The Author's life is revealed in poetic, cinematic, emotional imagery, as she tries to make sense of her extraordinary childhood split across five thousand miles of the Indian Ocean. "Conceived in the womb of the Himalayas, born in sunny, untamed heart of Kenya in Africa, she was nurtured to spiritual and intellectual growth by the ancient thoughts and cultures of the East and the West." Family and community nourish her. While nurtured by values and ethos of ancient India, In Kenya she discovers a freedom with no confines. Wild animals excite her heart with fear, fascination, with joy of adventure give rein to imagination! Sleeping or picnicking with lions, with elephants; travelling on long trips, by Lorries, or on foot - children carried in baskets on African porters' shoulders in the company of parents in lounging 'Palanquins' balanced by porters, for a lengthy period of three weeks, through flooded rivers' banks, on way to the island of Lamu - the epical journeys remind us of the adventurers of the ilk of Stanley and Livingstone!
Through Medical Doctor's missionary zeal to bring health to the poor in northern frontier in Kenya; their daring quest to access their daughters' education in India becomes the catalyst for the unique journey of a five years old child's life. Soon World War 11 breaks out, splitting a childhood across deep waters, Letters transported by boat, people covered 5,000 miles of deep blue waters over weeks to months. The world-wide turbulence has a rippling effect on the life of a small child. In 1942, a passenger ship sailing between Africa and India was bombed by the Japanese. No more ships plied the route. The separated families could not meet their loved ones. The letters did not arrive. Time stood still. Her loving mother, gentle, strong father lived in her dreamland only.
In a Haven of Peace and Tranquility in the Boarding School at the foothills of the Himalayas in India, in a Gurukul where Nature was a school and a playground, she begins her life of a spiritual and psychological well-being by Yoga, Meditation; is nurtured by the ancient rhythms, and a stillness when life is lived at an organic level and given a feel of overall well-being and contentment.
It took a long span of ten years to make a fresh acquaintance with her parents. A new bond had to be forged! This amazing life of Rediscovery - is challenging, but life-affirming! The Homecoming is a poignantly emotional experience, both for parents and the child. "This is the setting out, the leaving of everything behind-to be, in a word: Open." Rabbi Lawrence Kushner's words pinpoint the situation. The bewilderment, the befuddlement of the child in this new unit of the family, and into a new continent, where the beauty of the ebony blackness of the populace is as enchanting as are the natural surroundings in this new country of her birth. In the joy, the grace in her community of Indians in the 'Little India' in Kenya she sees a continuity of her life in India.
Ultimately, she is aware of joy and fulfilment in rediscovering the meaning of family. She feels privileged to be sharing the intensely emotional, sensitively told tale of a childhood that is moving and unique!
It is a rare glimpse into a precious past. Humanity shines through the bonds that the child develops through her life's exalting, and challenging experiences. The spirit soars!
