The Inclusive Truth {New}

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CHAPTER-1

I never thought things would ever come to such a pass. And so soon? My relationshipwith Catherine dwindled into a muddle, and all those promises we made to each other,

and those intimacies we nurtured, suddenly seemed to have taken a beating. Has theroulette of cultural divide started its sinister operation? Stubborn and unyielding as Cathy

is, she perhaps brooks no compromises; much less accept my plans for any mutually

convincing reconciliation. She is neither inclined to forget nor forgive anything if it rancounter to her perceived values .Of course, I blame myself for having precipitated the

breaking up of the agreement we reached earlier .Why should Cathy be so irascible and

so unreasonable? Had she been truer to me and a whit circumspect, everything would

have gone on predictable lines, but she kept to herself all her secrets, and never divulgedto me the facts concerning her past. Its so cruel f her, particularly when I believed her so

fully and my love for her was so total .She knows it as well, but why this predilection forself-deception?

I received an email from my dad that reads:

We would like to visit Boston and spend some time with you. Will it be fine if we

schedule our visit sometime in the first week of August? I await your response. (Dad). I

called up Cathy to show her the email my dad had sent I found her surprisingly happyabout my parent impending visit to the US.

Oh! Im so delighted, Sudhir, Ive to make all preparations to see that they are

comfortable as long as they are in the US.

Augusts fine. Shall I confirm?

O yeah! Sure she said as though it was her way of affirming my decisions.

. The excitement of receiving my parents to America and introducing my American wifeand daughter to the most disarmingly un -cynical and conservative parents whose

acceptance of Cathy into my family was almost a de rigor became paramount to me My

parents wouldnt be averse to forgive my venturing to uncharted waters- to commit theculpa of living with Cathy out of marriage. I think its my three- year- old daughter who

must bring a change in my parents , in their prejudged perceptions about me. Somehow,

everything was going to be fine, I thought, and I must use this god -send opportunity to

clear the clouds of misunderstanding. Its in deed a godsend opportunity, I thought, tocorrect all that initially seemed so incorrigible. Could they afford to lose their only son?

Could they be so insufferably irrational as to be harsh and cynical about my life?

I went to receive my parents from the airport at Newark that was nearly a four-hour drive from Boston. Precisely at half past six my dad and mom emerged from the

baggage center .I went close to them to accord a grand welcome to them, and after the

exchange of a few words, we went to a near by cafeteria where my parents had somesnacks and steaming American coffee.

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I hope, this will keep you fit to put up with another four-hour drive from here. You

could take some rest in the car, if you need to I said.

How are Cathy and Neil doing? .

mom asked me. They are doing okay, I told mom to reassure her that all is quite on the western front.

Mom perhaps was jet- lagged and fell asleep after exchanging a few pleasantries, while

dad kept me company by inquisitively enquiring about many things, including my life in

America in general, and my research work, in particular. He had been an academichimself for about thirty odd years and he knew what was what about a major research

project, particularly if its in one of the Americas prestigious universities like Harvard.

O, yes, Im fine-tuning everything, dad And of course ,there are a few distractionsbut Im sure Ill overcome them.

It doesnt matter. Take your own time

. Well, dad ,Cathy is extremely cooperative, I was trying to be more friendly and

reasonable at the same time .He must have read between the lines but he started talkingvaguely.

Yes, Im well aware of your hazards but you have chosen to live with them.

It was nearly midnight when we reached Woburn, one of the finest suburbs of Boston.Cathy came out to receive us, and Neil I thought, must be asleep.

How was your journey? Was it too tiresome? Cathy enquired.

It was. But our enthusiasm to see you both kept us aloft,said mom

How are you getting on, Cathy dad asked.

Yes, we are getting adjusted .No hiccups. Thank you so much. For your concern for

me, said Cathy

We dont want dinner and its already past midnight.Well just have some milk, dad said.

Thats fine. Ill mix some coffee for you both, if you so want.Please rest, you look so tired.

Cathy isnt an early riser. I was up by six and found my dad and mom already

had their morning coffee.

Sudhir, do you want me to mix some coffee for you too?

Its okay, mom. Ill be back right away.I brushed and took my showers and was ready for the coffee.

I just looked into the balcony only to find my dad reading his favorite New York

Times . While mom was busy in playing hide- and- seek with Neil. Dad enquired

about my research work. He said rather peremptorily. Ive reconciled to the fact that you did a right thing in choosing your partner. And I

wish your choice doesnt cast a shadow of doubt upon your life.

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Its okay, dad, Im so happy that youve a complete understanding of the

predicament Im in.. I must thank you both for this finest gesture. Cathy and I were

apprehensive, at the beginning, about your consent for our marriage, you know. Yourdisapproval would have cast aspersions on the arrangement we both made .Im so

happy about it. Things are moving in a positive direction.

Neil was dressed up in Punjabi kurta and pyjama,, and she looked so cute that my dadwas all praise for her.

We will take her to India and put her in some renowned corporate school.Do you like my idea? dad asked Cathy.

O, No. Ill miss her very much and life without her is unbearable.

I was sure youd never allow us to wrench her away from you. I was only kidding.

This is the sweetest baby who deserves to be in the US. Shell be a famous surgeon,one day. Take it from me. mom assured Cathy.

My parents forgot about everything- their initial revulsion of my living with Cathy out of

marriage, and all that goes with an outlandish alliance. Its Neil who seemed to have

brought in a fresh lease of freedom into the family, as it were, for its she who fortifiedour relationships. Cathy too had lost all her hopes about her acceptance into my family

but when she observed the inklings of a change in my parents attitude and their love for

their granddaughter, she was forced to alter her perceptions about my parents. Thishappy turn of events must have emboldened Cathy in cementing her ties with my parents,

and she nearly forgot the count of time in trying to move close to them She behaved as

though my mom and dad were her own and this has brought in both cohesion andmeaning into her existence which she otherwise would have missed. They must surely

have been embarrassed by the initial shock of letting their only son live in America with

an American wife. The very prospect of losing me to Cathy must have troubled them, butthere has been a change in their attitude Their understanding of the American society and

culture which they thought were too elusive has slowly been expanded thanks to Cathy.My dad was more concerned with my academic progress while my mom was overly

concerned with my life with an American wife who dismally failed to measure up to herexpectations. But never did they mention about their apprehensions. They must have

come to a tacit understanding between them not to rake up any potential controversies

which may put me in the spot and embarrass Cathy This was a good sign, I thought, and Imust owe my life- long gratitude to them for their sympathetic understanding of my

plight.

I promised my parents to take them to the downtown, at the weekend. Boston is

the gem of a city, exuding its old-world charm that fascinates everyone with the mighty

Atlantic ocean bordering the town, it retains its typical New England character-the redbrick houses neatly dovetailed with the archaic character of the towns people typifies the

England of the bygone era. There are several streets with old English names, and severalcultural centers with the veneer of England. The sprawling Science Center and the vast,

almost colonial shipyard, reminisce you the inherent charms of New England. The town

saw the emergence of many literary writers, poets and novelists who must have got their

creative afflatus from the coffee houses where Bostonians still spend much of theirevening time gossiping about politics and the new generation ideas.. Even their homes

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have a typical architectural ambience. At the center of the town is a vast, lush green

central park that attracts ones attention The Harvard University is Bostons oldest

university which is both its prized possession and academic excellence. Its imposinglytall, red-bricked buildings amidst the oak and maple trees, and carpeted by green

meadows, add up its profuse elegance. Its incomparably the best university that boasts of

producing a galaxy of litterateurs, scientists, economists, mathematicians Boston is also ahub of IT professionals, and there are many Indians working as soft ware professionals.

Its oldest Railway system is a special fascination to any one who is interested to know

how the railway system retained its pristine glory even now. With so much oftechnological advancement ,and it is a pleasure traveling by train, hustled into the

cogently maintained compartments, and meeting a conglomeration of humanity .To step

into the portals of Harvard is like getting a new-found heaven of freedom and elated

importance, for it gives one the luxurious feeling of intellectual greatness andstrangeness, and one tends to turn lyrical .I quoted Wordsworth to my dad: Rich was it

In that dawn to be alive/ To be a young was very heaven, looking at the opulent elegance

of the whole place.

Dad, Im so lucky and so happy to be one of its Harvards alumni. I wish to be here aslong as I stay put in America, for I cannot resist the temptation of not being one to regale

in the academic excellence that the university provides.

o yeah, its true. And were proud of you because you are one with Harvard. said dad

with a broad smile lit on his face.

At the weekend, we were off to the beach. Neil was already in her swim -suit, and

was all enthusiasm to play on the wet cool beach that stretched miles and miles .She

carried all her choice toys, and asked if we were ready to go. Cmon grandpa, wheres your swim suit? Neil was asking my dad.

I dont have any, dad said.

Dad, why dont you buy one for grandpa?

Oh, yes, sure baby. Your grandpa will have his swim suit soon, I said.What about your grandma? Cathy asked her.

Grandma doesnt need it. She cant swim. Neil said and laughed.

The beach was full of people, as it happened to be weekend. Neil joined the small crowd

of children and started playing with them, while I took my dad and mom to the

oceanfront to have a close view of the galloping waves. We stood in knee-deep water andwatched the sun sinking into the mighty ocean. It was awesomely glorious, the orange

sun slowly plunging into the dark water at the far end of the Atlantic even the waves

revelled in the ecstasy of the unusually calm but brilliant sunset that morphed the wholeseascape into a lyric song of beauty. Its this tug of the ocean and the old- world charm of

Boston that tethered both Cathy and me bound to the town. .

My dad had been savoring the lyric exuberance of the whole place-the city with the ocean

forming its fascinating backdrop, and he enjoyed every moment of his stay in Boston. Hetook Neil to the waterfront, and started playing with water while mom enjoyed the

moments when Neil sprinkled sea- water on her face. I never thought that a four-old

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could be a repository of happiness for my parents who never let lose any opportunity to

be close to her. Cathy seemed to be simply floored by my parents affections, for its Neil

who seems to have gone beyond the seeming peripheries of cultures, and traditions. Sheis their grand daughter, even if shes half-Indian and half- American.

We later went into Charles Street and had cappuccino in the sprawling cafeteria

while Cathy and Neil preferred ice cream, and walked into the center of the town with itsvast, lush green park lined with a variety of flower trees, and fascinating swimming poolsadorning it. It was in deed a colorful cavalcade of beauty and elegance that is woven into

the tapestry of Boston life. Coupled with it is that unassailable American affability which

is bound to fascinate the new visitors to the country. There is no trace of artificiality intheir life: it is genuine, flowing and agglomerating. This typical American pride is what

that makes them wonderful people who are generous and kind to the last degree of

perfection.

I was searching for some relevant criticism on Commonwealth writing to buttress

basis my dissertation that required both visceral analysis and erudite explication. My

research supervisor, Prof. Hicks, would never permit me to write up my thesis until hewas fully satisfied that Id examined all relevant material. He asked me to bring into my

research genuineness and a certain catholicity of purpose that alone would fortify my

argument, and bring finality to my work. That is the way American professors exact their

pound of flesh from the researchers who have had to flog to achieve perfection inwhatever they do. The exacting standards of the Harvard will force you to sit up and think

whether you are trying to achieve the nearly impossible. There were moments when I

wanted to call it a day and take up teaching job in some college or university but for theconstant encouragement I received from Cathy and my dad who would goad me and

cajole me into pursuing my work. That seemed to have made me a workaholic.

I wanted to connect Naipauls enigmas of exile with his artful cunning and tie themup with his perceived beliefs and valuations Somehow, I felt that those were merely thestatements of man who suffered the carping sense of rootless-ness and this sense of non-

belonging seemed to have haunted him all through. Naipaul turned merciless and cynical

in exposing the sham of contemporary living against the background of numerouscivilizations, races and religious traditions. That explains the prolixity and copiousness of

his entire oeuvre. He wades through the most untrammeled cultures and religions-Islam,

Hinduism, particularly-and holds them to be the exemplars in holding the individuals in

perpetual fear and bondage .His non-fictional tomes like India-A WoundedCivilization, and A Million Mutinies and his Middle March and An Islamic

Journey are meant to be visceral exposures of the overweening pulls that truncated the

progress of the human endeavors. His expose of the African culture as exemplified infictional tome, A Bend in the River could be a metaphor for human depravity and the

putrefaction that had overtaken the African tradition. This was the line of argument I

chose to interpret the Naipauls work that comes close to a contemporary myth. Myresearch supervisor wanted me to be more specific about his non-fictional work as it

throws more light on the sense of his estrangement and cynicism that pillories all

empathy. He is especially more expressive about his disapprovals rather than affirmativeconcessions about the civilizations he takes up for his exposure .In consequence, the

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novelist turns more a trenchant ironist rather than a choric commentator of the traditions

and customs of various cultures he seeks to redefine, and re-examine in the light of his

changed valuations.

Yes, Prof.Hicks, I was precisely intending to take this line of argument. But I wasrather discouraged in my attempts to ferret out and proximate some of the facts sui

generis about the novelists from other discipline who had the same breadth and vision asNaipaul had. I dont know if I could be stretching my net afar if I imported parallelismswith writers from other countries

You better restrict your field of enquiry only to the Commonwealth writing. Well

explore the other areas once we pin down to specifics. said Prof Hicks with a sage-likeadmonition.

Thank you so much, I said.

I came out of his sprawling office into the green pastures of the Harvard that was brislingwith scholastic radiance and briskly walked up to the cafeteria to have some coffee.

We had been to Dr Shantha at the weekend,while my parents preferred to stay back at

home. .Dr Shantha is from Allahabad . She was a family doc and we had promised to paya visit her. She married a Philippine I once asked her as to what impelled her to marry the

man from a strange land not her own who doesnt do anything for living

He is a caretaker of my two gorgeous kids she said and laughed. He isnt at home now.Oh! What a lucky hubby. I thought.

Cathy could as well place you in my hubbys role. Is it okay, Cathy

Oh, no, the present arrangement suits me well. She protested.

Dr Shantha has cooked some delicious Indian gulab jamuns which are liked by Neil

more than anybody else. I dont know how she fancied eating gulab jamuns when shenever had an occasion to. I think shes more Indian than Im. Make her to return to her

roots. She should disinherit everything thats American. My parents were even preparedto take her to India and put her in a good English medium school. My dad had been an

ardent lover of things Indian and wanted his grand daughter to be brought up in thetypical Indian tradition. The child too developed a revealing closeness with her grand

parents, and I wondered how genealogy connects each to each. Therefore, I chose for her

Indian name so that she wouldnt for get her forbears and her roots. I want her to be asurgeon and reach the heights of professional excellence as no one else in my family fold

has reached.

.

Cathy was watching Autumn in New York on the TV. The Neil was asleep. There

was silence everywhere except for the play of some soft music on the TV. Cathy seemedto have been lost completely in the spirit of the Fall and the bare- boned quality of the

season replicating the vast stretches of silence in her own life. At times she is so graveand mute that it becomes difficult for me to delve into the abysmal desperation that

overtook her at times when she was alone. Is she under-rating my ability to pull through?

The fragile arrangement we entered into out of dire necessity? Has the cultural

divide again resurfaced to show up the glaring disparities in us? I dont thing her love forme has already started showing up the cleavages. The arrangement we made will

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somehow pass the test of time, and I wished that the presence of my parents would close

up the bridge that would have separated us, a prospect that would have unnerved both

Mel and me. I must stop ruminating.

I was sandwiched between two uncertainties, as it were. I can neither be helpful tomy parents in India nor to Cathy who entirely depends on me for a prop. My aging

parents too need my full support as my father has already turned seventy. My mom issixty plus and needs somebody around her. My staying put in the US must have irritatedthem. And to cap it all, my preference for an American woman must have unnerved them.

They perhaps thought of a suitable bride for me back home in India, rich, educated and

beautiful. She would be from some respectable family, with a decent upbringing and withexemplary qualities of head and heart. It doesnt matter even if I stayed back in America

after the marriage. They perhaps thought of visiting my Indian wife and me periodically,

and if possible stay put with me when they turn old and decrepit .I must have upset alltheir plans by preferring to live with Cathy out of marriage.

What would your uncles think of such an arrangement?

mom asked me, and continued.

They are right in America.Mom, I dont live for others.

You could have at the most told us about your preferences. Dad mildly reprimanded.

.How could you take such a decision, he continued

Ive done no wrong, dad. Ill explain to you the circumstances which led to thisarrangement with Cathy. I said to convince my parents.

We have nothing to worry about. But would you be happy with her? Mom asked.

Why dont you just marry her and give this so-called arrangement of living, as you

prefer to call it, a legitimacy.

Oh! Let me wait for sometime. Im in no hurry since the present arrangement suits bothof us.

Its okay. But be careful- you dont take any decision in haste mom said.

This was the psycho- drama that was being enacted in me ever since I had found that I

over- stepped my peripheries. The freedom of choice has its own perils. Discretion, as the

adage goes, is the better part of valor. But did I exercise my discretion well? Have I not

committed a culpa that weighed heavily upon me? What should I do to overcome thispredicament? Time alone will heal my inner lacerations. That I hadnt been indiscreet in

trying to live with a woman from another civilization that was antipodal to mine never

bothered me. But what worried me most was my inability to meet the challenges I had

unwittingly undertaken this dual risk, and I must live up to the expectations of both-myparents and Cathy who entirely believes me.

I posted a bunch of Cathys poems on the Internet. I even wanted get her poems

into book form, but she resisted my attempts to take them to print. But secretively, Icopied some of her poems on CD and sent it to a publishing house in Maryland that

eventually brought out the whole bunch of her poems in an attractive book form. This

was her first overseas publication, and Cathy would not have dreamed that her poemswould receive rave reviews.

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They are strictly for private circulation, but you had gone too far to give my poems both

validity to my felt experiences. You are surely a trespasser said she with a glint in her

eyes.

Would you mind if I gave a copy to my dad?With pleasure,

she said almost firmly, as if to allow me to do just what she wanted.

I dont know how I got into the habit of reading literature but I became a voracious reader

too. I picked up the classics and read them at leisurely. This perhaps has helped me tosharpen my understanding of the English and American classics. I maintained personal

library and stalked my racks with all recent publications.. Cathy used to take both my

mom and dad to the Central library with Neil around. I used to dish out books thatinterested me, and read them in one go .I must have read Catch22 several times over,

for I was drawn to its weltanchauung and disarming humor. I was happy to see Neil

imperceptibly cultivating the habit of reading books of her interest. I thought she wouldcarry my family tradition farther to reach greater heights of fame though I wanted her to

be a surgeon and follow my kind of passion and acumen with her Would she be with me

till the end? Or would she closely follow her moms tradition and become a psychologist?Its too early to predict, I thought. But what worried me most was the prospect of staying

back in America. Where do all my outlandish connections take me? It was perhaps a

forewarning to me not be too complacent with what hitherto had transpired. .I must be

wary and must not take the things on their face value. Could I ever alter my perspectives?Who knows what is in store for me.

My uncle from Kentucky called me up to tell me about his proposed visit to Boston at the

weekend. He works as a neurologist in one of the hospitals in Kentucky Perhaps he

wanted his visit to coincide with a visit to his daughter who happens to be in one of thecolleges in Boston doing her MS

Im dying to see your parents, you know, how much I care for them., he said.

I went to receive both my uncle and aunt from the airport. They were just waiting for me

at the after they had collected their baggage. It took nearly an hour before we reachedhome.

Why did you bring your daughter this far? Does Boston suit Sunita?

mom asked my uncle.

I wasnt very particular about the choice of a place. But it was Sunita who chose Boston

university

Then its fine. I had initial suspicion whether she wouldnt adjust herself into the

peculiar atmosphere here.

She had a couple of Indian friends as room- mates. She is slowly learning to cook her

own food and getting into the spirit of her class mates.

Okay .I am happy that Sunita has really grown up and so soon, said dad.

Im sure, she will surpass everybody here, you know, mom prophesied.

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Oh, shell surely be a professor at Harvard. I want my daughter to emulate Sunita, the

sweetest girl I ever befriended Cathy said as if she knew her since ages.

Of course, it doesnt take much time to get used to a new location. And shell surely

make Boston her home, if the need arose., I said.

We had a sumptuous Indian dinner that night .My uncle left for Kentucky by the eveningflight, next day.

Days rolled on happily and we were so busy we couldnt find time to

sit up and think what was going on around us. And at each weekend, we moved out toimportant places, and visited as many of them as possible. This weekend, we planned a

trip to Concord that everybody was curiously waiting for. Neil was all enthusiasm when it

came to visiting places.. She started troubling mom with a cascade of questions.

Grandma, could you tell me what this place is famous for? Why is dad so particularabout the place.

It has a large pond where you could swim, mom told her.

Can I go for a walk with you?

O yeah, my sweet girl, we cant move an inch without you around.

The mention of Walden Pond surrounded by a dense forest must have ignited her

precocious imagination. She told her grandma all kinds of stories she knew about theplace not knowing that my mom has already read Thoreaus celebrated book, Walden

Pond. that contained some of the gems of the authors recapitulated experiences. For my

dad, the visit was a miniature pilgrimage, for he loved the American transcendentalists so

much that he speaks highly of Emerson and Thoreau .He religiously collected some smallpebbles as relics from Thoreaus now dilapidated home. As for me, the extreme serenity

of the place, and the gorgeous sunset over the hills, are enough to send me into a rapture..

Its in deed a captivating sight that no one would ever like to miss.

We sped close to the pond by ten in the morning and took barely acouple of hours for us to reach Concord, a small place that lies suspended between the

earth an heaven, as it were.

What an ideal place to live in , dad muttered.

I now know how fascinating the place must have been for Thoreau to experiment withthe life. said mom, moved by the whole spectacle of the thick forest sand the shadowy

serenity of the whole place.

Sudhir, will you please pull off the car off for a while. I want to take the picture of the

pond from a distance so that whole pond is captured in the picture.I pulled off the car into the side way to enable Cathy to take more pictures of the place.She also took some snaps of my mom and dad while they were intensely caught in the

mood of contemplation.. The pond is relatively bigger surrounded as it is with tall teak an

maple trees. Neil and Cathy preferred to stay back close to the waterfront when I readiedto take my mom and dad for a long trek of the mountains. We climbed a small distance

and arrived at a single room home where Thoreau lived happily for two years to show the

fellow Americans how one could lead a simple life without the ostentations of the modern

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city life and still get the satisfaction of having lived a full, productive life, Thoreau read

messages in trees and each cycle of seasons, and his Walden Pond experiments

constituted the sum total of the transcendental philosophy he espoused and propagated inhis writings.

I wonder why most of the Americans turned to materialism when so much of happiness

lies in simple living. said dad.

Then America would have remained a primitive hinterland if they had closely followed

what Thoreau envisaged. Thank god, they simply took the fringe benefits of the authorsbeliefs if not the true spirit..

Thats true. But where does technology take you to?

Into chaos, ultimately, Cathy said as if she had correctly diagnosed the American

malady.

Yes, she has rightly pinpointed spiritual deracination that America is going through..Isnt your country suspended between the two stools, Cathy? dad asked her.

We were interrupted by a familiar voice. Its Mary who called on us. She had beenCathys closest friend who went through all the turbulent times Cathy had gone through.

Cathy considers her a true friend . She speaks English like a Spaniard.

Hello Rachelle how are you? Cathy held Marys six-month old baby.

How are you? Mary said looking at my parents.

Fine. Thank you. How do you do?

Im okay except that I dont get enough rest when this kid is around. He is too

demanding, you know she wailed as if her freedom to roam freely is imperiled once for

all.

Oh! What a sweet baby! mom said.

Whats George doing? I enquired.

Hes as busy as a taxi and very addicted to his business, you know.

Naturally. How else should the world go? dad said matter- of- factly.

George is with the IBM and it all shows how diligent hes I said.

Neil played with Rachelle all the time, touching his face and his tiny hands and legs.

Hes so cute she said. Mom, can I keep Rachelle with me?

Certainly, darling, if only her mom allows you to.

Cathy had been very kind to me all the time .I dont know whether thissweetness flows from her innate goodness or empathic sociability. Ever since I knew her

from the days when I started wooing her till I got her hooked to my plan as live- in

couple, she never exhibited any tantrums or created disorderly behavior. She has receivedall my suggestions with remarkable ease though my decisions were a whit embarrassing

to her prejudged proclivities. She is a perfect humane person, pliable and resilient, and

thoroughly gregarious. This endeared her to my parents, particularly my mom , who saw

in her the perfect example of a daughter in law, more in the tradition of an Indian than a

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typically detached American. My mom had even brought for her a brides sari and a

diamond necklace considering that our togetherness would last forever with or without

our being conventionally wedded.

I like your parents, Sudhir they are so kind and so generous. They are incredible. Isome times have an uneasy suspicion that they are the kindest parents one would wish to

have. I would like to stay put with them even if you deserted me.

Thank you for the unsolicited complements, I said.

My parents must have found in you the qualities of a good house wife Its good if youloved them The same bonhomie should continue to make relationships lasting.

But this didnt go well. Cathy started distancing from my dad but still loved mom who,

she must have felt, was more pliable than my dad. When I told her that moms birth day

falls on October 27, she plunged headlong into turning the occasion fitting.. She went tothe mal and purchased colorful ribbons and balloons and brought a cake to be cut. Neil

was all too ready to make the occasion grand.

Cathy got up early and Nell too was already awake. They were busy with preparationsfor the birthday. I found them too busy.

Whats going on? What is the occasion for all these arrangements? Oh my goodness, isit for moms birth day

Oh, yeah, I want to see that the B Day bash is lasting.. Im going invite a few of

my closest friends, she told me.

Mom, are you ready. Everything is arranged.

Oh! Why all this pomp Cathy? Why not make the occasion simple.

No, mom. It should be a fitting occasion. Further Neil likes all these festivities.

We celebrated Ganesh festival, you know?

What do you do in India on the birth day?

Oh, leave it. We will celebrate it with no pomp. Just the distribution of a few sweetsamong friends, and sumptuous lunch to go with it.

This is different in here. Isnt it Sudhir?

I hope so I said. My dad was all too happy to participate in the birthday bash.

There were ribbons colorfully decorating the whole area. And some beautiful roses added

splendor to the whole scene. Neil and Cathy were dressed up in their best. Both Mary and

Maria descended on us at the exact time. Many happy returns of the day , said Maria.

Thank you so much said mom.

And Neil was ready with the cake. When it is cut, the whole apartment boomed with

Birth Day songs, sung with the typical American accent which neither my parents nor me

fully understood. Even Neils accent is different from ours.. When dad asked her aboutthe Remote she displaced, She said: It must be right up there. It was music to my ears,

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for she spoke in such a mellifluous voice, I was simply wondering as to how this little kid

could master the linguistic subtleties so soon. Thats her mother tongue, I thought.

My dad suddenly turned nostalgic about India,, and wanted to get back.

I cannot stand this atmosphere in this country. I miss the people over there in India, and

the noise and stench Im accustomed to.Where would I get all these in America? There is only reverberating silence everywhere.

Most of the Americans live in malls and restaurants, and those who are employed who

dwell in comforts of the offices. Hats off to Americas great technological advancement

and economic boom, its richness of culture and skyscrapers, and the buxom maidens; itsmaterial prosperity and fecund literature. Where does it all lead me ? A sense of vacuity

still exists in the typical American consciousness. Did you observe this Sudhir? dad

asked me with an air of peremptoriness.

I dont know how to answer your question. Im simply carried away by the Americanopulence and the infinite opportunities the country provided to me. What do you want?

Im happy with what Ive now. I dont foresee anything wrong with the American way oflife. Itll be on the top. Do you think that the Third World would ever witness anymaterial change? Dont tell me anything about its bullshit spiritualism that has neither

substance nor meaning. Im sorry, dad, for being too practical.

No wonder you are bound to defend as any American would.

Oh, dad, you still cling to the clichs. The world is rapidly changing for the better, and

America is in the lead position. The reset of the world has to emulate the Americanmodels and change their cultural and social attitudes and permutations to catch up with

America.

No. It doesnt help show American nationalism as superior., dad concluded.

Prof. Hicks had called me one fine evening. He wanted to know the progress of myresearch work.

I only wanted to see for myself how you are bracing up . Did you get ample critical

material? I wanted you to place Naipaul in the main stream of Commonwealth writing

where you get plenty of opportunity to bring in juxtapositions with the other cultures.Your dissertation will then be the first-hand explication.

I am highly obliged to you, Sir. Thank you for your interest in my work. I am sure I

shall leave no stone unturned to make my analysis of Naipauls work diligently

delightful. You have to untangle some of the critical misconceptions about his non-fiction whereNaipaul takes sides. This is a dangerous proclivity on the part of a creative writer

according to some critics. You have to dispel this misplaced perceptions about the

novelist who is not only fecund but also quintessentially cynical in his comments on thevarious civilizations and religions-both Hindu and Islamic. He chooses albeit a middle

passage to outpour his sardonic humor and lacerating irony. I think he is the only writer

who deserves a sumptuous commendation.

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Prof. Hick is full of admiration for Naipaul, I thought, and its difficult not to believe

him.

I wanted to get back home, rather early. I took the train from Cambridge railway

station and arrived at downtown, Boston central park, pulled my car out and slowly spedto Washington Square .It was almost four in the evening. I found door was locked. Cathy

must have taken my parents and Neil to a nearby mall, I thought. She must have gone toa library. My mom is fond of reading all types of novels, and dad invariably laid hishands on poetry and modern fiction. That was the way they spend their time whenever

they happen to come to USA. Its their fourth visit to the US, if Im not wrong.

Cathys Chrysler showed up after sometime. She came down with heavy paper bags,

and smiled at me.

O, you were on a shopping spree? I said.

Did you buy anything special?

O yeah, I wanted to buy some warm clothes for your mom and dad.

Neil picked up this sweater for her. She bought quite a few toys, and some picture- books

that fascinated her. I dont ever know how curious this girl is about reading books at this

age. One day, shell be an asset to you, Sudhir.

Ill get her horoscope done in India. Dad I asked my dad school boyishly.

Cathy wanted to go to Kentucky to see her parents for the Thanks Giving Day, Itsthe one festival the Americans celebrate with much lan. Its the one way of thanking the

parents annually. Ive no idea whether such a tradition exists in India, but I find it

interesting as it symbolically prefigures the cementing the bonds of love in time.

Cathy is from the lower rung of the American family that survives on hard work.Her dad had been a physical instructor while her mother a teacher of English in a local

American school. The family had been living comfortably though, if not luxuriantly. I

met Cathy in one of my visits to the Kentucky University where I went as a visitingprofessor to teach a course in Commonwealth Lit to the graduate students. Cathy attended

quite a few of my lectures on Naipaul and Patrick White.

Im simply swept off by your erudition. I wish you dwelt more on the revolutionary

aspect of his writing, Wole Soyinka whom I consider an equally interesting playwright.

Yeah, certainly, if my schedule permits. I came especially to listen to your analysis of Commonwealth writing that I opted for.

Its indeed a rewarding experience, she blushed.

O, Im delighted to have such an understanding disciple as good and participative as you

are.

Instead of psychology, I went for Lit. Isnt it weird ?

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Oh ! I dont know about your preferences Its good that you study psychology before

you do English the honors as you shower now, I joked.

That was the beginning of our friendship. She came to attend the complete lecture series.

I dont know whether it was out of curiosity to listen to me that drove her to the lectureroom but the fact that we met very frequently was very real. I started evincing some

interest in her rather disarming innocence writ large on her face.

Is she interested in me? I thought. The idea is not bad. Am I being dragged into a

relationship ?I dont have any clue, right now

I was still there to spend my weekend. I met her in the mall. She carried a bouquet and a

bunch of books.

Oh, what a pleasant surprise. Has the world shrunk into a ball. .Its such a small place,

you know. You are here again. Who is to be honored with this bouquet? I asked.

O sure. Its for you. she said and handed the bouquet over to me.

O, was only kidding, I said.

Its for you Ive brought, Sir,, she said politely

Her friend Margaret too was with her.

Yeah, we are serious....

Im sorry to leave you at this point. Any way, thanks for the bouquet.

I rushed back to my apartment in the downtown.

There she was at my apartment the next day. I packed my suitcase and books .I

was about to catch my flight to Boston.

Oh, what made you to be here, my fair

lady?

Nothing special. just wanted to see you off at the airport.

Okay. Its a fine gesture. I appreciate it with a kiss.

Oh, its okay. But do you know that theres some selfish motive behind all this faade of

civility?

Then it, very bad. I told her and loudly laughed.

I came back to Boston with a fusillade of unresolved questions.Though I fell back into the routine, I was not completely oblivious of whatever that had

happened at Kentucky. On one fine evening, when I was on the Atlantic beach, I was

astonished to find Cathy with a kid.

O my God! What a coincidence. You are here again Princess Catherine

At your service, my lord she said, and smiled.

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I expected this chance meeting to take place, you know. Its good it happened to me so

soon.

Cathy told me excitedly. Ill be happy to be with you all my life if it needs be

O yeah, you are, for sure Its good that you made up your mind

I like your generosity

O, Im blessed again Thank you so much.

How long are you going to stay here? Why dont you come to my bachelors

apartment?

For a week, perhaps. I came to visit my sister.

Te next day, there she was at my apartment at exactly seven in the evening. She was in

the green tea- shirt and blue jeans and a broad smile smudged on her face. A plump figurewith a typical maidenly appearance, she showed up, I thought when I opened the door,

Welcome to my humble abode. Please feel comfortable. What would my princess like to

like to have?

Coffee will do for me, she said.

Okay. This fairest lady would be served with coffee in the shortest possible time.

She started carefully looking at every object that caught her attention- the picture of dadand mom, the laptop and the TV. It was truly a bachelors apartment. Things badly

needed to be rearranged.

You know, I scarcely get time to organize each and everything. This is what I prefer tolive by- a disorganized life with no scent of a woman around.

It doesnt matter. Ill neatly arrange everything, if you dont mind my doing it in my

way.

O, sure .It is a pleasure to see you doing my job, I said, and stealthily looked at her

well- shaped contours of her body.

She immediately plunged into action and within an hour everything was in the rightplace.

Thank you sumptuously for your kind help .I now know how nice would everything

look if they are diligently arranged with feminine touch.

It needs a womans expertise, Mr., she replied and broke into a loud laughter..

She was with me all through the night. We were lost in the slumber of darkness, and dont

know how many times I made love to her. She slumped into a sweet dream, as it were,and this unexpected bonanza must have brought her close into epiphany she was

expecting all through our intimate relationship.

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She woke up at six in the morning and said: Ive got to go. Im already late. Will you

drop me at my sisters house which is not far away from here.

With pleasure, I said..

I sped close to Charles street, left her at her sisters house and bid god bye.

She came to see me again on the weekend. I took her for dinner on Sunday.

She preferred Indian vegetarian food.

Oh, no. I would prefer Indy food. And when you are here with me around, my choice for

the Indy food is not unnatural, I suppose.

Im blessed, my lady. What do you have?

Rice and palak.

Okay. These are like Greek and Latin to me.

We sat in the Taj restaurant for a long time, talking of many more things-about India in

general, about my family antecedents, my sisters and their husbands, of the murkyAmerican politics and the Presidential faux pas in Iraq.

Mr Bush has badly burned his fingers .He shouldnt have gone in for the regime change

in Iraq. That has cost America dearly.

The war on terror has morphed into a war on Islam. Mr Bush has irritated the entireIslamic world. The war on Iraq was a practical blunder that America has committed. I

continued.

I dropped her at her sisters home and sped back to my apartment. It was ten in the

night when I reached Washington Square.o a deep slumber thinking of Cathy and herfriendship. Could I enter into a relationship with her. What about our cultures that are

astringent? Would my parents accept Cathy into my family? There were several questionsthat had no easy answers.

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CHAPTER II

____________

I received a call from India, quite unexpectedly at the most ungodly hour of two a.m. Itwas mom who called me to inform that my dad had suffered a heart attack and he had

been operated upon.

He is okay. It was all done in a hurry, for we couldnt leave anything to chance.

Both of Mira and Sushi were of immense help to me. Hadnt your sisters extended their

help to me, I would have troubled you. We never wanted to disturb you. She went onreassuring me that everything was fine.

You could call up your dad in the morning , she said.

I was shocked and petrified. How could my mom keep everything in secrecy? If anything

adverse happened to dad, I would have guilty forever.

Oh, mom, why did you maintain silence? Didnt you feel that it was your duty to keep

me informed of whatever that goes on in the family? It means you have no faith in me.

Thats not true, my son. .It was your dad who wanted me not to disturb you., and I was

only following his instructions.

Okay, mom, Ill get the earliest flight to India. Ill be there within the next forty -eight

hours. Please ask dad not to be worried.

I called on Prof Hicks and informed him of everything, and took leave of him.

I was ready to take my flight to India, the land of Mahatma Gandhi and the land of myforbears.

The Air India touched down the Rajiv Gandhi Airport exactly at twelve-thirty

AM. My eldest sisters son, Sundar, came to the airport to receive me. He spotted me

from the baggage collection center and smiled at me. And when I reached him, I tooksome of my baggage, and walked towards the parking area from where he hired a cab. He

gave the cab driver some directions and it was almost one-thirty in the morning when we

reached home.

Dad was still recuperating in the Apollo Hospital.. I went to see him at thehospital and I was the earliest caller, it appeared .I found dad browsing the newspaper He

saw me and feebly laughed.

When did you come? Hope everything is okay with you?

Thy are doing okay. Dad, why didnt you inform me when you were to undergo majorsurgery.

Everything had gone off well. Dont you worry. Try to be comfortable as long as you

stay here. dad said as if to reassure me that all was well.

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Okay, dad, get well soon, Ill stay back here for till you are completely

recuperated.

As I had very little time, I was left with no option than to visit a few places of importance

in Hyderabad. I took a cab and went for a stroll on the Necklace Road that borders the

Hussain Sagar. The imposing Buddha statue looked cool and serene in the night withflorescent lights lighting up the face of the Buddha. The lake itself was a pool of light.

The road was broadly lit as if it stood ready for some festivity. I walked down the whole

distance covering up NTR Gardens, The Times giant sign board and returned on the sameroute till I reached the imposing gate to the Tank Bund. This is the area thats bound to

attract the attention of the walkers who would prefer to jog Its almost walkers paradise.

At the other end of the road, theres an Imax theater and Macdonalds food joint.

Its a new addition, I thought. I had French Fries and steaming coffee. I went into aOrient Longmans to find out if it had fresh additions of new fiction. I saw the whole

bunch of novels written by Jhumpa Lahri, Kiran Desai, Chetan Bhagavat, Robin Sharma,

Salman Rushdie and V S Naipaul. And a few novels of Henry James, an odd assortment, I

thought.

As I was left with very little time, I rushed to Lad Bazzaar thats close to Charminar.

The imposing structure built about four hundred years ago, Charminar has still retained

its pristine glory The four minarets, tall and imposing, stood as architectural marvels .Thewide space down in the middle of the four pillars was designed to invite air and light

from four sides, and the traditional designs and carvings on the pillars go to show the

their impressive power on the Nizams of Hyderabad who ruled it for several years apace.Charminar has a pride of place in Hyderabad, and in fact the twin cities of Hyderabad and

Secondrerabad are identified with this pervasive symbol of Charminar that explains the

very raise de tre of its cultural moorings.

I wanted to buy some bangles to both Catherine and Neil to show them how much I stillcare for the Indian traditions though I keep up my post-modernity in my outlook. Even

Catherine knows that Im not given to pretensions, and almost wear my heart on my

sleeve.

Am I not straight in my attitude and judgmental valuations, Cathy? I asked her once.

Yeah! You are. Im happy about it. she said rather lackadaisically.

Thats way back when I first met with her in Kentucky.

My dad was back to the normal in a fortnight. And I was all set to be back in

Boston via England and France. In fact, I had a plan to have a brief stop over in both

London and France but for my protracted vacation .I had to rush back to catch up with

my academic routine. I missed both Cathy and Neil and I couldnt drive them into thelimbo of forgetfulness though I was preoccupied with dads post-operative care. Neil

lingered in my memory, for shes such a sweet baby that deserves all parental love and

affections. Cathy spoke to me twice to inquire about dads health and recovery.

Dont worry about me and Neil. Take care of your dad, and see that he recoversspeedily ,she said,.

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While I take care of your little daughter. Everything will pass off smoothly, and dont be

worried about us..

Thats Cathy, bold and spirited. Shes a true American who has the courage of conviction

to withstand the tumultuous ups and downs. I knew she would never lose her calm. Shehas a capacious heart to empathize with and heal the sorrows of others. And Im really

proud of her genuineness of spirit and sympathetic understanding. Thats what the qualitythat pulled me towards her, and that made me very obsessive about her. Had there beenno Catherine, I would not have been what Im now, for shes a constant source of strength

and inspiration to me.

Cathy, Ill be back soon , I said.

Ill be with you in a couple of days.

Oh, really? Youre welcome back to Boston, Sudhir, she spoke rather lengthily abouther feeling of aloneness and about her time spent with friends and her umpteen visits to

the library with Neil around. Of course, I know that Neil is both strength and reason for

her joi de vivre.

Cathy and Neil came to the airport to receive me. She hugged and kissed me assoon as she reached me.. Neil gave me a peck on the cheek and cooed; Welcome back to

Boston, dad.

Thank you. My darling baby, I said and laughed.

For the first time, I felt that my life would be empty without Cathy and Neil, for they

gave me the reason for me to be in the business of life.

Ah! Cathy I missed both of you. Do you know how vacant I was all the time? O God!

Never separate me from Cathy an Neil. I said loudly, unable to control me emotions.

Cathy laughed, and said: I know how much you care for us. Dont be sentimental,

Sudhir, every thing will pass off

Im contented, I said like a man crying from the rafters.

Days rolled into weeks and weeks into months. I fell into the routine, and Cathy

was as busy as a taxi. She used to take Neil to the school and drive her back in her brownChrysler. And picked up a few things for me from the grocery shop. It was she who had

to do all the shopping .She used to prepare an elaborate list of items to be fetched from

the Sams Club, a few clothes from Sears. We used to visit a nearby mall to spend timeand do some shopping. And I never said No to Cathy when she demanded that I should

take her to a place of her choice. Thats the proximity we used to enjoy in the initial yearsof our coming togetherness. It all was like an extended dream- a dream of satiety andfulfillment Gods must be crazy if they ever chose to disturb us.

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Then came fall and winter in quick succession in Boston. Though Bostonians are

used to the quirks of winter, they werent ready as yet to take the bull by the horns. here

that many facets of reality were woven into the multivalent life. Cathy became nostalgicwhenever we take a trip into memory lanes.

It was the month of August, way back in 2003 when I landed in Boston as a

Research Scholar. It took several months for me to get acclimatized to the new place, andnew environments. Fortunately for me, there were many Indians who lent me their

unstinted support, and turned me into a hardcore Bostonian with same gut feeling as

most of the new comers to Boston should get into, if only they would like to shine in this

part of the earth. One has to understand the New England culture specific andperceptively move into its weltanchauung. And its Boston that made me what I am to

day, a bold and adventurous guy from another culture transplanted into a different

civilization. My proclivity to live with a woman from the culture other than mine has

raised quite a few questions that remained unanswered till the end. For my parents, itremained an enigma, and for Americans it was simply a fetish. I had to strike a balance

between these antithetical perceptions, and move confidently into the future. Obviously, itwasnt as easy task as one would have surmised.

For Catherine and me Boston was almost idyllic, for the seemingly large city became a

launch pad for all my dreams and vision of the ambrosial future. Its here our love

blossomed and became fossilized into mutual trust. There were no hiccups, no ups anddowns. Cathy had been a devoted friend; a devout acolyte and she had gained enough

confidence to brace the future eventualities. She had very often visited the university, and

I dont know why she developed a peculiar fascination for Cambridge. The largeuniversity campus must have attracted her. Or else there must be some compelling motive

to belong to the university alumni. Of course, its natural for a woman of her caliber tocultivate such a desire to be a part of the academic community.

Cathy, I sometimes feel that you could have been my link to Harvards large community.I dont how you missed it. I said.

I had a strong desire to continue my studies at Harvard. But I fortunately chose a

different way- the way to a fructifying experience of falling headlong in love with you.

Isnt it an achievement? I want to go nothing farther than this. For me, love is an

epiphany, a satiety close to the dream realized.

She came close to me hugged me passionately as if to endorse her feeling.

Oh, me? Of all the creatures. Im beholden to you, my prices I said and kissed her.

The night was rather inordinately long. How I wished that it continued till eternity.

Cathy has a peculiar flair for partying. She often throws lavish parties to her

friends on every important occasion, birthday bashes included. She attends parties

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without fail, and if the party is by an Indian, she makes it sure that Neil is dressed up

suitably in some Punjabi dress or the typical Indian silks.

Thats the way to come closer to Indians. My accent may not be palatable to them, but

they understand my concern for them. Isnt it the surest way to make my presence felt?she said rather unselfconsciously..

Im sure your methods are impeccable. And so your deportment. I dont ever understand

why you begin to identify yourself with conglomerate cultural groups.ld easily fit into

their cultural ambiences without exhibiting your American hubris. Does your compassionovertake your assertive Americanness? I asked her.

Ha! Whichever way you interpret. I simply would like to identify with people from

divergent cultural background. It gives me some vicarious pleasure, you know, Sudhir.

How I wished to be reborn as an Indian, or a Mexican. Thse cultural tags are painful tome. Remove them, and you are a mere a homo sapien.

Bravo, I thought. She seems to have inherited the syncretism from her mom, and rugged

individuality from her rather assertive dad. Shes a thinking woman, I thought, and

wouldnt stand any indoctrination from any end. Shes difficult, and I cannot cozy her up.What a stupendous loss would it have been had I not roped her in.

We went to George, a doc who worked in the Veteran hospital as a cardiologist .He

is abrasively suave and gentle, and is not given to any superior airs. Thats the quality that

makes him the gem of a man, and he has cornered all the hosannas from both fellowAmericans and Indians as well..

Hello, Sudhir, how are you? , and he looked at Cathy and said:. What a fine couple

you both make .I envy you, my friend he said.

Thats what you are, George. I received his compliments with gusto while Cathy

simply paid no attention as though Georges remarks were inconsequential. Hello Cathy, how are you doing? Oh, Neil, you are so cute.

I just wanted to see for myself how both of you spend your spare time. Whats up,

Mary?

Fine. Everything is in order. George has vouched he would spend this weekend with me

and Rachelle,

Thats nice. After all, hes a responsible hubby, you know. Arent you George?

Cathy said.

Thank you so much for your timely suggestion. Now I know that Mary has

someone to confide in.

Oh, why dont you make yourself comfortable. Shall we have some drinks, Sudhir?

Thats fine. Ill have some beer.

Thats fine. How is your research work progressing ?

A snails progression. Ive been to India fortnight to see my dad and mom that took

away all my euphoria. Of course, my dad is now doing okay.

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That will pass off. Dont worry everything falls in its place, George reassured me.

Let us have our dinner, Mary said. Its only six thirty in the evening.

Sudhir, Ive a question to ask. Why doesnt Cathy work somewhere? She is young and

enthusiastic. I see no point in her sitting at home without any preoccupation., said

George.Youre right. I told Cathy to find some job now that Neil is four years. We can put her in

some school., I said.

Oh, yeah, Im ready to hunt for a job provided it allows me the flexible timings so that I

can take care of Neil and office work, said Cathy.

Right now, theres a vacancy for a psychologist in the rehab center of a hospital. Areyou ready, Cathy? asked George.

Yeah, if the hospital allows me the latitude I wanted.

O, sure. Youll grab it , George concluded.

Thats what the Georges are. A nice American couple who had a clear perspective andvision unlike the others. They are atypical Americans, I once said. They are far awayfrom the usual gossip and rumor mills. These qualities endear them to anyone who comes

close to them.

I never forced Cathy into a job hunt, for I felt she needed to take care of Neil, and once

she turns four years, things will sort themselves out. Thank god, the suggestion camefrom George, and not from me. Had I informed her of the necessity of her seeking a job,

she would have misunderstood me. Cathy must have realized that staying at home all

through the day is a colossal waste of time. How long could anyone sit back at home evenif it meant absolute freedom? Anything in excess is reprehensible. Doesnt Cathy know

this?

The next day, Cathy got Neil admission in Sycamore School thats way from our

apartment. She told me she would leave Neil at the school at 9 am and pick her back at 4in the evening. And she got the flexible time from the hospital authorities to start with.

Let me wait and see if very thing falls into place, she said. She sounded optimistic to

me, and its a good to be optimistic.

I appreciate your resolutions. Please go ahead, and I stand by you, I told her to boost

her morale.

Im happy, Sudhir, George is right. It never occurred to me to be how lavishly I spentmy time? O my god, I must recover the time I had spent vaingloriously. A part of the

blame I must apportion it to you.

I know what youre driving at. Okay. Let us look forward to an ambrosial future.

We havent lost anything. All that we need to do is to recover the lost ground, she said

philosophically.

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It all happened otherwise. There are bound to be umpteen future shocks that

awaited me. Cathy no doubt got her economic freedom, but simultaneously I lost mine. I

had to drop Neil at school and bring her back too, after school hours. Cathys flexibletime offer by the hospital authorities had dropped off with a heavy thud, and she became

more and more preoccupied. I had even to do some household chores as the occasion

demanded. O my god, where did you take me to, Dantes purgatory? That was perhaps apart of life-be ready for a few adjustments and a few sacrifices if it needs be. Are these

manifestations of some deeper malady? Who knows whether Cathy is trying to put to

some tolerance test? Hardcore American that shes, she is bound to nurture somesuspicion about me. And she must have some hesitancy in accepting my traditions, and

my customs that may have sounded queer and quizzical at times. There cant either be a

total acceptance of the other culture or a total denial .A compromise perhaps would havebetter suited her, but how long does it last?

Ive every reason to be satisfied .Im happy with whatever academic distinctionsI won. Im happy about my financial stability, for I get what ever I want within the

confines of my scholarship .My commitments are limited only to Cathy and Neil inAmerica, and Ive nothing to worry about my dad and mom. They can take care of

themselves. The only irritant in the otherwise my impeccable life is my preference to live

with an American woman out of marriage thats unthinkable to the conservative Indianparents who must have felt that I out did my brief. But never did they point out that

belied their hopes. It was only my dad who once expressed his resentment of my living

out of marriage which was bizarre and unethical as he pointed out. But when he landed in

America, he seemed to have changed his perceptions since he started loving both Cathyand Neil. My mom instantly fell in love with both, for her love for me seemed to have far

outweighed all other considerations. In simplistic terms, the cultural divergences make asignificant difference both for Cathy and me, for it this cultural divide that either sundersor seals the relationships.

Cathy is well aware of this even as Im, but we pretend that we are unaware of this basic

differentiation with the fond hope that things would sort themselves out in course of time,

and once we get to know each other, and adjust to the changing situations, we would fallin line. This is the sanguine hope that united both of us, and nothing would stop us from

going strong from one situation to the other. Cathy so far never ever took objection to my

ways as I did to her perceptions. It is this mutual understanding of each others necessitythat glued us together, and theres no reason to fall apart unless either of us attempt to

stall the agreement we reached or drift everything to a topsyturvidum. Im an incorrigible

optimist and so is Cathy, and neither of us is ready to upset the applecart. We weredestined to come together, and no force on earth can upset the life- boat we were sailingin-no storm, and no temperamental incompatibility.

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We decided to visit Washington DC in the Spring break, and Neil was all enthusiasm

when I told her of the plans. I thought I could take Neil around the museum, art gallery,

the Washington monument and the Presidential palace. This trip would thus be useful forme to break the tedium and the academic routine. We booked a sprawling room in Hyatt

as it was close to important places that we wanted to visit. The Union Station was an

impressive architectural marvel, and we traveled in the underground train many times togain intimacy with the place. Dupont Circle was the most attractive place for Neil, for she

listened intently to the song of an American country sung by a bearded music lover who

sang to the accompaniment of guitar. I dont know why she took fascination for such awayward song, and the deportment of the singer must have surely enthused her.

The next day, I took Cathy and Neil to the modern Art Gallery. Neil was simply dumb

found, for she understood very little of what it really meant except that she glued her

attention to various colors and lines, and brush strokes that went into the shaping some ofthe celebrated works of the American and French and Italian painters. And it was the

science museum that really held up Neils attention. The huge skeletal structures of the

dinosaurs, the airplanes and the rockets held a beautiful spectacle for her.

We went to the Washington monument in the night. From there we walked up toLincoln statue. The long fountain that reflected the glory of the monument from one end

and the huge statue on the other gave the whole place unmatched beauty. We were simply

flummoxed by the white moon caught in the still water of the reflecting fountain. The

sheer brilliance of the place goaded us to stay back in Washington for a couple of daysmore.

Cathy was awfully tired. We went to Taj Hotel to have some spicy Indian food. Again

we had to take the suburban train to Arlington, and when we came back, it was already

ten. We fell on the bed like logs of wood, and I dont know how long we slept. By thetime we woke up in the morning, its almost twelve. The sun started whipping, and we

thought it prudent to stay back in the hotel till it cooled down.Cathy, something has happened, I said to elicit her response to my rather incurious

query.

Nothing serious has happened. Its only the figment of your imagination that makes this

small change so perceptible.

Is that so. But see a change in your attitudes and your perceptions of everything that

concerns me, and India.

Oh, dont you worry over much about variations in my ideas. I feel they are rock solid.

If there is any change, its only your protracted visit to India that must have brought about

a revaluation of your American perceptions. Am I right?, Cathy said.

Maybe. I must clinically examine everything before I come to final

decisions, I said.

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Time passed off. I fell into the routine. Cathy was as busy as I had been.. There

was nothing that could bring us to a collision course as culturally dissimilar as we were.

Easts east and West s West, I thought. O my god, why did you put me in such apredicament where I can neither fit in nor wriggle out.I was rather insane to choose

whats not to be chosen. I committed a mistake in going ahead with my precocious

perceptions about cohabiting with an American woman without ever trying to verify theconsequences. What wrong has Cathy committed to be deserted and left alone to fend for

herself? I was to be blamed if it all our relationship was ever to be snapped.. But history

tells a different story. Its nothing but foolhardy to talk about cultural assimilation withoutverifying the fact that two individuals with asymmetrical customs would never get into a

meaningful relationship.

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