Holiday tradition

Year end is the time we make an attempt to reconnect with our old neighbors. Usually, we make a trip to old neighborhood and visit them in person but this year meeting in person was not an option.

I added Adi’s old piano teacher (Mr.F) and my previous home neighbor to our list. I have to write about my previous home neighbor, Ms.L and how she taught me that empathy is beyond ethnicity, language and color.

In 2019, on the day I returned to US with kids after FIL passed away, my then neighbor Ms.L (American) sensed that we are back and rang the door bell in the afternoon. We chatted for a while, she got to know that I travelled alone with kids and that we are very tired from the long travel. After few hours, she again rang the bell and handed over two big boxes of hot Soup bought from a local diner. I can never forget this thoughtfulness and every time this incident flashed my mind, I feel more humble and thankful for her kindness.

So, this year I mailed handwritten card to all five of them. To all 3 grandma’s from my 2007-2013 home neighbor, Adi’s old piano teacher and Ms.L, my 2014-2019 home neighbor. I hope they will like it. I have told Adi that she has to stay in touch with all of them even beyond our days.

One of the grandma, Ms.H writes long email to me once every few months. The subject is always “Thinking of You” 🙂 That email puts up a wide smile in my face irrespective of my current mood.

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