Living The American Dream

Its been 5 months now since I am in the US. 5 very wierd months of my life. The American dream which was there in my mind came to reality in a very strange way. And more so after meeting the ASCDs of life here (the American Staying Confused Desis). I met so many folks of my country who are living here with or without their family and what struck me the most was that they have lost that zing which you would see in any Indian if you meet them in India. They are unsure about the right code of conduct, the right rules and the right behavior in American standards. America is a country driven by rules. You even are told to turn left if there is only a left turn possible on a road. Nothing is implicit. So you are expected to do so many things in a way which is totally different that how you would do in India. You do not have the luxury of spilling even a drop of water in your house as you cant dry it unlike the India houses where the day starts with cleaning the house with buckets full of water. You cannot do lot of pooja in the house as fire alarm can catch the smell of the incense sticks.

What I now am able to understand is why our older generation declines the offer of settling down with thier children who are working or staying in US. I really used to wonder why dont they move and adapt to the change. But now I know why. I can relate to the emptiness you develop once you are living in a country which is not your own. The race for earning as many dollars possible takes away the charm of living and enjoying the Indian lifestyle from us, the yonger generation. Even if we would not have touched the western clothes in our country and grew up wearing salwar suits and sarees, we would wear the western clothes however much uncomfortable we are in them. I cant understand why. Why can we not showcase our culture along with our talents.

I met the kids of many Indians here. Kids who cannot speak in their mother tongue, who didnot even say Hi when i met them probably because they didn't consider me cool enough. I asked them to play with me and pat came the reply, "No way, bye bye you Funny thing". I didn't know whom to blame. I felt sorry for the kids and the parents, that’ s all I could do.

But the question is where are we heading. No one wants to go back as they think they are making huge money. But is it really true. The rupee dollar parity does not say so. It is not worth what we are missing atleast. Mending a shoe costs 50 dollars here which might be just 5 bucks in India. To save an exorbitant amount, one has to live a real ordinary life here, much less in comfort than what one would back in his home country. And if you are living with your family, I don’t see it worth the effort with the expenses involved.

I want to go back to my country and I will. I believe in India Shining and I know I will have a very comfortable and luxurious life in my country. But my message to all those ASCDs would be to stop and think once, the true colors of life are back there, in your mother country. Go back before she abandons you..