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Kurkure, kurkure, kurkure! Chatpata chaska, mmm, mmm, good!

these two adorable girls who are promoting the brand Kurkure (try saying it three times fast, it is a tongue twister!) are two of my little nieces - Rupal is the one holding the bag and Rishika (her little sister) is the cute one sitting right next to her! haha! for 5 days, i had the join of playing with these two and my two other cousins - so here is what i accomplished in 5 days - i taught Rupal how to dribble a basketball and shoot - i put the finishing touches on Rishika learning how to ride a bike - i became the go to uncle for anything to get passed or done within the household...haha! it was awesome...

so for two weeks i lived with out internet and no knowledge of the outside world. but that is okay, i was in a different world - the world of family - this was an all consuming world. bilai is where a lot of my family resides. i don't know why - but on a single block you can visit at least four different houses, all cousins and family. they are close in proximity. but i have come to learn, just because you are close in proximity, doesn't mean you are necessarily close. family dynamics and the world of the family is something that most of us don't get to experience. we all live in nuclear families where we occasionally see other members or when we get together it is for a reunion, then family time is over. sometimes we live close to each other and sometimes we don't. this isn't for all, but for the majority. indian's, for the majority, live in joint families - something we see a lot with the ethnic groups within the states (i.e. the latin american and mexican household). but for one week, i lived in the world of the Nayak's and Jain's - a different world all unto itself and not without the drama of everyday real life. it was amazing, each home had a different feel and a different take. it was bizarre for me to be so engulfed by everything going on - often times i sat back and watched and learned what was going on. i took things in and listened to what was happening. the world can be so consuming, that you won't find time to go outside the world to find others. family time takes up so much of your time, that your friends and people outside take a back seat. it is amazing. in one household, the down time came at two times - once between 10 am-1 pm and again from 11 pm - 6 am (when every one was sleeping). other than that the house was a constant hustle and bustle. from morning to night. it was amazing - to see how things work and watch people take care of everything. in other households the hustle and bustle started and ended quickly, with the bulk of the day being down time. amazing - plus - household dynamics. i felt like i was in a mini-soap opera. drama, drama, drama! haha! so for a week, i was not connected to the outside world and the other's around me, but just to the world of the family - where i did everything that the family did - my schedule shifted to match theirs and then started to flow with theirs. each time things were planned, they were cancelled. nothing really went as planned...but yet, i enjoyed myself and my time out there. i enjoyed the constant energy and people always around. it was nice being with all my brother's their wives and their kids. it was nice being the youngest uncle of them all, the one that the kids felt the closest to. it was nice being able to hang out with the wives and talk and then play for hours with the kids. the kids were content to play with just each other and needed no other time with friends. the back and front yards of the house were their playground. not once did i see another neighborhood kid come to play - they were amused amongst themselves. amazing.
i wonder after seeing this, what my life would have been like if it was like this. if i had no friends outside of just the home and my family. how things would have been. how would i have grown up. being the american uncle has some privilege's, but also has some down sides. it has been nice being able to hang out and be free with the kids.
my family is amazing - they all are unique in their own way. they all love me for who i am, and i think i get a lot of slack just because i didn't grow up in india. they enjoyed spending time with me and i enjoyed spending time with them...
let me tell you one thing - all my little nieces and nephews are adorable. maybe i am being biased, but that is okay - i think they are the best nieces and nephews anyone can ask for...i would do anything for them!

please pass the kurkure...

till later...

posted by ravi @ 2:08 AM