First Birthday Away from Home

My birthdays, as long as I can remember have always been surrounded with family and friends, cake, celebrations, nothing too extreme but close, intimate, personal. As I got older, the birthdays got less exciting; of course, it was only a reminder that I am getting older. But no matter where I went, I always made it back in time to celebrate my birthday with my family.

My mornings would start with visiting the Golden Temple with my parents, coming back and taking shagun and blessings from elders. The first meal of the day consisted of curd and boiled egg, that is then, pan fried: the Nepali way of celebrating birthdays, fond memories. Even after my wedding, I was blessed with the same love and pampering by my husband and my-in-laws

It is different this year, though. This year there is no visiting the Golden Temple early in the morning or visiting our regular temples that we know from childhood. This year there is no shagun in my hand or tika on my forehead. This year there is no curd that I take sip from. This year there is no coming of friends with birthday cakes throughout the day to embrace me. I celebrate my birthday in a different city, in a different country. What remains constant is visiting the temple here, and praying for the safety and well-being of everyone because God lives everywhere and God lives within us no, matter which temple we go to . What remains constant in this change is the blessings I receive from my elders, the love I can feel through the phone screens we talk into. What remains constant is the excitement that my friends have for my birthday, perhaps more than I do. What remains constant is my husband by my side making sure I feel special on this day, and never making me feel far away from home and family.

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