We were just about to reach the airport to leave for Delhi where we had a layover of 24 hours when I realized I had forgotten my sunglasses. I got a full 10 minute lecture from my parents for being careless followed by the standard “you use your phone way too much” lecture, and I still don’t know where that came from. When we landed in Leh the day after that we found out that both my parents had left something behind. Epiphany no 1: No matter how thoroughly you plan something inadequacy is the way of the world. The first place we stayed at was called Karu. As we settled into our room, my hands started to go numb from the cold. My whole life has been a death metal song of two polar opposite ethnicities. It was when I could feel the cold in my bones that I had epiphany no 2: I’m definitely more Malayali than Arunachali. There is a Gurudwara called Pathar Sahib on the outskirts of Leh. I’m not a very religious person so the holiness and sanctity of the place didn’t really affect me. What did strike me was that when we sat to eat at the langar I noticed that the stark contrast between all of us there. My mom a Christian, my dad a Hindu, our driver doubling as our guide who was a pure bred Buddhist, and me were seated on the floor eating a simple but extremely tasty meal which was served by people who were constantly chanting Waheguru’s name. Epiphany no3: it is so easy to coexist, to listen to the breeze, to smile at strangers, if only we would just sit down together and eat. I remember we were driving down a very pretty road, snow clad mountains on both sides and my dad remarked ‘how beautiful Ladakh is’. We were in an Army vehicle sent by my dad’s friend so the person driving was a jawan. He told us about how he had premature twins and how he lost both of them just four days after their birth. He told us about how a year after that he was blessed with a healthy baby boy who was just six months old whom he had to leave behind because he got posted to Leh. To him all Ladakh is cold. Beauty to him will be holding his son. Epiphany no 4: Picturesque landscapes can mean desolate for some. I got back home from the two week trip and even though Ladakh is the most beautiful place I’ve been to and I met the sweetest people there, I cannot explain to you the relief I felt when I walked into our house. That’s when I had epiphany no 5: Travelling to new places can give you interesting stories to tell, but the comfort of sleeping in your own bed and listening to your fan make the same old noise is irreplaceable. There’s no other place like home. There just cannot be. ∎
