Circle of Friends

Thank you Bikramjit for considering me a friend!

All my friends are very special to me. Love them all the same. I am very blessed for all who am friends with and all who call me a friend. Life is beautiful because of my friends...

Grateful for all my friends of far and near...
Here's to all who make my circle of friends...

Those who I grew up with

Those who joined me later in life

Those who taught me ride my bike

Those who ri(o)de their bikes with me

Those who danced in rain with me
Those who glanced at stars with me
Those who watched the clouds with me
Those who mak(d)e me laugh and roll
Those who prayed to bless me more
Those who were my classmates
Those I spent my hostel days with
Those I met in the bus and trains
Those I walked along side by side
Those I met just in virtual world
Those who are gone abode from this life
Those who are still with me
Those who love me all the more &
Those who are just the "hi-bye" kind

All are in my Circle of Friends...

Gone shopping!

It all started so innocently as window shopping... but before I knew it I had walked out of that store with ten scarves of each color available! You might think I love scarves right?! Wrong! I hardly wear scarf.

"Then why I bought so many?"
"Oh! to give away as gifts?"
"For whom?"
"For friends/family in India"
"Is it cold where they live?"
"No! Even in the coldest winter, they could get around in their regular clothes..."
"So what is the rationale for buying so many?"
"Oh! It was on sale... you know I actaully saved!"
"How so?"
"It used to be $19.99 but now it was on sale for $6.99!!"
"Oh yeah?!"
"...Yeah"

After this heavy "soul searching" between me and myself, as I drive back home I would console myself with, "No worries, you can always return it..." Only to find out days later I have lost the receipt and now they would only give me store credit and that too not for the price I'd paid for - but the lowest sale price in the past 15 days... As it turns out, after I'd walked away with those "rags", it was further marked down to $3.99 a piece!! I'd paid $69.99 for the ten, but now get only $39.99 in store credit...  :(

"What do I do now?"
"Oh! I'll buy those nice handbags by the second aisle.."
"How many?"
"All 5"
"Why?"
"They'll make good gifts for India..."
"Don't they get handbags in India?"
"Of course they do but it won't be the same from America..."

There it goes again.... the "invisible trap" of sale and save... For all that matters, as you start packing you are bombarded with questions from the Man of the House:

"Who is this for?"
"Oh! For that Aunty - remember she did my hair-do during our wedding?"
"And this one?"
"That's for that Uncle who bought my college application form and mailed it to us"
"Oh! Ok" Now pointing at my dreaded handbags...
"What are these?"
"Hhh... hh.. handbags"
"Why so many?"
"Oh! It was on sale, may be you can take some for your cousins/Aunts too..."
"I don't think they will use it, ok pack them all in, let's check the weight"

After heavy pushing and pulling the suitcase is zipped up and locked, it is put on the scale:
"What is it?"
"Oh my! it is 70 lbs!! "
"The allowed limit?"
"50 lbs!"
"What will you do now?"
"Of course return to the stores..."
"Do you have the receipt this time?"
"I think so, if not they will give me store credit anyway..." :)

For those who care for the comments from those who receive the gifts:

"Next time you come, get me a handbag with many pockets okay?"
"Ok, if you don't like this one, it's okay I can give it to someone else"
"No, no I really like it... I am just saying next time bring me one with many pockets okay?"
"Ok"

Another:
"I love it! Thank you!"

Yet Another:
"Do you have a scarf you can give me? I can use one during my bus ride..."
"Oh! I am so sorry, I don't have one... I will get you one next time ok?"
"Ok"

As much as I enjoy shopping I am already dreading my next shopping frenzy...

When I was a Child...

Reposting again for new readers...
I love my childhood days. It was all made possible mostly because of my very loving parents and the closely knit community of friends and families and neighbors God had blessed us with.

Though the days are long gone by I felt like a child all along - until very recently when my older daughter turned ten. Reluctantly I realize that I am no longer a child and slowly starting to embrace my adulthood.

Looking back in time and wondering what made my childhood so special that I held on to it so dearly for more than three decades, I realize it is the abundant, over-flowing, love and joy and fellowship we had as a family. I was much blessed, everyone loved me. It always felt like I was the favorite child of my parents and grand parents and aunts and uncles and neighbors... I am sure they made each one of us kids feel that way. They all treated us very special in unique ways that we appreciate all through the years. I was greatly blessed with such loving souls I am forever grateful for. There is not a single remorse or regret thinking of the past.

Now as an adult when I think about it, most of the 'special' feeling I experienced could be due to my pure childhood innocence that loved everyone very specially. All aunts, uncles, cousins, friends were all loved the same. I was naive and open and full of life and filled with love.

I had my own agenda of how things went... I simplified very complex things and complicated very simple things. Just wanted to jot down a few that I recall to give you a glimpse of my treasured childhood memories...

* I believed we were Israelites (as I learnt in Sunday school God's children were Isralites)
* I believed I was the favorite child of all
* I believed earth was round and we were living inside the globe (the sky to be the upper rim of the globe)
* I believed sons were born to fathers and daughters were born to mothers
* I believed all animals were males and all birds were females (most stories depicted the characters like that)
* I believed men were made of steel and felt no pain
* I believed only airplanes were used in America and no vehicles on the road
* I believed the world globe curved beyond the horizon I could see
* I believed babies came from the belly button
* I believed there were many Gandhies (in our language, we always refered to him in plural 'Gandhi adigal')
* I believed I could buy a big brother for some candy (tried it with a friend who had 5 elder brothers)
* I believed shaving blades grew on trees (as we had Ashoka tree and also Ashoka blades)

Some of these seem very silly now but I truly believe that if not for such innocent beliefs life wouldn't have been as much fun. As much as I want to hold on to these beliefs, I understand life goes on and I have to move on ...

Happy to find an interesting verse in the Bible which says: "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me." 1 Corinthians 13:11

This gives me huge comfort that I am not alone and every person goes through silly childhood believes which they have to let go to become a mature adult... Now care to share your inncocent beliefs? I would love to hear...

That being said, I am ready to embrace my next stage in life. Come along, let's make it last long ...

Flawless Beauty

"You are all together beautiful,my love;there is no flaw in you."-Song of Solomon 4:7

This is my favorite verse from the Bible. It amazes me at all times. I take the verse for myself and I encourage all of you to take it for yourself! It is for every one of us indeed, where God says, "You are all together beautiful, my love;there is no flaw in you."

It makes me pause & analyze myself, to see if it truly fits me, but it has always falied. If I were to take an inventory of my flaws it will go miles long... No matter how hard I try, I would still be full of flaws, but the unfailing, unconditional love of God sees beyond my flaws and lovingly calls me "Beautiful" and "Flawless".

His love for you & me is constant. We can't do anything too bad that will make Him love us less OR anything too good that will make Him love us more...

I am forever grateful for this unconditional love... I turn to this verse anytime I need an assurance of the Divine Love which brings instant joy to my heart & music to my soul..

Rain! Rain! Please Come Again!

Rain, rain please come again;
Bring with you some drops of past
When kids and others rushed to hide
Remember how I hardly budged
Hands & head lifted all the way 
To hug and love you all the more

Remember rain when we all were young
You came outside when we stayed home
With my Papa, Amma, Akka and Delight
Watching you through the windows while
You danced along the pavements and sill
We truly enjoyed the nuts in shell

Soon after you were tired out and gone 
We splashed the streams you'd made
Papa helped us make paper boats
We sailed away with loads of stuff along with "men" of ants & such
Racing our boats all the way; steering them with long sticks from side
We watched it till it was out of sight, either under or away it went...

Thank you rain for being there, for surrounding us with much pleasure
For obeying Papa's answered prayers when it was time for me to be wed
Papa desired not a hall; his wish was for me to be wed at home
It was the season for rain those days
But you were kind and stayed away
While I was married off in such a bliss

Rain, rain please come again;
Thank you for the fresh new drops
Of mercy and grace from my King above
Who sends me gifts of his love and joy
Surely few are from my Papa too
Who is still so very fond of me

Rain, rain please stay a while
Tell me what all my Papa said
Share with me how he likes it there
Enjoying in the presence of Christ
He was such a great friend of God
I am sure he is now so much more...

No, not tears, not tears dear rain
Please tell Papa we are doing fine
We miss him much but know for sure
His earnest prayers do help us here
We will be fine knowing that
He too is fine in the Promised Land!

Rain, rain please come again as often as you are sent our way
Remember to bring the cherished love - God & Papa so fondly send
When you return home back to them, please hug them both tight for me;
Really tight once more for me...
And if it is not too much to ask; can I send some kisses too
For blessing us with such joy & peace from above that keeps us strong...

Remember your Creator

Remember your Creator
in the days of your youth,
before the days of trouble come
and the years approach when you will say,
"I find no pleasure in them"-

before the sun and the light
and the moon and the stars grow dark,
and the clouds return after the rain;

when the keepers of the house tremble,
and the strong men stoop,
when the grinders cease because they are few,
and those looking through the windows grow dim;

when the doors to the street are closed
and the sound of grinding fades;
when men rise up at the sound of birds,
but all their songs grow faint;

when men are afraid of heights
and of dangers in the streets;
when the almond tree blossoms
and the grasshopper drags himself along
and desire no longer is stirred.
Then man goes to his eternal home
and mourners go about the streets.

Remember him—before the silver cord is severed,
or the golden bowl is broken;
before the pitcher is shattered at the spring,
or the wheel broken at the well,

and the dust returns to the ground it came from,
and the spirit returns to God who gave it.

"Meaningless! Meaningless!" says the Teacher.
"Everything is meaningless!"

Now all has been heard;
here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
for this is the whole duty of man.

For God will bring every deed into judgment,
including every hidden thing,
whether it is good or evil.                                                            

~ From the Holy Bible - Ecclesiastes 12

Malayala kadaloram... (By the Kerala seashore)

I believe Malayalam is the most beautiful language only next to American Sign Language! I associate the sign language to dancing while Malayalam to music. Recently we enjoyed few Malayalam movies which renewed my long forgotten fondness for the language. For the next few days & weeks we attempted to speak only Malayalam which sparkled laughter for each sentence...

Since we are from the Kerala/Tamil Nadu border we can understand both languages very well. I always feel Malayalam is so full of meaning than Tamil. It is fun even to watch a day-to-day conversation in Malayalam. The people are also very charming with their glowing skin, jet black hair and simple cotton wear... their unique style and sense of humor can't be missed.

If and when you get a chance, try to visit the southern Kerala sometimes, you will be amazed at the beauty and simplicity of life out there... The dense coconut trees, rubber trees, the creeping pepper plants, the careless yet bountiful home gardens, the scenic mountains, landscapes, the beauty of the seashores, will not fail to amaze you.

I will try to gather some pictures and post it here on my next visit...

Welcome to our kitchen!

If you are to visit us, within minutes we will seat you squarely in our kitchen! Hard to believe I know, but our kitchen is the best place we love to hang out with friends and family while we catch up on events at both ends and preparing for the next meal, all at the same time.

Our kitchen has kind of become the heart of our home. I am so tempted to say "My Kitchen" but with that kind of attitude I can't win over my kids who are taking baby steps experimenting with cooking & cleaning, so "Our Kitchen" would be best!

It is at the kitchen where our day starts with all of us bright and sunny for breakfast, followed by a quick Bible reading, key searching, vitamin gulping, lunch packing & every other details related to the morning rush.

Even in the busiest mornings, I like to tidy up the place, putting away the cereal boxes, the toaster, the butter dish, milk carton & orange juice, quickly wiping down the crumbs, unloading the dish washer, pressure cook the dal & soak the tamarind for dinner, keep the vegetable or meat out of the fridge/freezer, set the rice cooker to delay cook in 10 hours...

These are tricky acts to fool myself as if someone did it all in my absence, so that I can walk into a prestine kitchen end of the day with freshly made rice and sambar & subji just a "seasoning away"!

Again it is right at the kitchen our whole clan descends after a heavy day at work, school or play, straight from the garage door entrance.

As you can visualize in the next few minutes, kitchen is all thrashed out with scattered school bags, laptops, lunch bags, socks, shoes, rocks, twigs, bones supposedly collectibles kids found in the after school care, only to be thrown away in the garbage later by Mom while kids are finally in bed and out of sight... The sequence of showing off the classworks, starting with the homework, fighting & crying for touching one another's chairs making you wonder will this ever stop...

Dinner time followed by quick bathing, rush cleaning, winding down, phone conversations with friends/family, reading letters, sorting the mail throwing away the junk, browsing the sale catalogs, clipping coupons, checking emails, paying the bills, all of these happen within the confines of our kitchen.

As bed time draws near, kids now clean, fed & yawning, we slowly drift off from the kitchen, to a brief family meditation in the living room before going to our beds.

By the way guest, in the meantime let us show you your room, towels and soap, care if you have your toothbrush or need a night gown, will remind you of your water, show you the coffee & sugar (in case you would like to have coffee before we come down) and will finally let you sleep...

Only to rest and come back fresh again to start an all new day right at our kitchen with all of us right there! For now we are so glad to have you stay! Please have a Good Night!

Summer Checklist

Go to the beach, lake, waterfall, river...

Fly your kite high

Ride your bike

Walk barefoot around the house
Take cold shower
Dry clothes in the sun
Eat watermelon
Cook out
Sleep out
Eat out
Watch birds in the backyard
Count the butterflies
Grow some vegetables
Lie down under open skies, enjoying the clouds
Lie down under open skies, counting the stars coming by
Look at the birds that fly by, nest around...
Do not miss the moon as it grows
Live without  the air condition as much as possible
Walk, walk, walk wherever possible, whenever possible
Drive with windows down
Go fishing
Don't miss the mangoes
Have fun overall...

Summer doesn't last for long... Please feel free to add yours to the list...

Dreams in disguise

Dreams don't always come true
No not always...
Riding motor bikes carefree
Flying gliders up around green mountains
Sailing in blue sea under blue skies
Climbing Mount Everest
Dreams don't always come true
No not always...

Dreams do come true mostly
In disguise if not always...
Riding bicycles in good cheer
Flying kites in ocean breeze
Sailing in clouds of the bluest skies
Climbing the backyard steep with kids
Dreams do come true mostly
In disguise if not always...

Nominations welcome for NRIGirl 2010

Dear Readers!

NRIGirl blog accepts nominations for NRIGirl 2010 award!

Please take a moment to nominate your NRIGirl. She could be your wife, mother, daughter, aunt, neighbor, anyone you know and appreciate. She could even be You! Why not?

End of the year we will surprise your special someone with an award.

If you would like to do a write up, please go on. Send a post, we will publish it!

Format for the post:

Name:
Address: (won't be published or shared with anyone!)
Photo: (optional)
Nominated by:
Write up:

Please email your nominations to nrigirl@hotmail.com

Thank you,
~ NRIGirl

A Dream (Guest Post)

Note: I requested some of you to write a guest post on the topic:This NRI Life.  If you are interested please feel free to contact me at nrigirl@hotmail.com I will be glad to publish your guest post in NRIGirl blog. If you are not an NRI please feel free to pick your own topic.

About the Author: Since my friend wishes to remain anonymous, we will call her "Pretty Little City Girl". She is one of my best friends from college and remains close to this day though we had lost touch for years in between. I have often found her with a pen and pad scribbling words, bringing life to the paper. I truly admire her writing skills and hope you too would take the time to appreciate her efforts. I believe this posting will be an inspiration for her to start writing again...

Here's presenting "A Dream" by "Pretty Little City Girl"
 ............................................................................................................................................
A Dream
I could sense her heart wandering
No longer listening to my words
Those eyes which haunted me most
Fixed far beyond my reach
She looked like an alien
The wind blowing those jet black curls
Succeeded in covering her eyes from me

I could see her lips trembling
Is that a tear drop!
Glistening in the evening twilight
Hugging her cheeks tight
I wish I could invade her heart
Smoothing all those wounds
And healing them with soft kisses.

In my heart
I built a home of dreams and hopes
Painted it’s walls with blue of sky
Roof the green of mountains
I toiled day and night to make it the most coveted home
For us to live forever and ever

We sailed through the skies and walked through the mountains
When she paused to remove an unkindly thorn
My heart ached, I stooped her up
And all the pain was worth when I saw those stars in her eyes
I realized I am the luckiest man

But…
I went wrong somewhere in between
Know not how nor why
Never thought it will be too much
For that fragile mind….
Inch by inch she shut me out
The efforts to draw her out turned futile.

Still..
I try…
Hoping she will forgive, be my girl again one day
The little girl who looked me in wonder, awe and love..
Then her world revolved around me
I wish I could get her back, protect her from all the hurt
Pain and disillusion I caused
Never never to make her cry
Her heart wrenching sobs squeezes my heart, chokes my breath
Oh God what have I done to her..

Something cold struck my face
I returned to reality with a start
It was one of the first tear drops
Sky has started scattering
With wry humor I quizzed him
Oh friend, “You too pitying poor me… ?”

Getting up, I held out my hand
For her to take it..
But with a shot of pain, I realized..
She is no longer beside me nor any where in sight
I called out to her , my voice breaking
No one answered except the thunder storm…
In the flash of lightening, I saw my red cap..
Which I kept with love on her jet black hair hours back
Floating aimlessly along the raging water….
Fast approaching the silver falls…
And no more.., it is gone forever
My eyes lost sight and has the rain turned salty suddenly…

Pretty little city girl ... (continues...)

Finally, I got a response from my friend: This is what her email said:

…lol…are not you persistent… ? But in a nice way… Okay here are the lines…
I cannot acknowledge the credit coz those lines were sent to me by a childhood friend of mine. …

Only two stanzas… First one you wrote correctly…second is

Could you learn the country life
Come to like our simple ways
Leave the city lights behind,
Love me through sweet country nights…

Pretty little city girl

Pretty little city girl
Could we be together?
Could you give up city lights,
Warm me through long country nights,
Stay with me forever?

A tiny passage I recall from my room mate's poem during my college days. I only remember the first stanza of the poem but very well remember the evening as she sat down and wrote these words, writing, scratching, re writing, re phrasing, reading it aloud for me... etc. I also recall there were atleast three more paragraphs. I am sure she still remembers the rest of her poem, and I encourage her to complete the post for us...

Dear Friend, this is my final attempt to get the rest of the poem from you. If you can email it to me I will gladly post it here. Kindly consider.

Thank you!

Once I had a fancy...

A lingering song from those days gone by...

Once I had a fancy to see a foreign land
I sailed in a boat in a very good mood
To see the Zulu land

A gentleman sat beside me in a cool and easy way
When I passed my love to him
This is what he said

Eechakka macha eecha poocha chiyangu macha cholo
Chiku chiku cholo chiyangu cholo
Eeya eeya yo!

P.S: A funny song from my college days. Though it doesn't make sense whatever the gentleman says, it appears that he accepts the love but doesn't speak the same language...

Tagged!

Thank you SG  for tagging me... Here's my attempt on your interview...

TV shows/News Channels I like to watch:
* O'Reilly Factor
* Discovery channel
* HD Home Makeover

Favorite places to eat and dine:
* Any Thai Place
* Penang (Malaysian)
* Red Lobster

Things I Look Forward To:
* Childrens return from India
* Visit to India next month
* Knight & Day DVD

Things That Happened Yesterday:
* Wrote a poem "Days gone by..." for my blog
* Took a nice loo..ng nap (4 hours to be exact!)
* Made banana paniyaram

Things I love about Winter:
* Snow
* Christmas lights
* Chestnuts & Hot chocolate

Things on my Wish-list
* Akka to visit US
* Disney Cruise
* Lose 20 lbs

Things I am Passionate about
* My husband and children
* Keeping our house clean and tidy
* Spending time with friends & family

Words/Phrases I often use
* Oh! Lord!
* Mone (That's how I call Israel, which means 'son' ...)
* Love you (husband & children)

Things I learnt from the past
* All things happen for good for those who love the Lord
* Baggage Claim
* Garbage Collection

Places I would like to go/visit
* Israel
* Australia
* All Fifty United States of America.

Thing(s) I currently need/want.....
* Green Date fruits... (Those in CA, let me know if you sight it)

Blogging Buddies I want to Tag
* A

Days gone by...

New grade days with brand new books
School end days with all old looks

Dancing in the rain on rainy days
Sharing one coke on sunny days

Excursion days to scenic places
Exam days with serious faces

Assembly days singing National Anthem
Inspection days keeping tidy classrooms

Jolly days of the then and there
Dreamy days of distant future

Gleeful hearing church wedding bells
Lost in love of your own Day!

Always happy, Always dreamy
Carefree were those days gone by...

George Washington Bridge (New York / New Jersey)

It was my dream come true when we agreed to go bike riding on the George Washington Bridge between New York City and Fort Lee, NJ. I totally loved the experience and wanted to share the "know-how" for other enthusiasts like me.

Photos to share:

What to expect?

• Of course it is very scenic and beautiful on both sides
• Riders should keep to their right always
• You are not allowed to take pictures near the security booths; but elsewhere on the bridge is okay
• No place to sit on the bridge
• Not wide enough to ride side by side
• Watch out for other riders
• Slowdown as you come down the bridge; it is very steep and narrow
• There are beautiful parks at the bottom of the bridge on the NY side
• Fort Lee has a few Seafood restaurants on the Main Street which seemed to attract a lot of crowd

Accessing the GWB Entrance (Fort Lee, NJ):

• There are public parking available in Fort Lee where you can park for about 50 cents an hour
• Don't forget your water bottle, helmet and sneakers
• If you wish to go around places in New York City, it is not a bad idea to bring along your GPS too!
• The entrance gate is on Hudson Terrace which  is at the intersection of Lemoine Avenue and Bruce Reynolds Blvd. (Bridge Plaza South), Hudson Terrace can be reached by proceeding east on Bruce Reynolds Blvd. (toward the bridge).
• Hudson Terrace is the cross street at the "T" intersection at the end of Bruce Reynolds Boulevard.
• Cross Hudson Terrace at this intersection, make a left and proceed north.
• Go about two blocks, and you will find the entrance ramp to the south sidewalk on your right (before the overpass that leads to the bridge).
• The entrance ramp to the north sidewalk is on the other side of the bridge overpass.
• Don't worry if these directions are a little confusing, you will see other riders who may show you the entrance.

View Larger Map

When you do, please sare your experience...

Series: This NRI Life Post:5

Note: I requested some of you to write a guest post on the topic:This NRI Life. If you are not an NRI please feel free to pick your own topic. If you are interested please feel free to contact me at nrigirl@hotmail.com I will be glad to publish your guest post in NRIGirl blog.

About the Author: My Mom Mrs. Yohapushpam Livingston has been my role model and continues to be. If I should describe her in words, I would easily pick Proverbs:31 as it aptly suits her the best. I am so blessed because I have her as my Mom!

Here Mom is recalling her childhood memories, the NRI Life of the distant past. Hope you get a glimpse of the then and now... Please give a hearty welcome to my Mom Professor. Yohapushpam Livingston!
.............................................................................................................................................
My earliest memories of an NRI Life.
The other day I was talking to my grandchildren about my earliest memories of my life. I could remember a few incidents that happened about 60 years back when I was around 4 years old. At this time my parents were living in Sri Lanka, then known as Ceylon.

I remember a night when I was sleeping beside my father and there were a few women in the house busily engaged doing some work in the next room. Sometime in the night my father told me that a baby sister was born to me. She is three years and six months younger to me.

My next memory is a woman holding my baby sister telling me that she needs the baby and going and hiding somewhere with the baby and me crying for my sister.

One day my father took me to a Sunday school picnic, left me with some little children and a teacher and I was weeping and weeping. When asked why I was crying, I did not say anything but kept on crying. When my father came and asked for the reason then only I could blurt out that I needed to go to the rest room.

I remember going shopping with my mother, going to a park with my father where I played the slider while he was reading a book, watching fireworks with my parents, playing with other kids. My parents told me that at that early age I could talk Sinhalese very well and I used to translate for them Tamil to Sinhalese and vice versa.

Another memory is my father teaching me to count from one to ten in Tamil. It so happened I could count only up to five and after that I would stuck up. After many attempts my father lost his temper and he made me to go to the backyard of the house saying I could come back inside the house only after I had learned to count till ten. I was crying and crying. My mother came out with a handful of grated coconut and asked me to be eating that and not to cry and papa will feel sorry for me sooner or later. I think that delicacy would have made me happy since even now I am fond of it.

My father was a very good man and though sometimes he was very strict with me most of the times he was very lenient towards me and he loved me so dearly. Sometimes we parents are unnecessarily strict with our children especially when it comes to their studies without considering their capability. I was only four and at that time and I was not up to his expectation and he lost his temper. The very same small girl who could not count from one to ten at that time has retired now after working as a lecturer in Mathematics in a renowned college for more than 35 years. This is how God works.

Another of my earliest memory of that country was seeing a peculiar big animal near a pond and many people just watching it and many saying that it will snatch away children and eat. I have never seen this animal again and I used to ask my parents about it and they will say some name and I had forgotten about it. When I was telling my grand children about it they were very curious to know what it was and so I surfed the net and I think it was Komodo dragon.

All these memories are before I was 5 years old since when I completed five my parents brought me here to India to put me in school and my life in Sri Lanka came to an end. My mother took care of me and my sister in our native village while my father continued to work in Sri Lanka a few more years. My father was such a loving and understanding man that he used to send to my mother the news weekly veera kesari and a few other weeklies every week by post. I was an eager reader of these weeklies. The happiest days of our life were when my father came home for a few days on leave with all the gifts of a foreign land.

Sri Lanka is our neighbour and it is a very beautiful country. Though I was only four years old when I lived there I remember the beautiful meadows and the greenery. It is a pity that there are political differences between both the countries.

America! America! God shed his grace on thee!

Happy Birthday to America the Beautiful! My home sweet home!

Here are some promises for the land from the scriptures:

"Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance" Psalm:33:12

"I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing" Genesis:12:2

"May nations serve you and peoples bow down to you. Be lord over your brothers, and may the sons of your mother bow down to you. May those who curse you be cursed and those who bless you be blessed." Genesis:27:29

"If you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession." Exodus:19:5

"If you are pleased with me, teach me your ways so I may know you and continue to find favor with you. Remember that this nation is your people." Exodus:33:13

"The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none." Deutronomy: 28:12

"Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them." Psalm:126:2

Series: This NRI Life Post:4

Note: I requested some of you to write a guest post on the topic:This NRI Life. If you are not an NRI please feel free to pick your own topic. If you are interested please feel free to contact me at nrigirl@hotmail.com I will be glad to publish your guest post in NRIGirl blog.

About the Author: SG blogs about almost everything under the sun that he comes across ... One of my favorite of his post is: "I love you" where he describes his "love at first sight". Feel free to visit his blog Shoot the breeze for a leisure reading.

Here he attempts to clarify some of the NRI myths non NRI's have... Ladies & Gentlemen! Let's welcome our guest blogger SG!
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What do people in India think about NRI’s in USA?

Many people in India have stereotyped or generalized Indians living in the USA. I want to give my own personal experience regarding these generalizations. Again, I want to emphasize these are my personal experience.
Generalization: 95% of NRI’s work in restaurants as dishwashers or do petty jobs.

My Experience: This is not true. Many students work in restaurants temporarily to pay for their education while in college.

Generalization: The other 5% work very hard to satisfy some white guy…you know THE MAN.

My Experience: At my workplace, white guys work to satisfy me. At my workplace I AM THE MAN…and I am not WHITE.

Generalization: NRI’s are treated like slaves and they put up with it because of the money.

My Experience: NRI’s command the highest respect wherever they work.

Generalization: NRI’s are discriminated by white people and they put up with it.

My Experience: I have never come across discrimination in the USA. The closest that I ever came to being discriminated was during an interview I had soon after arriving to the USA. I was interviewed for a first line manager job that would involve supervising 18 clerical staff. The interviewer asked me if I have supervisory experience. I said, YES. He then asked me if I have supervised Americans before. My first reaction was to say NO. But I held back my answer and thought about it for 30 seconds (while staring at the interviewer.) Finally I broke the silence and said: Why are you asking me this question? Are Americans very difficult to supervise? The interviewer laughed out loud and then said, I am offering you this job…which I eventually accepted.

Love Bank

Are you rich? I mean do you have a nice bank balance? In the Love Bank that is.

The theory is that for each person we come in contact with, we keep a love bank the unit of transaction being "good or positive feelings". When people do something nice we "credit" their accounts with a deposit of positive feelings and when they do something bad we "debit" from their accounts.

Have you made enough deposits in your love banks lately? Or are you making mostly withdrawals? As long as negatives do not outweigh the positives, the relationship is secure. Once it goes the other way, things get not so pleasant. Appreciation, compliments, nice gestures grow your balance whereas nitpicking, complaints, not caring etc diminish your bank balance. Depending on how much balance is in someones account, you feel more fond of them than others.

In a marriage too, this concept plays a role. Without much efforts some people can go on making deposits while others could go one making withdrawals. You know what happens when the withdrawals become more than the deposits, the bank balance goes in negative shutting down access completely.

Simple acts of kindness such as ordering in dinner, helping with chores, surprising with a backyard picnic, buying a favorite something when it is not expected, even opening up the windows to let cool fresh breeze come in, can all easily accumulate your balance.

Putting one down in front of friends/family, being disrespectful, hurtful words & gestures, always demanding to be served, ignoring tears, not spending enough time, getting affixed to TV/computer/you-name-it, would easily drain your balance.

Once it goes in negative, when the bank shuts down, it is very difficult to fix things right. I would say the fragile of all is the human heart. Once ones dreams are shattered and he/she starts withdrawing from things/people it is at a loss for long.

The busyness of life do not always help us focus on people most dear to us. It is important to make an effort to pause every now and then to tally our accounts making sure we have a positive balance in our love banks. Last night I made an extravagent dinner, with many dishes, fresh sambar, rice, appalam, fried fish etc. It was not any special event, I was just making a HUGE deposit in my spouse's account.

Now that we all have a nice long weekend to look forward to, let us not forget to make some deposits on the way in some of the important accounts especially that of our spouses and kids...

Happy Banking all! Enjoy the sunshine... Please click here for the follow up post: Love Bank - Direct Deposit