Thursday, June 5, 2008

Home Away from Home

After being away from home for a while you begin to try and search out ways to make your place feel like your old one. In the last couple of days I have found two such examples of how I am finding my own home away from home.

The first comes to me at the hospital. Today is day 5 of my stay here at good old Ruby General Hospital and the nurses and I have finally worked out a system. Each morning when they come in to wake me up..we go through a routine where I beg for just 5 more minutes of sleep and in turn they give me about an extra half hour. This routine reminds me of home when I would beg my dad for just 5 more minutes before getting up for school.

My second vision of home come in the form of a man named Mr. Trivedi. Before I left Chicago my dad had given me Mr. Trivedi's number as an in case of emergency contact that I never expected to use. Being a friend of a friend of my dad I expected this number to have been given to me out of general curtousy and nothing else. I couldn't have been more wrong. On my second day in the hospital I recieved a phone call from Mr. Trivedi who in turn came for a visit and quite graciously invited me to think of him as my family here in Kolkata. I couldnt be more greatful to Mr. Trivedi who has provided me with some sort of friendly face in a city where I know no one.

I have heard that I am going to be sprung tomorrow morning if th strike in the city is called off. Hopefully this happens as Jay and I have plans to try out the Kolkata BBQ restaurant.


1 comment:

Jane Jones said...

Dear Erin,

After telling a friend about Mr. Trivedi, she sent me an email marvelling at how small our globe actually is and what a strong web of caring circles us all. LIFE is good!! I am happy that you can take little pieces of home and weave them into your adventures in India. Love you...... Mom