Sunday Lunch at My Professor's/Faculty Advisor's House

Our family went to my mentor's house for lunch on Sunday. It was so nice to finally have everyone meet. Sometimes Saswatiji and I would have over 2 hour meetings and in that time we would get sidetracked and talk about our families. There was nothing that she told me that was not evident on Sunday.

It was the most chill lunch and I absolutely loved it. We felt right at home. We were not constantly served or told to sit down, we all just worked together and just reminisced as if we were old friends. We ate incredible food, we laughed, we talked, and we relaxed. We all had fun.

The kids enjoyed playing at a new place with new toys.

Saswatiji's daughter, Maitree, has her birthday on May 21st and James' is on May 28th so I made a cake to celebrate them and give them good wishes. Again, it was so easy. I said I would make a cake and suggested to get vanilla ice cream and together we had chocolate cake and ice cream. It was that simple. And enjoyed by all.

I am saving my deep reflections for the end, but I would like to share one now.  Saswatiji, my mentor, my leader, my professor, my faculty advisor, my colleague, and most importantly my friend has been instrumental in making my time here in Bangalore, India truly memorable. She has helped me every step of the way from housing to gaining housing permission to allowing me to teach her class to working through my project. At every step she has been focused and guided me in the right direction with her thoughtful questioning. There was never any judgement just simple curiosity, collaboration, and listening. She is dedicated to her field and her students and I admire her in so many ways. I am very fortunate to have been able to spend 6 months with such an incredible person. We are forever bonded and will have a lifelong deep friendship.