NRI = 'Non Resident' or 'Not Returning' Indian?

NRI - How would you define it? Is it Non Resident Indian or Not Returning Indian? I am sure only an individual NRI knows what truly defines him or her. I would like to think of me as a Non Resident Indian. I would like to say I'll be glad to return to India anytime. It is home folks! Don't you agree? Thinking deeper though, my thoughts waver...

A blogger friend writes an interesting article "Would I immigrate to US now?" (Click here to read it) As he points out it is the childhood India we long for - I long for. The days when Papa was around, when both Grandmas were alive, when Amma taught in college, when I was carefree with Delightson, Ashy, Tiny and Snowy... when we did not hesitate to eat from the street vendors, learnt to ride the broken rental bicycles, when we did not mind the heat of the day, the sweating afternoons, the frequent power failures, when we did not care for the fashionable clothes, designer handbags, matching shoes..., when snow was only a dream and aircondition was a luxury, when we only relied on hand written letters for communications with far away family, when I was lean and never felt fat, when I was full of dreams for America, when I had no clue what marriage meant, what life is all about... those are the days I want to return to - that's the India my home!

Please do not get me wrong. I love America! After all it was my dream, my earnest prayer, my sincere ambition to come to the USA. I would have never felt I achieved anything in life if I had never had a chance to come to America - as it was my strong childhood desire.

America - A beautiful beautiful place (yes, I intentionally used beautiful twice as I feel one word is not sufficient to fully define the beauty of America) filled with natures bounty, picture perfect homes, manicured lawns, where everybody can enjoy the basic necessities of life, where all are treated equal (in most cases), where you don't have to bribe anyone for getting your drivers license or car registration or landing a job or finding a home, where water runs into your house (you don't have to go fetch water), hot water is only a 'twist of a tap' away, garbage is collected regularly, power failures are unheard of, numerous ways of communications with far and near & dear and not-so-dear ones, where you don't have to stand in sweating queues to pay your bills or to get the rations or to register your tickets, where the gap between the rich and poor is so narrow that it seems invisible, where the government truly cares to improve the life of a common citizen...

Then what is my rambling about you may wonder...

My India is no longer a place - it is my childhood state of mind ... No matter how much I travel it would still be far far away... It is impossible to return to as it no longer exists except in memories.

I plan to make my new home America, my new state of mind, where I truly belong, where my rights matter to the government, where my kids & family can always return to... That being said, I wonder if I am indeed a Not-Returning Indian... rather than a Non-Resident Indian... Time will tell. For now I am happy to be a US Citizen!

Fellow NRI's! It is your turn folks! How would you define yourself?!