steps into the room, the master of Awards Ceremony asked me across the room: ” What is your name?”, and after I disclosed it she said: “Perfect timing! Please, come to take your Award!“.

I went upfront, we were also asked to pose for the photos, and during those she sneaked into my hands a second diploma (!), without understanding what is really going on I smiled for the photos and thanked for this unexpected honor.

Then, I sat in the front row of chairs, listening to the other awards being described and bestowed upon fellow awardees. It was lovely to chat with Ixchel and with other participants to this intimate yet vibrant ceremony.

We were all invited to visit the photo exhibition and another surprise was waiting for me: discovering my photos printed and getting a “real life” with all its details revealed and shared “with the world”. I was told that the exhibition will be open to the public until after Mother’s Day and that the photos that took the first award might be even placed on the walls of the College.

Slowly, I comprehended that ‘I took two first prizes‘, and that ‘The beauty I saw and the Joy I felt and captured in an instant will maybe be re-iterated / re-lived in many other eyes and hearts, for years to come.’

My friend – Serendipity – played its hand, again and again

As much as I love dressing cozy, today, as rainy as it was, I felt in a “celebratory mood”, and I totally blame the “sahaj togetherness” we experienced in the morning, when our Cultivators of Joy chatted online about our ongoing projects and the lovely peaceful online meditation that followed. That one awakened in my heart the glorious Joy of the Spirit we’re all aiming for. Also, that day felt to wear the spiral based (“my Kundalinis” as I call them) set of earrings and necklace that encapsulate beautiful memories from family visits to the Caribbeans.

Almost everyone I talked to during my strolling through the Photo Exhibition made the remarks that I wear precisely the same colour that my “Serene Warrior” chose to wear for the Awards Ceremony; a few people wanted to take my photo next to Him.

Note: when I will receive those photos and the official ones from the Awards Ceremony I will share them here: promise!

The last but not the least – Sometimes, it’s worth to ‘Just Ask’, this is The Takeaway

Fun fact: The event’s official photographer asked me to be in a photo with the Director of this Photo Contest “somewhere” in the middle of the photo exhibition. I turned my head, and recognized the background being a blowup of my third photo! So, I asked about it and thanked the juror that was standing next to me for including it in the expo even though it did not win an award.

Then, they asked me: “Oh, we did not give you that (3rd) Award?! Wait a second..”

Seconds later a third award – diploma – was handed out to me, for precisely that photo. Otherwise, I’d never find out that all the three photos that I sent months back “into the world” to be “judged”, they all came back with “laurels of victory“, as judged by the Laureate College..

The Actual Three Photos that brought such Unexpected “Treasured Fruits “on a Rainy Day – will be shared once we receive some Official Photos and when the News will become Public

Until then, I hope you enjoyed this article (decorated with personal photos) dedicated to Today being a Rainy Day with lots of Smiles, Surprises, Volunteers being Appreciated and Three Awards offered on a Snake (like Kundalini energy) road in Burlington at a number (1921) that connects to a Motherly spiritual figure for this ‘volunteer photographer’ (ha ha!) and from a place that once was called “Motherhouse“.

Quite a Joyful Story that asked to be shared with You All!

I feel gratitude for my motherly teacher – Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi – who inspired me to become a volunteer since I was a student, and who opened my eyes to the Joy within and to the Beauty we must see all around us, especially in each other.

The photo captures one of the many times when Shri Mataji used to tell us all stories filled with wisdom and humor too.

What a Story Teller Sher was!

Please, drop a comment if you wish and explore the next article – that definitely will challenge You with its images & stories.

(explore: photos & stories) A Day of Amazing Experiences from Wellbeing to Ethereal

Bye Bye from the beautiful Here & Now – this last photo is from Oakville, Halton, ON, Canada. See you around.