Light Woven in Yarn

Why Arki?” — a simple question.
When someone asked, “Why Arki?”— a simple question.

But I sat there in silence,

mind wandered backwards,

swept away by memories I hadn’t visited in a while.

retracing quiet steps I didn’t even realize  I had taken.

Arki… she didn’t exist until a time when everything felt like it was falling apart.

It was that phase — after I had done my part, tried everything, yet nothing seemed to work.
Neither my job nor my life felt fulfilling.
What hurt the most were the last-minute rejections — each one chipped away a piece of me.
I couldn’t process them. I couldn’t comprehend the consequences.
I was clueless, and honestly, hopeless too.
At that point, I didn’t even know how to live anymore.

I had always done things alone — quietly, silently.
And one day, accidentally, I stumbled upon yarn.
(That’s another story altogether)

To calm my anxious mind, I picked up crocheting.
With every loop and knot, I started creating again.
And in that act of creating, the lifeless part of me began to stir.
Like a withered plant, I started growing small twigs — slowly, gently.

One day, I visited a friend. She happened to see my work and said,
“You’re good at this. You should do something with it. But first — you need a name.”

I told her, “I’m doing this for myself. It’s therapy. That’s all.”
But she didn’t give up. “You’ve already done so much. Why not try this once?”

I left her place, but her words stayed with me.

So I sat there, alone in my room, directionless but with a strange hope blooming.
I was waking up early again, excited to hold yarn in my hands.
So many colors. So many patterns. So much to learn.
I still didn’t know what was happening outside my world,
But inside, I was busy — and when I’m busy, I’m happy.
That part, I knew for sure.

Still, no name.
But in my heart, I knew I wanted to build something rooted in
Art and Kraft — the very things that breathe life into me.
And also… AK — my initials, Anusha Karnati.

Then one day, I left for Gokarna. No plan. Just left.
I booked a bus ticket that evening and went.
I planned to stay two days — stayed just four hours.

But something happened there.

While I was playing by the beach, my roommate clicked a candid photo of me.
Later, she showed it to me and said,
“You found the light. And I caught it.”

That line. It stayed.

Back home, I kept learning, creating, experimenting — all while that moment echoed inside me.
“You found the light.”

I wanted a name that would carry that feeling.
It had to reflect light. It had to be short.
It had to hold “A” and “K”.
And it had to reflect me — not some catchy trend, but something true.

After days of searching, rejecting, and rethinking —
I found the name: Arki.
It means “light.”

Because she found her light.

Today, one person who knows parts of this journey calls me Arki.
That’s how it began — how Anusha slowly emerged as Arki.

She found her light.
And maybe, just maybe, she’ll be a guiding light for others too.

A life filled with emotions, chaos, calmness, and quiet strength.
A rollercoaster of feelings.
A wave of beauty.

Someday, I might get it tattooed.
Not sure when or where yet — but if the moment feels right, I’ll know.

As for what happened after I named her Arki?
That’s a story for another day.

@arki