9 Years of life in a foreign land
From the title you can guess what this post is going to be about. I am celebrating or rather trying to celebrate my 9 years in Singapore. Yea on the 1st of July mom and I landed in Singapore. I landed with lots of questions in my mind. Future was a question mark and education was a bigger question mark. This country changed me totally to a different person I didn’t imagine of. I came across incidents which I would have never encountered in India. Had my share of good and bad times in Singapore .Ever since I came here I can’t help but to count the loss and gains in my life for migrating here.Here is an extract of my loss and gain in Singapore: D
1. I don’t know what it is like to bunk college, what it is like to get ragged by seniors, what it is like to enjoy 300 days in a year and study just for the remaining days, what it is like to plan out of station trips with friends, what it is like to talk about latest Indian fashion with college friends and moreover what it is like to be surrounded by group of Indian friends. After I left India in 8th standard I don’t know what it is like to grow up in an Indian environment. Singapore offered me different education style, different lifestyle and made me a confident person. I am grateful to my parents for showing me the other side of life but nothing can make up for what I lost. The college life I lost is equals to everything. The image I had in my heart about college life is from my brother and friends. This college life remained as a missing part in my life puzzle. Even now I feel a major part has been skipped in my life. Feels like someone fast forwarded my life and skipped one full important chapter. Even if I achieve everything in life, the feeling of this missing part is forever felt within me : (
2. If I was in India I doubt I would have been able to step into the working world at such a young age. This turn out to be the advantage as now I am able to support myself and my studies all by myself. I would say this experience kind of turned me into a responsible person. I am glad this happened.
3. I meet my best friend once in 4 years or only when I go to India. The meeting duration has always been just few hrs or sometimes few minutes. This has been bothering me so much but not able to do anything about it but I am glad and proud to say that distance didn’t made a difference between us. We have been best friends since our 6th standard which means it’s been 12 years: D. On the other hand all my classmates have forgotten me by now and I don’t know how it feels to go for a school and college reunion.
4. I was brought up in Hyderabad since birth but today I can confidently say that I can’t roam around in Hyderabad alone. I don’t know where the famous IMAX theatre is; the popular shopping malls are or at least not even the famous charminar in Hyderabad. Given the fact that I visit Hyderabad once every 4 years (back in 2004) the place slowly turned out to be a foreign land for me. I can’t go out without a company. Every time I pay a visit to Hyderabad I try my best to remember the places but all my efforts will be wasted the next time I visit Hyderabad as nothing remains the same in the city for too long. The city is growing fast and I am lacking behind .Way behind everyone: (. I wish to change this. I want to proudly say that I am a true Hyderabadi (I am not able to say this now). To my wonder on my last visit brother and Vinod (more about this character in future: D) showed me around Hyderabad and I felt sad someone is introducing my city to me (saddest truth). Waiting for the day when I can show my city to others proudly.
5. Normally we meet our relatives once in a while. My once in a while is really long that I forget who are they. Even today I can't recognize when some of my distance relative’s stand in front of me. The standard response from them for my blank face will be “oh you are so big now. The last time when we saw you, you were a small kid. Don’t you recognize us?” Damn I wish I can scream and say “I was a kid back then. How can I remember you!” Missed out family’s important functions and weddings. Now I am worried no one will attend my wedding in future: D .
6.Talk about behaving as roman when you are in Rome. During my initial days here I couldn’t get adapted to Singapore food and culture but now most of the local food became part of my daily diet: D .This shocks my family especially my mom.
This long distance has created so many problems in my life and each time it creates problems I can’t help but regret about coming to Singapore : (. Everything has loss and gain. So does my life. Somehow I created a home away from home. I may not stay in India phir bhi dil hai Hindustani. :D.Hamesha. I am an Indian by birth and by heart no matter where I go.
