Dreaming of home



Moving homes is hard. Moving home from one country to another, it is even harder. But I think the hardest is to be without a home which is what my current situation is.

 We reached India on 19th October, exhausted after travelling for more than 24 hours,(it is such a long long long way) bone weary,  jet-lagged and wanting to run back to a comfortable place called home. Except, there was no home. The last of our belongings had been boxed and shipped, our lives neatly packed into cartons, labelled and despatched with cool crisp efficiency of an International relocation agency.

It took me more than ten days to get my body clock set to Indian Time. Was I glad to back in India? I really had no time to notice as there were and still are a million things to be done. Right now we have been put up in a company guest house and we're trying to set up things from here.

We have managed to find an excellent school for the children (they got chosen into four schools which was a pleasant surprise as many well meaning folks had warned us about relocating in the middle of an academic year and how hard it is to get admissions into a good school. The warnings were baseless as we discovered. Doors do open when you try hard enough). We are slowly setting up our home too (we finally signed the rental agreement two days back) and I hope to move into my own home next week, even though the stuff that has been shipped would arrive only by the end of November.

Thank you to all who mailed and asked me how I was doing and wishing me luck. I still haven't got around to replying to mails.  I shall do so slowly.The first thing I am doing  after getting a mobile Internet connection (Oh, the amount of documentation needed these days to get one, is crazy)  is blogging :-) (Yeah, I could not bear to be away from my beloved blog and its readers any longer :-) )

They say that when emotion over flow poetry flows. Poems are often feelings poured into words. Just before we left UK, my nine year old daughter wrote an amazingly beautiful poem.  It seems so apt , at the moment.

I am reproducing it below. (Click on the photo to enlarge it to read it in her own writing and to read her English teacher's remarks too)

Dreaming of Home

By Purvi Shenoy (Aged 9)

Once upon a time
I dreamt of living in a warm cozy cottage
Where the fire flames dance like crazy

The carpeting squidges between your toes
Where the bed is nice and bouncy
Where the garden is filled with the smell of flowers

In the kitchen, a delicious smell of my mum's cooking
In the attic, the stair case creaks and there are old toys in the corner
And the bedroom has cool crisp sheets on the bed.

_________________________________________________________

My daughter's poem really tugs at my heart strings at this moment.
Right now, it seems like heaven, as I wait to move in and create a place called  home.

Comments

  1. ohh the poem is so touching ! reminds me of a similar poem my niece wrote about missing India.
    Glad to know you all are gradually settling in :)

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  2. Anonymous3:11 PM

    That is such a sweet poem, filled with innocence and hope. One to keep for posterity :-)

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  3. Hi Preeti, welcome back to India... Your blog reminds of my cousin who had decided to come back and settle down in Bangalore..and I remember it was the same... lots of running around, schools, house, phone connections....and the poem is beautiful...reminds me of home...

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  4. Hi Pritj...welcome back, good to see your blog active again!!

    Way to go, Purvi!! Like the way her imagination is taking shape...she seems to have Mama's gift of painting pictures in the readers' minds!!

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  5. It is tough, but it will all fall in place soon, you'll see.

    You'll soon be able to recreate that warm coziness so beautifully reflected in your daughter's poem.

    Welcome back!

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  6. It is tough, but it will all fall in place soon, you'll see.

    You'll soon be able to recreate that warm coziness so beautifully reflected in your daughter's poem.

    Welcome back!

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  7. This is so cute...

    God bless :)

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  8. Welcome back--was waiting for you to settle and write on your blog :)
    --seema

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  9. wow really nice handwriting....very well written...
    Cool!

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  10. Ohh preethi,

    Sooooo happy to see a new blog.. Been really missing it..
    Hope you get settled down soon and begin creating your lovely, cosy, place called 'home'...:)...

    Really cute poem by Purvi. And really imaginative. I'm sure she'll go a long way with poems..:)

    Take care! Happy Settling down!

    Love,

    Renu

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  11. Wow! It's so cute
    I hope you are enjoying back at India n surely missing UK :)

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  12. Aish-nini: Enjoyment has really not yet started :P Maybe it will come slowly. Missing UK yes :)

    Renu:Thank you for such a warm welcome and kind words :)

    Vinoo:Thank you my friend :)

    Seema;Thanks for the warm welcome :) yes feels good to be back.

    Listener: thanks so much

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  13. Mamma Mia: yes it will surel fall in place. It is just the process of going through it which is agonising at times.Thanks :)

    Manish:Thanks a lot! :) Send me ur number on mail and I will text u.

    Caterpillar: yeah a lot of running around initially. Will pass on compliments to my daughter :) Thanks

    writerzblock:Thank you!!

    Ruchira: Kids say it as it is, isn't it? :)

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  14. Aw welcome back Preeti and I really hope you settle down as soon as possible :)
    The poem was so amazing! Something all of us who move a lot must have felt at some point. Her teacher added a smiley face too! How cute ;)
    Congratulations on the school selections, your kids will be treasures for the school and I don't understand why anyone would discourage them.
    Here's hoping you feel at 'home' in the earliest :)

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  15. 'squidges between your toes'...ooooo, I love this phrase. I feel so good after reading the poem. Do tell Purvi that she's got such a beautiful mind :)

    It's good to see you here again, Preeti. I totally salute your strength and patience with these moves! I can't even move to an apartment just few kilometres away. Talk about being absolutely LAZY!

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  16. lovely composition...so ur daughter has taken dis 4m u??:-))...welcm 2 india...say dis-"bharat mata ki jai" n all ur shiftin probs will be ovr,,..hehehe...wen u returning 2 writin mails??gotta tell u soo many thingzz...:-)

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  17. You would do that soon..... I am so happy for you....finally....i want to do the same....but its just been a month here!! :|

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  18. Hey Preeti, good to see you back on blog....

    I wish to you and your family a nice Dipawali...

    Cheers,
    Anish

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  19. welcome to india, preeti. Findin a school of our requirement is a major problem and with that succesfully done, a major relocation headache would be off. Congrats to you on that.

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  20. hey preethi,
    welcome back. it's nice to see you back on your blog and back in india, that too Bangalore. Your daughter has a beautiful mind, it comes as no surprise, you have nurtured her creative mind well. Please congratulate her on my behalf. BTW, which school did they get into ?

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  22. dear preethi - i have been away and hadn't read your blog posts. Took me by surprise that you moved back to India...re-read the post and all the comments as a way of pinching myself.

    good to know all is well!!

    smiles,
    -em-

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  23. Are you sure she is 9 yrs old?Just kidding..;) But then I shudnt b surprised coz she is ur daughter..Like Mother Like Daughter:)

    G.

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  24. Anonymous3:03 AM

    Lovely poem... having made my 16-th move just recently I know what you mean. Hope you enjoy the process.

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  25. sruoloc: Thanks :)

    Geetha: She is 9 going on 42 :)

    EM: yes==back to India :) Thanks :)

    Ranjini: Thanks :) They got into four..will tell u on FB/mail :)

    Asha: i agree. Thanks :)

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  26. Anish: wish you the same!

    Rohit: Are u in Blr too? Or are u saying that u want to move back here?

    Shalaka: thanks :) Yeah Bharath mata ki jai and all that :)

    Sparkling: Thanks a lot :) What cannot be cured must be endured :P :) thats all i am doing honestly :)

    Sucheta: :) Thanks. I got ur new number..will text u mine soon :)

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  27. hi preeti!
    i must b lying if i say..i jus stumbled on ur blog!
    thou' late..quite hpy to follow u..
    the title attracts..m buyin one..jus a curiosity,it must hv gone thro'.. how did u prefer '34 bubblegums and candies' over '34 candies and bubblegums'?

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  28. Hi Preeti! Wish you a happy settling down experience in India. I have been reading your blogs for sometime and really admire your writing style..
    Looking forward to reading more from you soon.

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  29. Anonymous2:41 PM

    Hi Preeti di, this is for you -

    http://sbonlifensuch.wordpress.com/2010/11/11/of-inspiring-crushes-and-growing-up/

    - sulo

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  30. Sulo: Thanks a lot :) Read it. Could not comment as it was from my phone :) Such a pain typing on touch screen.

    Shilpy: welcome to my world :) Thank you :)

    Kartin: Candies are always sweeter after u spit out the bubblegums :) Welcome to my blog and thank you :)

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  31. Dear Preeti, I am sure you must have adjusted to everything by now. And I am sure your daughter must be happy now. Her poem is so touching and warm. Take care,
    Rekha

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