Mai Khush Hun

I am happy.

Very, very, very happy. 

I have finally seen my guy in person. It’s not too much of a surprise, but we’re pretty darn happy together. It’s a lot better to talk in person than over Skype with a 12 hour time difference. And praying together is even better.

I am so happy to be back in Delhi, even if only for a week. I have this sense of "home" and belonging here that I don't have anywhere else--which is weird, but I guess it's okay to have a "second home."

I am happy to be eating the fudge my sister made for me.  I have told my guy that just may be equivalent to seeing him. 

Is it really? Well, probably not. But maybe. ;) 

I have slept. And it is gooooood.  Let me rephrase, so you better understand what I mean: I have slept through a screaming kid on the train, next to a politician on the turbulent plane, under a huge fleece blanket all night long, and napped during the day, too.  I have yet to complete catch up on the missed sleep from last week, but I’m working towards it.  And when I finally break even on that, I’ll attempt to get even more sleep to prepare for the next 3.5 months!

I have happily unpacked the stuff friends/family from home sent with him, oohed and ahhed at the cute clothes and shoes—yay for the pink, sparkly ones!—and have repacked them all in the huge empty suitcase I brought with me.

I am glad to be hanging out with friends I haven’t seen since August, and to meet new-to-me, old-to-him friends. I’m even happy to be made fun of because we just might be a tad too starry-eyed and deserve every sarcastic comment directed our way.

I am happy for things I can’t easily get in Ongole, like aloo paratha and roti and frozen yogurt (haha, because obviously, froyo fits in the same category as aloo paratha.)

I am happy to have hot showers—especially the kind where the water comes from a showerhead and not a bucket.

Hehe, I am happy that I’m bearing the Delhi cold quite well. (Laugh all you want, you ice cubes in Missouri, as it’s only 50-70*F here—but keep in mind I sleep in hoodies with a quilt when it’s 80*F in Ongole!)

I am happy to hear a conversation going on across the room and still understand a lot of what is being said without relying on English or gestures and head bobbles. (Body language and head-bobbling is really how I understand anything in Ongole.)  Thank you, Lord, for Hindi--and for Hindi teachers. Like Barkha, who is letting me stay at her family's flat again. :)

I am really happy about the saree shopping I will get to do with my girlfriends next week.  

And I am currently enjoying this long-lost pastime of reading. Ahhhh, the luxury of not having children or ayahs knocking at my door during my “break” time. (Side note: Add Q&A by Vikas Swarup to your reading list. It's what Slumdog Millionaire is based on, but way better, and way more authentically Indian--in my opinion.)

But I think most of all, I am happy that God is using my year in Ongole, my time with a crazy amount of children, and my months of international dating, to make me really appreciate the small things in life. Yes, I may still have too many clothes and still strongly desire excellent wifi connection at all times, and I’m still definitely too materialistic for my own good, but I’m glad I can now truly value things I had previously taken for granted--like huge mugs of chai and a balcony view of grass and trees.

Yup. Mai khush hun. :)