Nostalgia

We have bid our farewells with teary eyes to our mothers.
We hugged our fathers and left without turning back.

We all came here, some long time back and some recently.
We all were alone in the beginning.
We missed our mothers cooking.
We missed the vada pavs on the road side.
We missed those days when we gathered with friends at a Cafe Coffee day and spent hours on silly but yet fun chats.

We missed that girl, whom we used to see daily in the bus, who may have smiled at us,who may even have talked to us in that angelic voice, if only we had the courage to talk. Most of us grew out of it over here. We all made new friends.

We all clung to each other. We watched countless movies.
We even learnt to cook and throw pot luck parties where we always played Antakshari.
We confess that we even smiled at those beautiful girls across the street.
We all took trips to India; some annually, some less frequently.
We all tracked the "sale" events at Sears and KMart.
We all went to Indian Grocery Stores, and bought Rice and Rotis.

Now what do we do? We all work in software, we go to the local temple to socialise, we attend movie screenings, and argue countless times that Honda Accord is better than Toyota Camry or vice versa. At times, late night before falling asleep we switch on the stereo and listen to that old Hindi melody or even Pula Deshpande which makes us remember the land that was ours. We recall the green grass, the muddy roads, the wet monsoons, the pretty girls that we never talked to.

We hear the words speaking to us from across the oceans:

A Mother who gave sour medicine to her son, because she wanted him to recover soon,who let her son move miles apart though the thought was tearing her apart, she let him go as she wanted him to be happy and successful, who hides her agony in telling others that her son is abroad.

A Father who understands his son's ambitions and the limitation and frustration he has to overcome of in India, who would not let his voice reveal that says "I'll miss you son !, I love you but am unable to express the feeling".

A sister who would not have her adoring one to escort her to help her out of troublesome situations, who knows she has to send 'Rakhi' by post,who wishes he would turn up for her wedding, if not atleast to fondle her baby that longs for a MAMA's (Uncle's) love & affection.

A friend, who is left with mundane tasks, unable to exchange the chirpy jokes & comments, discuss various thoughts from family, friends, politics, & economics, who visits your home because he still remembers you not only on a day but everyday. Who would jump with joy on
receiving a mail, who tries to keep himself free for all the days when his friend is coming back on a holiday.

Whatever our roles, it is only to say that we still love and care for you, wherever you are,you are still dear to us. We don't know what you have to go through, we only know we have love & wishes to give for you. You might have learnt or the circumstances might have taught you to handle emotions and that time and work are more important than feelings and their expressions but we are still in India and are still the same, waiting and wishing for those who moved away from India,

INDIA - a land of love, emotion & sentiments....