TRUE CELEBRATION LIES IN CARE, NOT CONSUMPTION

We are quick to send “Happy Diwali” messages to hundreds of people on WhatsApp, but how often do we pause to thank the handful who truly made a difference?

- NAMRATA KOHLI

Festivals were never meant to be a blur of lights, selfies, and sweets. They were designed as pauses for reflection moments to rekindle gratitude and connection.

Can we change the narrative and flip the script from mere celebration to connection. Festivals don't demand just happiness — they must invite healing.

Rethinking Celebration

Let this Diwali be more than décor and fireworks. Let it be a festival of acknowledgment. To the house help who kept your home running. To the security guard who stood watch in the rain. To the teacher who mentored your child patiently. To the friend who checked in when no one else did.

Americans have Thanksgiving Day to express gratitude. We can make Diwali our own Thanksgiving — a festival that celebrates not just the triumph of good over evil, but the triumph of gratitude over indifference.

We spend hours planning gifts, wrapping them beautifully, and anticipating what we might receive in return. But the truest light of Diwali isn’t the one that shines in our homes — it’s the one we kindle in someone else's life. Imagine what would happen if we channelled the same energy to give back — to those who made our year easier in quiet, unseen ways.

Gratitude and Grace