Choosing Community, Finding Belonging: My Journey with CAAM
By Geetanjali Chakraborty
When I first considered joining the California Association of Ayurvedic Medicine (CAAM), I did what many of us do before committing to something new: I asked around. I reached out to acquaintances who had been involved in various capacities. The feedback I received gave me pause.
Words like “lack of community,” “working in silos,” and “ego battles” came up. It was not an encouraging picture. And yet, it was a familiar one. Anyone who has worked in the non-profit world knows that volunteer-run organizations can sometimes carry such reputations.
But I had already learned an important truth through my own service work: your experience is, more often than not, what you choose to create — both for yourself and for others. This isn’t to dismiss the experiences of others; their perspectives are valid. It is simply to say that we each hold the power to shape our reality, and to help shape the culture of the communities we step into.
With that mindset, I chose to join CAAM. First as a volunteer. Today, as a board member.
What I Found at CAAM
Over the past two years, my lived experience has been the exact opposite of those initial warnings. I have found an incredible team — people so dedicated, so capable, that together they can truly move mountains. This is not a group of individuals pulling in different directions. It is a collective, unified force bound together by trust, care, and a shared love for Ayurveda.
The best place to witness this spirit is during our annual conference. If you attend, you won’t see individuals vying for credit. What you will feel is something subtler and far more powerful: an invisible collaborative energy that runs through every detail, from the way sessions are curated to the way guests are welcomed.
This care does not come from paid staff or from the cushion of a large budget — we have neither. It comes from the seva spirit of volunteers. People who give not because they must, but because they love.
Welcoming with Heart
The analogy that comes closest to describing this is simple: when we prepare for our conference, we are not merely hosting an event. We are preparing to welcome people into our hearts.
Every workshop, every conversation, every carefully designed moment is an extension of that intention. What you experience as smooth logistics or a thoughtful program is, in truth, the result of countless unseen hours of dedication, often carried out quietly in the background by volunteers.
It is this invisible thread of seva that makes CAAM what it is.
What This Journey Taught Me
My time here has reaffirmed something beautiful: when a mission is powered by genuine passion and shared vision, it transcends limitations. It rises above the lack of resources. It dissolves ego. It creates a space where community becomes not just a possibility, but a living reality.
Two years ago, I joined with some doubts. Today, I feel only gratitude — for the colleagues who have become friends, for the collective that has become family, and for the ongoing journey of bringing Ayurveda to more lives in a spirit of service.
If you have ever wondered about CAAM, I invite you to come closer. Attend a gathering. Volunteer with us. Be part of this shared experience in building something extraordinary out of love, passion, and community.
By Geetanjali Chakraborty
Geetanjali is a NAMA-certified AD who specializes in leveraging diet and lifestyle as the primary pillars of holistic health. Central to her Ayurvedic philosophy is the idea of harmonizing with one’s natural environment, advocating for the cultivation of personal herbal gardens rooted in local conditions. Beyond functional health benefits. She emphasizes the profound mental well-being gained from nurturing a relationship with healing plants, integrating them as cherished members of one’s family.