Home Is Where The Mom Is

“Home sweet home,

There’s no place like home…………”

These lines would be uttered by my Mom, whenever we would be back home after a vacation or just after a tiring day outside. In my formative years I couldn’t relate to this phrase for sure. I always used to wonder “What’s so good about coming back home?”. But today when my mail box boasts a US Zip code, I can definitely connect to my Mom’s saying.

The utterance of the word, “Home” itself is enough to create that ripple in my mind, and the idea of visiting my land gives me immense excitement and joy. Home………… means the place where my Mom lives, the thought of visiting her doubles the excitement. Though I talk to my Mom on regular basis, but still the idea of spending time with her exports me to a different zone altogether. Sitting in our terrace in Bhubaneshwar and sipping tea under the blue sky is something I miss the most in US. From Anu Aunt’s shopping spree to Rajiv Uncle’s dominant nature, from Nina Chachi’s foreign trips to Deepa Di’s tantrums, there’s not a single topic that my Mom misses out from her list. My kids too love spending time with their granny and it’s a sheer joy to watch the trio (Mom and my two boys) together.

For a married lady, there are two homes, hence it goes without saying that, next comes the excitement to meet my in laws. Once my Mother in law comes to know about our homecoming, she becomes terribly restless and what follows aftermath is a series of questions like “How many days, you guys are going to stay? Are you planning to stay in Bhubaneshwar or are there plans to visit some other place? What would you like to eat? So, on and so forth. Now I being a mom myself, I can very well relate to her anxiety and hence we make her understand to take it easy. Both our parents expect us to spend maximum time with them and hence often we land up in a fix. Finally, on our last visit we took a decision that we will be splitting our days equally in both the homes, such that none feels bad about the same and my kids enjoy most in the company of their maternal as well as paternal grandparents.

While in US, it’s rare to find people on streets, in India it’s the other way around and that’s a visual delight for sure. Streets with people swarming around, some chasing their dream, some sporting a cheerful smile after achieving what they had envisaged, some who call these lanes their home and some for whom it’s the place of earning their livelihood. Whatever be the case, Streets in India are always full of life and back home I really enjoy being a part of these hustling, bustling environment.

A self-confessed street food fan, my imagination starts with the bulky golgappas to the huge samosas that I will be gorging once I am home. Every by lane of my hometown has some delicacy to boast and hence it goes without saying, that my travel will be coupled with the desire to try them all in one go. Sounds crazy right!! but for people like me who stay miles away and are deprived of some of these, it’s indeed a big thing. Even though some may argue that, everything is available abroad now a days, still the prices at which we get them in the west pinches our pocket a bit. Moreover, the taste is the best when it comes from our country kitchen.

Our vacation can’t be complete without shopping. Though everything is available now in US, still options in India are plenty and hence shopping has its own charm. Traditional attire tops my wish list for obvious reasons. Every time, I come I get puzzled looking at different vibrant colors and styles that must have made their way to the market in my absence. The idea of shopping itself is enough to create that buzz in my mind.

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I believe “Home is where one’s heart is” and for me and all other Indians living abroad, it’s definitely the country of our birth, INDIA. Whatever little time we spend with our near and dear ones back home, lifts our spirit, and prepares us for another challenging year in the WEST.

Image via Freepik

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