It has been a year since we arrived at these shores. It has been a good year. New friends, new experiences, and new thoughts, feelings and emotions.
Largely, the year has been good, barring some incidents beyond our control that I wish had rather not happened. Perhaps I'll talk about them someday when the time is right.
I have missed several little things about India, here and there, a little bit of this and a tiny bit of that, but on the whole, I haven't felt any searing pain of separation. Yet.
Here are a few things I'm grateful for, in this new land:
- My sister and her family, who live close by, but not close enough ;) Immensely pleased that I'm getting to know my niece first hand, and not through pictures and FaceTime. Such a warm feeling to see Puttachi and my niece play together.
- Great family friends.
- Puttachi's best friend here, who lives in our complex. I cannot speak enough of the two of them. Such good friends, and they complement each other so well.
- Puttachi's school and teachers and the education system - I was worried about how she'll do; it turned out that I worried needlessly.
- The predictability of traffic - The pleasure of knowing that I can set out from home at 12, drive 8 miles into town, finish some chores, get a haircut, spend quality time at the library and drive back 8 miles to be home in time to receive Puttachi's school bus at 3.
- A corollary to the above - no place is too far. i.e. You don't avoid going to places just because the traffic scares you. That is a kind of freedom, for someone from Bangalore. [There are other kinds of freedom that this place might lack, but this is a post about what I'm grateful for, remember?]
- The fruits - New fruits, new favourites.
- Baked goods - I love baked things, and there is just so much choice here.
- The location of this place - just a couple of hours' drive can take you to such a variety of places - the beach, the mountains, the woods, lakes, parks, museums, San Francisco... add another hour or two, and the choice becomes even larger.
- The hills that surround this area - their constant presence -- sometimes I orient myself with reference to them. The way they look in the changing light of the day. The way they change colours with the season.
It is true that every place you live in becomes a part of you, and you're going to miss it when you leave.
Largely, the year has been good, barring some incidents beyond our control that I wish had rather not happened. Perhaps I'll talk about them someday when the time is right.
I have missed several little things about India, here and there, a little bit of this and a tiny bit of that, but on the whole, I haven't felt any searing pain of separation. Yet.
Here are a few things I'm grateful for, in this new land:
- My sister and her family, who live close by, but not close enough ;) Immensely pleased that I'm getting to know my niece first hand, and not through pictures and FaceTime. Such a warm feeling to see Puttachi and my niece play together.
- Great family friends.
- Puttachi's best friend here, who lives in our complex. I cannot speak enough of the two of them. Such good friends, and they complement each other so well.
- Puttachi's school and teachers and the education system - I was worried about how she'll do; it turned out that I worried needlessly.
- The predictability of traffic - The pleasure of knowing that I can set out from home at 12, drive 8 miles into town, finish some chores, get a haircut, spend quality time at the library and drive back 8 miles to be home in time to receive Puttachi's school bus at 3.
- A corollary to the above - no place is too far. i.e. You don't avoid going to places just because the traffic scares you. That is a kind of freedom, for someone from Bangalore. [There are other kinds of freedom that this place might lack, but this is a post about what I'm grateful for, remember?]
- The fruits - New fruits, new favourites.
- Baked goods - I love baked things, and there is just so much choice here.
- The location of this place - just a couple of hours' drive can take you to such a variety of places - the beach, the mountains, the woods, lakes, parks, museums, San Francisco... add another hour or two, and the choice becomes even larger.
- The hills that surround this area - their constant presence -- sometimes I orient myself with reference to them. The way they look in the changing light of the day. The way they change colours with the season.
It is true that every place you live in becomes a part of you, and you're going to miss it when you leave.
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