Orange County Indians Holiday Meet- Solidarity, Togetherness and Celebrations

...and Phew!!! It ended. The gaiety, the merriment, a giggle here and a guffaw there, warm hugs, 'Hi, how are you?', chit chats, joshing and the color ‘RED’ tinted the OC sky with empressement of togetherness and Indian-ness at the  Orange County Indians holiday meet today.

Dear Santa,

Thank you! You see, a better vocabulary other than this is hard to find, so I will stick to the ordinary yet the sincerest and impacting. Thank you for this community that every Indian woman and her family has found here and is an integral part of. Every flight that lands in Orange county carry that one Indian family who becomes our valuable member. 

It's fun to have a  group that constitutes of such variety- the 6:00am 'Good Morning' senders, the 10:30pm 'shayaras,’ the questers in search of information ranging from plumbing to calculus tutor, and the responders who never fail to impress. We are the ultimate Google for each other. Sundar Pichai, are you listening?

To an outsider, we are just a WhatsApp group; to each other, we are no less than a floatation device. It may not appear so but try us during hard times or a rainy day. Our umbrellas magically spread out far and wide, sheltering each other. 

Don't be mislead, but. It is not as utopian as it sounds. We do have our own share of problems. As a group, just like any other, there are countless bickering’s, cribbing and complaints,  backbiting and begrudging, we suffer from our own human frailties; however, we accept them with a pinch of salt and chili (I like that combo hence;))When we have umpteen dance academies, educators, caterers, beauticians, and homepreneurs, isn't it reasonable to clink and clatter? The pandemonium has its own benefits...we get to know we exist, though that is not all to make a community thrive? It thrives when all learn to coexist with their imperfections and make space for each other, reach out, touch, and say 'I care.' This is similar to what happens in a FAMILY, and this is just one of them.  

So, while we ‘sayonara’ the year 2017 with Holiday meetups,  Disco nights, and New Year parties, I have something to say to each OC Indian woman-

• I feel secure here (away from my family and all the faces which are stamped 'near and dear' back in India) because I know you exist.

• You may be a silent follower of the group or an active enthusiast; you may be someone or no one or anyone; I truly value that you are with me and I am with you. I promise to stand by you in times of need and look up to you when adversity strikes me. We all want the coveted piece of pie; to some, it is the bread butter, dosa, and samosa; the competition is acceptable, justifiable, pellucid, and to a large extent, necessary. This doesn't and shouldn't stain the bonhomie, the camaraderie, the neighborliness, folksiness we share, and the identity that we carry - Being Indian. 

I am glad I have a family to fall back on. You have no idea how lonely and scary it can get here. It might not be the perfect family, but who has an ideal family? I accept you the way I accept my own family. I know you do not come to pay my rent or buy me groceries from Ansar, however that is not all. 

“It's a commonly expressed and rather nice, romantic notion that we are all "sisters." and "brothers."

Let's be real. Fact is, we might be better served to accept that we are all siblings.

Siblings fight, pull each other's hair, steal stuff, and accuse each other indiscriminately.

But siblings also know the undeniable fact that they are of the same blood, share the same origins, and are family.

Even when they hate each other.

And that tends to put all things in perspective.”
― Vera Nazarian”

Have a good night, my Indian sibling.

Namrata