My story begins on an Excel Sheet. An Excel sheet on a Compaq computer in a garage filled with giant cardboard boxes. I remember sitting on the steps to our garage; my mother shouting out cryptic patterns of letters and numbers and the soft clicking of my keyboard. After that, is a blur. Probably because I couldn’t see through my teary eyes and smudged glasses. I remember thinking-no, knowing- that I wasn’t going to see America again and soon I’d have an Indian accent as thick as my father’s moustache. India was 20 hour plane ride away, and for those 20 hours, I was going to be wallowing in self-pity. Okay fine, maybe 20 minutes.
When we landed in Coimbatore, a swarm of memories hit me in the face, like the swarm of mosquitoes I walked into. …show more content…
I came downstairs to get ready for school. My dad was still fast asleep and my brother told me he’d be down in five. My mother was in Pune, for her father’s one year death anniversary. My grandmother, Awa, as she preferred to be called, was setting the table for me. I have always been self-reliant and have always, and forever will hate, when people take it upon themselves to do things for me. I feel something ugly inside of me screw up its face and start screaming. My palms get sweaty and I start to feel hot. In the nicest way I could, even when the ugly thing was screaming it’s head off, I told Awa, ”It’s okay, Awa. I can set the table myself.” She slunk away and my grandfather, Thatha, felt that this was the final straw. He walked up to me and I remember clearly, staring into his oddly green eyes and the fury that they beheld. I don’t know what he said, but I was shaking and so scared, my eyes couldn’t produce tears. Frozen in place, I took it all. The ugly thing told me to snarl and scream, but my mouth was dry. My dad came out of the bathroom. I didn’t know he woke up. He told me to sit down and eat my breakfast. Where was my brother? Were we going to be late? Trying to pour my milk, my hands were shaking. Damn. This milk is going to go everywhere. I looked over my shoulder and I saw my father yelling. I saw Thatha yelling. I saw dogs fighting. To this day, all I remember in my head is dogs, on their hind legs, foaming at the mouth, fighting. …show more content…
They cleaned up their room and packed their Pooja utensils. In my head I told myself repeatedly that it wasn’t my fault because the elderly just have some sort of vendetta against me.
After they had left, our house became quiet. But one day, my life turned upside down.
I had gone to throw a bottle away and froze in my tracks. It was exactly like those scenes in a horror movie, when the next victim would hear a sound coming from the dark part of his/her house, pause, slowly turn, cock his/her head and ask, “Hello? Is anyone there?”. Yeah sweetheart, that murderer about to behead you is going to respond with, “Hey, it’s Joel! You got me! Better luck next time, am I right? Ha-ha, see you next summer,
When we landed in Coimbatore, a swarm of memories hit me in the face, like the swarm of mosquitoes I walked into. …show more content…
I came downstairs to get ready for school. My dad was still fast asleep and my brother told me he’d be down in five. My mother was in Pune, for her father’s one year death anniversary. My grandmother, Awa, as she preferred to be called, was setting the table for me. I have always been self-reliant and have always, and forever will hate, when people take it upon themselves to do things for me. I feel something ugly inside of me screw up its face and start screaming. My palms get sweaty and I start to feel hot. In the nicest way I could, even when the ugly thing was screaming it’s head off, I told Awa, ”It’s okay, Awa. I can set the table myself.” She slunk away and my grandfather, Thatha, felt that this was the final straw. He walked up to me and I remember clearly, staring into his oddly green eyes and the fury that they beheld. I don’t know what he said, but I was shaking and so scared, my eyes couldn’t produce tears. Frozen in place, I took it all. The ugly thing told me to snarl and scream, but my mouth was dry. My dad came out of the bathroom. I didn’t know he woke up. He told me to sit down and eat my breakfast. Where was my brother? Were we going to be late? Trying to pour my milk, my hands were shaking. Damn. This milk is going to go everywhere. I looked over my shoulder and I saw my father yelling. I saw Thatha yelling. I saw dogs fighting. To this day, all I remember in my head is dogs, on their hind legs, foaming at the mouth, fighting. …show more content…
They cleaned up their room and packed their Pooja utensils. In my head I told myself repeatedly that it wasn’t my fault because the elderly just have some sort of vendetta against me.
After they had left, our house became quiet. But one day, my life turned upside down.
I had gone to throw a bottle away and froze in my tracks. It was exactly like those scenes in a horror movie, when the next victim would hear a sound coming from the dark part of his/her house, pause, slowly turn, cock his/her head and ask, “Hello? Is anyone there?”. Yeah sweetheart, that murderer about to behead you is going to respond with, “Hey, it’s Joel! You got me! Better luck next time, am I right? Ha-ha, see you next summer,