I was watching Demon Slayer in my room, I’m in love with the anime genre after watching the Naruto series. Dad came in his wheelchair to my room and went towards my bed and he got into my bed. He has never done this in my entire life and I believe it’s the effect of our small talk.

I asked him about his life in America. He was so happy to hear that question and started to talk about it. The first place He saw in America was New York. From New York the company which hired him took him to Texas where He was going to work. He got terminated from the work and got scared. He contacted Richi uncle who was settled in Texas and told him about his situation. 

Richi Uncle was a very calm person. After hearing the situation Richi Uncle told Dad not to panic and asked Dad to pack his bags. Richi Uncle took him to his house and he settled there temporarily. Richi Uncle suggested that he get a car license. To get a car license in Texas was very difficult. He traveled to Louisiana and took the license from Louisiana.  

One day He went to an office party and after the party when He came out the road was covered with snow. He drove the car but it was sliding in the snow and He somehow stopped the car and got out. Luckily one of his colleagues saw him and helped him to put a snow chain over the tyre. The colleague asked him to follow his car and they reached back the camp safely.

Leo Paul helped him with a job in Rhode Island. He packed his bags and went to Rhode Island via New York. His friend Xavier was settled in New York and he stayed with him whenever he went to New York. The work in Rhode Island was amazing. He got into a ship manufacturing company, But it didn’t last either and got terminated.

 He came to know of an opening In South Carolina and took a bus from New York to South Carolina. The bus journey was very comfortable, he was amazed to see that there was only a driver in the bus. He worked in South Carolina for two months and came back to New York. From there he went to Wisconsin for his next job. He stayed in Wisconsin for around 6 months. Wisconsin become his favourite place in America because of the punctuality and kindness of the people.

He bought a car with George and they decided to have a road trip to South Carolina from Wisconsin. On the way they halted at Chicago and stayed there. The next day He drove the car and He was pulled over by the police. The police told him that someone had complained saying the people in this car were drunk. Police found out that they were not drunk and asked them to resume the journey.

He stayed in South Carolina for three months and moved to Atlanta. The nightlife in Atlanta was very much active. He worked in the gas station for 3 months and his health was getting bad due to cold weather. Dad decided to come back and took a flight to New York. 

By now Mom came to my room asking what was happening. It was getting late and Dad got into the wheelchair and went back to his room.

There is a story in everyone, if you listen.

Dad, Dad, Dad … I was shouting over the phone with my list,

Yes, He is coming tomorrow, After a year !!!

I was looking towards the faces that are coming out of the sliding door,

The face which is etched in my mind, Where is he? I asked Mom.

She said look over there, He was waving his hands towards us.

I jumped the fence and ran towards him, 

He picked me up and put me in the trolley and pushed towards the exit.

I was sitting in the trolley like a prince, See my Dad is here !!!

As I grew up, the bond between us started to grow apart.

We talked rarely and mostly when I needed something or him to Scold Me

What happened between Us?

People were blaming me for things I didn’t do,

He came and asked me, What happened?

I opened my mind, He stood there listening patiently.

He took command over the situation,

And stood against the world that was crushing us Down.

He was the pillar and we won that fight against all odds.

He taught me to fight for the loved ones, 

He taught me to talk about what’s in your heart.

He taught me to stand still during the storm.

I remember the day, 

When he was disappointed hearing that I don’t want to do Engineering 

I remember the day, 

When he was angry hearing that I had crashed our bike.

I remember the day

When he was happy that I had graduated.

I remember the day

When he was proud to hear that I had got a Rank in MCA Entrance.

I remember the day

When he was trembling, Seeing my Mom in the ICU.

I remember the day

When he was not able to breathe.

I remember the day,

Where he was afraid to do his first dialysis.

I remember the day

When he was crying in the hospital bed losing his leg.

I remember the day

When he was able to walk with his prosthetic leg.

I promise you Dad, 

We will stand together and face the storms.

Dad was tired, he said he needed rest for now; I helped him to sit down and sat next to him. It was a pleasant evening, Dad was training with his prosthetic leg and today he was doing very good. A year ago he had to amputate his left leg due to lack of blood circulation. My mind was drifting towards the hospital days and to distract my thoughts I asked him about his childhood.

One of his favourite memories is the one where he and his friends used to collect cashews and sell it for their pocket money. They used this cash to watch movies from the nearby theatre. I was so amazed to hear that they were involved in creating our village sports ground. In their times, the sports Ground was situated at another place and the owner sold the place, so they had to move all the clay to the new property and thus giving birth to our new sports ground.

When he was in 10th Standard or so, my Grandpa came back from Singapore losing his job and he was furious about anything and everything. Grandpa asked my Dad to leave the house and after that he stayed with his relatives. He stayed with his uncle in Pettah, where he took an admission for him in the ITI and that’s where he learned welding. One of our uncles was working in Siemens Chennai and he asked my Dad to join them, so he took a train to Chennai and started his first Job. He worked in Chennai for two years and was taking care of the family by now. He came to know about the opportunity in Mumbai Branch and by now his sister was married and was settled in Mumbai.

The Job in Mumbai excited him and luckily his supervisor liked him very much and he was assigned to take care of contract jobs in various parts of Northern India. When he was in Mumbai he stayed with his sister. After three years, Grandma asked our relative to take a visa for him to Dubai. They pledged his sister’s gold for the visa and ticket amount. This time he didn’t take a train, rather a flight to Dubai! 

While he was working in Dubai, he came to know that opportunities and payment in Abu Dhabi was comparatively much more than Dubai, so he decided to shift to Abu Dhabi. Eventually he got a job there in Power House Electrical company, which was a government job. It was the happiest day of his entire life.

By now the mosquitoes were starting to attack us. I told Dad that it’s better to get inside now and I helped him get up and walked back towards our house.