Moving to an Alien Land

thank you chowk editor;)

ana and khamy:
badmash;)

ms. waraich:

No offence taken. I know, I often tend to miss out on the details- I`m not a regular writer, sorry.

...since you did not take any offence i am daring again...if you want to share something with the readers ... then please take a little trouble to see the end result from the reader`s perspective...it is not fair of the writer to expect the chowk editors to fix their writings all the time...the same example i gave earlier...cooking utensil and dinner ware :) ... and again, no offence

rgds

t

No offence taken. I know, I often tend to miss out on the details- I`m not a regular writer, sorry. I wrote it because I`ve always wondered how people go and settle down abroad. I have friends who have been there for years and who still complain about their fast paced lives and lack of contact with families back home. My mother would often throw up her hands in despair on my often anti religion, anti marriage, anti everything comments and say that I would be the ideal candidate for living abroad and should do so. Though I am enjoying the experience here still cannot imagine living here forever. Wouldnt mind moving to Sangla Valley or some such place in India though.So despite the opprobrium that some people are wont to attract in small towns in India, it`s still preferable to be yourself in your land. After all maybe we were born there for a reason. Or maybe no reason at all, still it takes all kinds to make a world and maybe my place is in India.

The main reason why people move is obviously the money, it`s much easier to come by, life is more orderly, things are more streamlined and opportunities better for the kids. Yet I prefer to have my kid grow up in the unsafe parks, with the unhygienic dhobi`s kids. I dont have a problem as some people living in the western world do about kids losing touch with their culture or the fear that they will marry a white or a black- that is their life but i guess i need to be myself in my land without the feeling of having run away and escaped. As my father`s aunt said to me ``Come back soon, we need you here.`` O f course noone needs anyone, yet I often ask if we can up and leave just like that. I like to think I make more of a difference in India- get my uncles` maid`s operation fixed, give the dhobi`s kids lessons and a glass of milk, talk to the old man who used to come and meet me from the other end of town while I saw 25 patients a day. I see four here along with their case managers, psychologists etc. So, sorry Mom, back I come.

But yes , I guess we do suffer from some kind of third world syndrome or post colonial syndrome , it`s good to see so many asians here. Of course a year or two and people get used to the life here and the confusion we see back home seems even more so. So should all the people who can leave for a better life in the west just do that- leave? I dont know.

well now that i see that paragraph breaks have been instituted. . . the last part of my last paragraph seems rather redundant. :) ah, now everyone should be happy, especially the one i predicted would actually say something. . . and did.

and something tells me that khamkhwa is laughing at me, not with me!!! khair. . . .

[ i`m sure that someone will point out to you that it would be best if you broke the last paragraph into separate ones. ]

....HAHAHAHAHAHA......

Thank you.

One thing suddenly struck me, all over again, and the first time I had figured this out was in 1975.

For many of us, other than the ``official`` lot including diplomats / journalists, and other than the ``family/relative`` stream, the first time we meet people from ``the other country`` is usually in some third country where we are already feeling nostalgic about shared values.

This does not happen to people from too many other neighbouring countries.

simmi,

moving anywhere from a place one feels comfortable is angst-ridden. it isn`t always easy to pluck roots and replant them in foreign soil, but it does work.

and i know something of the joy of meeting up with ``brown skins`` . . . the indians, the pakistanis, nepalis and bangladeshis, after a few years of not seeing them around in a strange land. i also know that things disliked seeming somewhat comfortable, would in the course of time become not so comfortable again.

out of curiosity who calls who a wog exactly in sydney? i`m not surprised that greeks and turks would be addressed as such by goras? a friend and former professor of mine who is armenian-czech-american was called a wog when he was in inglestan. it`s the acronym for westernized oriental gentleman, and it`s considered to be a racial slur.

thank you for sharing these thoughts of transition with us. i`m sure that someone will point out to you that it would be best if you broke the last paragraph into separate ones. . but i`ve seen a book where paragraph breaks were few and far between. har ik ka apna apna andaaz hota hai. :)

hope your stay in oz keeps you well!
ana

ms. waraich:

…can i honestly give you some feedback?

…you can write…now…think or act like a reader…is this what you would like to read on a e-magazine?...on the monitor?

…content is okay…but what about presentation…am sure a person of your sensitivity and ability can spare time for a revision…please break this into small well thought of paragraphs…

…think of it this way…one may be an excellent cook… but do we serve biryani or pulao in the degchis or pot they were cooked in or do we care and serve the food in dishes?...

….no offence intended…

lve

t