In fact, my India trips have now started to form a discernible pattern. Each trip is surrounded by excessive amounts of love from my parents. My friends through their jaunts express their affection. I eat superbly delicious food every day, sometimes twice on the same day. I travel to much traveled places only to observe new landmarks through different eyes. I enjoy voraciously, the warm Nashik sun and run amply on its dusty jogger’s paths. I admire my ability to drive a small car bravely. And I consume endless amounts of sweet milky coffee and tea.
In my routine of fun and wondrous enjoyment, I always notice the rapid changes in the country I left behind. There is much still the same in the column of ‘bad’. But slowly working through a billion bodies of inertia I see hints of ‘good’. This is no longer an India I left behind but rather a country that is on rampant warpath of development fueled by young energized bodies.
I find it a tad sad that I have made it habit of leaving home just when I find my groove here. Just when I cozy up in my room with my favorite snack, an ice cold glass of Thumps-up and a big old book, it is time to pack those monstrous bags again. A dreadful task, if you ask me.
But, keeping in line with the Indian sense of optimism, if I have left home so many times it also means that I have also come back home several times. No matter how many oceans, roads and rail tracks I traversed outward, I have made a habit of returning back home.
This, as far as habits go, is undeniably a good one.
I get the same feeling when I am home. But I often question if I have changed so much to allow for that column of 'bad' to affect me in a way that I don't know if I could go back for good.
And I also have several days when I long for 'home'. Life is about making choices, I don't need to tell you that as you have made one yourself 🙂 .. but.. how I often remind myself.. how would I miss something if I don't go away from it.
yeah, well said. It is quite possible if I did not visit home once a year maybe it won't be as special and may be my friends might not spend as much time as they do. I don't think affection from parent has any dependency on distance or frequency.
I hope you find peace which ever place you call home. After all, there is just one earth.