One of my new year resolutions for this year was to be positive, my previous was post was far from that. How can I be positive if I am not willing to acknowledge all the positives that are around me. I have decided to put some points together, so that next time I need a little perspective I can refer to these.
The Maid : I am giving less credit to the domestic help. It actually helps that I have someone to do ALL the chores around the house, not just the sweeping, mopping. Laundry, folding clothes, cleaning the kitchen, the fridge, etc. She is there to cook, take care of Nikhil, entertain him, play with him, take him out to the park... It made my life so much easier when I was on bed rest for three months. I don't know how I would've gone through that without that support at home.
The Driver : Makes our lives so much easier, Vicky hates to drive and I don't want to drive in India because all I would be doing is swearing and showing my fingers to every one on the road. More than anything its the fact that in the past two years we have never had to drive around looking for a parking spot. He carries all the heavy load back home after grocery shopping. He also doubles up as Nikhil's baby sitter, for example, I am going to the bank and its going to take me fifteen minutes and I don't want to tag Nikhil around... my driver would happily baby sit him.
The Parents : Okay, so in my last post I complained how I am living so far away from family. What I didnt acknowledge was the fact that its still easier for in laws or parents to travel and reach Delhi. Four hours is always better than eighteen long hours and the jet lag. There's not been an occasion when I have needed my parents or in laws and they have not been able to make it. I should be thankful for that. Agreed its not as comfortable as having them living somewhere with in an hours drive...
The Extended Family : We have an uncle of mine living in Delhi and a cousin of mine living five minutes away. It feels wonderful to hang out with them. We have spent all major festivals at my uncles place and the gathering and celebrations are always so much fun. Festivals, birthdays, dinners, just chilling at home, its all cool. When Vicky sometimes have to travel, I crash in at one of their places. My uncle has two lovely boys and Nikhil has a ball playing with them. My cousin has a dog and Nikhil is so attached to that fellow. Honestly, there's really no feeling of loneliness.
The Neighbors : I guess I am lucky that I have made wonderful friends with the neighbors here. There are many families with kids in the similar age group. Again, I thank my stars that I have very very helpful neighbors. They always watch out for you. When our next door neighbor has not seen me on the balcony or outside for couple of days I can expect her at my door or a call from her to make sure everything is all right. There's someone to check on me.
The Community : Our community has couple of grocery stores, a pharmacy, a tailor (who also does drycleaning), and a beauty parlour (very shady but good enough for quick threading), there are two general physicians in case of emergencies...
Last but the most important point, Nikhil loves it here... I cannot just emphasize the word love enough. He is exposed to a plethora of people from all walks of life. He loves it when the door bell rings. He loves to guess who it would be, the dhobi , the trash guy, the milk fellow, the delivery boy from the grocery store, the maid, the gardner... During summers he loves standing on the balcony and just observing the road - the trucks, the diggers, cars, autos, cycles, motor bikes...or just kids playing the park. He loves it when he spends time with his grandparents, his cousins, so far we have attended so many weddings and many more family functions.. he loves all the attention that he gets. He is always surrounded by people - family or friends or even others.
Every place has its own benefits and disadvantages. It's high time I focused on the good things and stopped dwelling on the negatives.
The Driver : Makes our lives so much easier, Vicky hates to drive and I don't want to drive in India because all I would be doing is swearing and showing my fingers to every one on the road. More than anything its the fact that in the past two years we have never had to drive around looking for a parking spot. He carries all the heavy load back home after grocery shopping. He also doubles up as Nikhil's baby sitter, for example, I am going to the bank and its going to take me fifteen minutes and I don't want to tag Nikhil around... my driver would happily baby sit him.
The Parents : Okay, so in my last post I complained how I am living so far away from family. What I didnt acknowledge was the fact that its still easier for in laws or parents to travel and reach Delhi. Four hours is always better than eighteen long hours and the jet lag. There's not been an occasion when I have needed my parents or in laws and they have not been able to make it. I should be thankful for that. Agreed its not as comfortable as having them living somewhere with in an hours drive...
The Extended Family : We have an uncle of mine living in Delhi and a cousin of mine living five minutes away. It feels wonderful to hang out with them. We have spent all major festivals at my uncles place and the gathering and celebrations are always so much fun. Festivals, birthdays, dinners, just chilling at home, its all cool. When Vicky sometimes have to travel, I crash in at one of their places. My uncle has two lovely boys and Nikhil has a ball playing with them. My cousin has a dog and Nikhil is so attached to that fellow. Honestly, there's really no feeling of loneliness.
The Neighbors : I guess I am lucky that I have made wonderful friends with the neighbors here. There are many families with kids in the similar age group. Again, I thank my stars that I have very very helpful neighbors. They always watch out for you. When our next door neighbor has not seen me on the balcony or outside for couple of days I can expect her at my door or a call from her to make sure everything is all right. There's someone to check on me.
The Community : Our community has couple of grocery stores, a pharmacy, a tailor (who also does drycleaning), and a beauty parlour (very shady but good enough for quick threading), there are two general physicians in case of emergencies...
Last but the most important point, Nikhil loves it here... I cannot just emphasize the word love enough. He is exposed to a plethora of people from all walks of life. He loves it when the door bell rings. He loves to guess who it would be, the dhobi , the trash guy, the milk fellow, the delivery boy from the grocery store, the maid, the gardner... During summers he loves standing on the balcony and just observing the road - the trucks, the diggers, cars, autos, cycles, motor bikes...or just kids playing the park. He loves it when he spends time with his grandparents, his cousins, so far we have attended so many weddings and many more family functions.. he loves all the attention that he gets. He is always surrounded by people - family or friends or even others.
Every place has its own benefits and disadvantages. It's high time I focused on the good things and stopped dwelling on the negatives.
1 comment:
Way to go girl...this sounds more like the India, everyone wants to go back to after living abroad for a while :)...Like you said, there are positives and negatives of setting up home in India,like all other places in the world...I guess it's just a matter of finding one's comfort zone, no matter where you set up home...and I am sure being positive is one way to move in the direction of discovering that comfort zone...
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