Although 2020 has been a tough year for us all, some have discovered silver linings amidst the challenges. When ISKCON New Vrindaban, West Virginia went into a two-week lockdown on Thanksgiving Day to keep the community safe, two women from opposite sides of the world found themselves in an unexpected quarantine. However the experience turned out to be a blissful one, as they learned new skills, nourished their spiritual lives, and forged a strong friendship.

Sharaniya Nathan, originally from the UK, had been living and working as a dentist in Sydney, Australia, and had received an exemption to COVID-19 travel restrictions so that she could attend a work conference in the U.S.

Meanwhile Sarah Ferrer from Florida had previously worked in substance abuse prevention, and was in a transitional phase in her life, pursuing a “grand adventure in Bhakti.”