"You Are Love": Sudeep Balain

Challenge Your Thinking with Dr. Linda Tucker

Sudeep Balain ended up learning the lessons he needed to learn about love through divorce. As counterintuitive as it sounds, we often learn our most profound lessons through our failures, even extreme failures and disappointments. At some point each one of us will come to a crossroads in our lives. It’s rare that a single one of us is immune from disappointment, tragedy, failure or even perceived failure. However, we are all given a choice...do we retreat in fear and despair, or slowly start to rebuild and move forward? Sudeep Balain had it all: the secure job, great house in Marin County, CA, and a growing family. But, it all came crumbling down when his wife of sixteen years wanted a divorce. Although life as Sudeep knew it was falling apart he decided on a journey that he ultimately realized he sorely needed. If you wonder about the title or worry that this is some California fruit, nuts and flakes kind of interview you will miss something important. In his book, You Are Love, Sudeep recounts his travels around the world and his process of beginning to know himself, and how he discovered that at the core of who he is...is simply love. Sudeep reminds us that we can only come face to face with our internal motivations and fears when we take time to pause and recharge away from the noise. And while some might consider self-care or self-discovery a selfish act, it’s actually the most loving thing we can do--because we can only extend generosity and love to others when have taken the time to really know and accept ourselves first.