Let’s Get Acquainted!

First of all, thanks so much for being here! In a world that is inundated with relentless news feeds, social media, influencers, advertisements, and all manner of people and things trying to get your time and attention, I am so glad that you’re on this page reading my blog!

My name is Shruti. I grew up in Botswana, Lesotho, India, and immigrated to the United States when I was 16. I got my undergraduate degree in journalism and then went on to law school. Since high school, I have lived in Chicago, Boston, New York, and I am now (very happily) settled — of all places — in Kansas City! I’m married to my college sweetheart, I work as in-house corporate counsel at an international company, and my favorite role of all — I am mom to three wonderfully amazing children!

So why this blog? Oh, the reasons are so many.

First of all, I am a writer at heart. I’ve always written. I wrote poems and in diaries when I was a child, I wrote for my college newspaper, I had a private blog chronicling pregnancy and motherhood for several years, I currently write regular letters to all three of my children, I’ve attempted the first few chapters of a novel, and of course my job as a lawyer requires a good amount of writing. Writing does so much for me — it helps spark creativity, process complicated thoughts and feelings, record precious slices of time in life, and with this blog, I am hoping it will help me build a community of like-minded women.

I turned 40 last year, and I marked the year with several sweetly unique experiences– all of them leading me in one way or another to the idea of starting this blog. First, I decided to pick up tennis as a hobby for the first time in my life last February, and even though I had my doubts and apprehension about it, I stuck with it throughout the year. I started with a beginner crash course at my gym. I then brought together a group of women who were all beginners in tennis to play outdoor pick-up tennis in the warmer months, and we had so much fun socially bonding and getting a great work-out all at the same time. I also joined group tennis classes at my gym, and I’ve been so proud to see that by just staying committed, and focusing on taking just one step (or rather, one swing!) at a time, I have made significant progress over the course of a year. In addition to really improving my tennis skills, I’ve built a whole new social network, and it’s been an incredibly rewarding experience. That’s my wish for this blog too — that I simply stay committed, and focus on making one blog post at a time, and I can’t wait to see what magic this unravels over the course of a year!

Another sweet experience was marking the day I turned 40 with the trip of a lifetime to Lake Como, Italy! I have always absolutely loved traveling, and my delightful husband, who knows my love languages are acts of service and quality time, planned this amazing trip to Lake Como with 14 of our close friends! We rented a house right on the lake, and spent a week swimming and boating on the lake, drinking, eating, hiking, shopping, taking scenic walking and train tours, and of course, partying into the wee hours of the morning! And what moved me the most during this trip was seeing myself surrounded by a group of eight strong, beautiful, unique, and supportive women — all of them dear friends of mine from different chapters of my life, who went through great lengths to be there to celebrate me that week. And there is such power when women unite to uplift each other! I hope this blog can be a platform to harness the power and beauty inherent in communities of like-minded and supportive women!

Finally, the year I turned 40, I decided to say YES to an experience that I normally may have found every reason to say no to simply because it felt like a “stretch.” But I am so glad I said yes, and accepted my dear friend Palka’s invite to a one-week yoga and meditation retreat she was hosting for the second year tucked away in the mountains and woods of Slovenia in a location straight out of a fairytale. I took my mother on this trip with me, and along with a group of seven other women mostly from the U.K., we spent a week nestled in nature, meditating, practicing yoga, journaling, eating organic food harvested from the same land we slept on, taking silent nature walks, dipping in the cold pool and then simmering in the sauna, attending night-time fire ceremonies, and generally just taking the time to slow down (as dichotomous as that sounds) and sink into deep reflection. One day, during our yoga practice, I was curled up in the fetal position, and I just had this strong sense of “rebirth.” I had this urge to deeply honor the young girl and woman in myself — all her triumphs, glories, scars, and battles. This urge to emerge as fresh and new, taking the lessons of my past, but moving on to a brand new page. And this new page involves creativity, healing, inspiring, learning, sharing, giving, liberation, empowerment, and peace.

And this blog is a segment of that new page. I am very passionate about womanhood — and especially about how womanhood intersects with motherhood — and I am brimming with stories, opinions, and ideas to share, and the desire to learn and to build a community of strong, supportive, and like-minded women. On this blog I hope to cover wide-ranging topics, including professional ambition, body positivity, marital and family relationships, aging, self-care, mental health, and the myriad joys and challenges of parenting. I sincerely hope you’ll come along for the ride with me!