I’m not entirely sure what my friends and family imagine is my day to day life here in India, but I’m guessing they think it’s vastly different than their’s in the US. It is in some ways, but to be honest, I spend 9-5 in an office, which is not that different than many of my friends in the US.
Yesterday I was feeling a bit homesick. I was sitting in my nice, air conditioned office and wondering why I’m all the way in India. I could writing similar emails from an office by the beach in Venice. I could go home and have dinner with my boyfriend then grab drinks with my friends. What I was doing at the moment did not seem to necessitate India.
In order to bring myself down to earth, when I left my office, I did a major reality check. I really looked around me and noticed everything that was strange and foreign. A women walked past balancing a basket on her head. I heard people speaking Kannada. More women passed in colorful saris. Then in my head, with a concerted effort, I said, “Holy shit… I’m in India”. Then I let that sink in. I’m literally on the other side of the world from my friends in family, in a place that is nothing like where I grew up. That’s pretty fricken cool.
This is a practice I learned from a friend here and it really works. It’s something that I think you can use in any situation. If you’re feeling annoyed about paying an arm and a leg for a shoe box in New York, I suggest looking around and thinking, “Holy shit, I live in New York! A place where many people only dream of living”. Go on, try it. It will turn around your day.