Welcome to Grace’s #MeMeditating account – part of our #MeMeditating series, where students share their real-life stories of how Vedic Meditation affects their lives.
Restaurant owner, chef and cookbook author Grace learned to meditate whilst on holiday in LA in 2017.
Why did you learn to meditate?
I had been going through a very stressful time with my career and starting a new business. My boyfriend at the time suggested I try meditation. He was doing a lot of Buddhist meditation which I had tried but it just didn’t click with me. A few weeks later I found myself researching meditation online, which led me to Vedic Meditation.
What benefits have you experienced from learning to meditate?
The benefits were instantaneous. I would go as far as to say that the moment I closed my eyes and thought my mantra for the first time, was the most significant moment of my life so far.
Since then, I think of my life as ‘pre-meditation’ and ‘post-meditation’. Before I learned to meditate, my emotions would swing like a pendulum from manic energy and optimism to pure exhaustion and anxiety. Meditation helps level and balance me; it helps me to view things from different perspectives; it’s taught me to embrace change and surrender to the natural flow of nature; it has allowed me to enjoy stillness and it has provided a springboard for me to learn more about Vedic philosophy, Indian history, spirituality and culture.
How has the pandemic been for you?
I think my experience of lockdown has been quite different from a lot of people as we kept SpiceBox open throughout. At the start myself and my business partner Alpesh were running around, doing deliveries and trying to keep everything afloat, then we settled into more of a rhythm. I go into work, I see the team and on days I’m not in the curry house I work from home so not much has changed in that respect.
I’m also a massive introvert so not being able to socialise and go out hasn’t really affected me too much! I appreciate that I am speaking from a place of huge privilege and I count myself extremely lucky to have remained relatively untouched by the pandemic thus far. The thing I miss most is not being able to travel – I had an India retreat booked with London Meditation Centre and am crossing everything in the hope that we can go soon!
How’s meditation helped you during this time?
Meditation has helped me stay calm and given me the clarity of thought to be able to contextualise things. Emotionally I haven’t been too affected by the pandemic and I’m sure a big reason for this is my meditation practice!
Grace is founder of Spicebox restaurant in Walthamstow, London. Her new cookbook “Spicebox: 100 Fresh, Vegan Curry House Favourites” is available now.