It was snowing heavily in 1993 in Bowie, Maryland at 8 o’clock in the morning. She could feel the frost on her fingers and toes. Her cheeks and ears were red, and she pulled her hat on tighter, as she kept walking to the bus stop, which was a mile away from her home. She sat down on the cold metal bench, as the bus would be arriving in ten minutes. The wind had started picking up speed and she folded down her long skirt, pulled her legs up on the bench, and hugged herself to keep warm. She looked around to see if anyone else was coming, but they weren’t. She was alone, and at that moment, she had felt all hope was gone.
Kiran had grown up in a nice town called Lucknow in India. She had lived there all her life, and even attended college there, and had graduated as the second top student. She had a master’s degree in botany and taught undergraduate classes in that same university. Things were going great for her; she was well-educated for a woman of her time, beautiful, and outgoing. Her hobbies included being the top sprinter at her school, and dancing which she loved because it was the way she could express her feelings. She had many friends and loved life but she wanted a husband, someone who could love her dearly, which would make her life complete. Through one of her parent’s friends, she had met Ranjit.
Ranjit was an engineer who completed his undergraduate studies in a local university in India, and then went on to complete his master’s degree at American University in Washington D.C. This was exciting, not only was Ranjit smart, but he was handsome and very sweet. Immediately when she saw him, she just knew that he was perfect for her. He had proposed to her that they would get married in India, and then go to live in America. This had excited Kiran. She had heard many stories of how America was the great country of opportunity and liberty. As a girl, she didn’t have much freedom, but soon she would. They both had an extravagant wedding, with all their friends and family and started getting ready for their big move all the way to America.
As she was packing her bags, her mother came into her room, and helped her put a couple of things in some of the suitcases. She told her mom excitedly, “I can’t wait ‘till we get to America! Everything is going to be amazing!”
“Yes, about that,” her mom said, “America is all the way across the ocean, I want you to know that you’re going to have to take care of yourself because we won’t be able to come.”
Kiran didn’t say anything and just nodded as she kept on packing. She couldn’t believe that her own mother just said that. Wasn’t a mother supposed to say, “Wherever you are, if you’re in trouble, call me, and I’ll be on my way no matter what”? Kiran didn’t appreciate this, but she didn’t say anything.
She was so excited because along with going to America, it was also her first time going to the airport and flying on a plane. With her family she would take local trips that could be done by car or train, but she had never been on a plane before, When they got there she was speechless, awing at all the wonderful monuments and buildings of Washington D.C. When they arrived at the house, she was a little confused. It was smaller than her house back home, but she knew that Ranjit was just starting his job so settling down might take awhile.
Ranjit had told her that her had owed a lot of money on his student loans and would have to work one shift from 9 am to 4 pm, and then another from 7 pm to 2 am at AOL . This meant she would only see him for a couple of hours. She wanted to do what she could to help Ranjit, but she didn’t have time to go back to school. She decided to find a job which didn’t require a college degree. She ended up getting hired at a store in the mall called Brookstone, which sold electronics and bedroom accessories. However the problem was, Ranjit worked in the opposite direction of the mall and there was only one car. Therefore, Kiran had to walk a mile to the bus stop every day to get to work.
At first things were hard as she didn’t know the area very well, but it started to work out. Then, winter came. Along with that came the biggest snow storm of the century that many Northeastern states declared themselves in a state of emergency. However it didn’t matter, they were in the south, and she still had to work. Snow was a very new concept for Kiran as well because it never snows in India except in the mountains. She used to be mesmerized by the beautiful white snow, but when she had to walk a mile in it, she hated it.
One day Ranjit had lost his job, but found another in a small company. This caused even more setbacks than they already had. The most they would spend would be ten dollars at the grocery store every week. Kiran only had a couple pairs of clothes and would sometimes have to repeat clothes, or even wear some of Ranjit’s. It was a bad time, and sometimes she doubted herself for even coming here. She thought everything she had read about America was a lie. She felt worse than she did in India. She would break down crying sometimes and call her mom. But what did her mom say? “Well, I can’t do anything, and besides you’re an adult now, things will get better.”
Things never got worse, but they didn’t get better either. Kiran had found out she was pregnant and was very happy, thinking the child might bring some happiness into her and Ranjit’s lives. But she couldn’t relax or take care of herself; she had to still work at the mall every day. Ranjit’s younger sister who was studying at University of Maryland had come to live with them, along with his mom. Kiran thought this would be great as she would have some help around the house. She was so wrong.
Her mother-in-law and sister-in-law were her worst nightmares. They would refuse to help her around the house, and when they did, they would end up breaking something. They would make her do all the cleaning and cooking, never bothering to lend a hand to a very pregnant woman. Whenever there was a spill on the ground, she would ask one of them to clean it for her because she didn’t want to bend or sit on the ground because of the baby. But, they didn’t.
Ranjit would sometimes come home to her crying. She didn’t like to cry in front of him, because she didn’t want him to feel guilty, but she couldn’t help it. She didn’t know who else to turn to. They both felt like complete strangers living in the same house. They never had time to talk to each other because of Ranjit’s busy schedule. Whenever they did have time the conversation would go, “how’s work?”
“Getting there, you?”
“Same here.”
“Don’t worry, things are going to get better, I promise,” Ranjit would always end.
Soon, the problems started to go away. Ranjit’s older brother had found a house, and his mom left to live with him. His sister had finished college and also moced out to look for a place of her own. However, Kiran was eight months pregnant and still going to work. She knew she had to prepare for the baby’s arrival, but she didn’t know how. No one had ever told her. She didn’t have friends because she never had time for a social life.
One day Ranjit came home early with a big smile on his face. He hugged Kiran and said, “I told you things would get better!”
“What happened?” she asked.
“I found a great job at Fannie Mae and we’re going to get a bigger house in Gaithersburg!” he exclaimed.
“Oh Ranjit that is wonderful news!” she said more happily than she had ever been before.
“This also means that you don’t have to work anymore. With this job, my salary is much higher, and we’ll be able to pay off the loans in a matter of a year,” Ranjit added.
“Oh I’m so happy for you Ranjit! I can’t wait that we’ll be able to start our lives over again,” she said, “Oh my god! Ranjit call the hospital! My water just broke; the baby’s coming!” she exclaimed in fear.
“But I thought you weren’t due for another month?” he asked panicking, “Well I guess it’s coming early, now come on! Hurry!”
Ranjit rushed Kiran to the hospital as fast as he could. They were both excited yet nervous wondering why the baby was coming a month early. Kiran had finally given birth to a beautiful baby girl on May 2, 1994. The doctors, however, had told them that she was a premature who weighed three pounds and might not make it. This scared the life out of Kiran and Ranjit. They both cried and stayed with each other, praying to God that their baby girl would survive. After a couple of days at the hospital, the doctors told them that the baby would be fine as long as they gave her the necessary medications. Kiran and Ranjit were ecstatic and grateful that their baby girl survived.
“What would you like to name her?” the doctor asked.
“Hurleen,” they both said together and smiled. They finally checked out of the hospital and took their new daughter, Hurleen, to their new home.
Knowing that a great future was lying in front of them, their love for each other grew more passionately than ever, because they had been through such heartache and pain and stayed together, which proved their true love. Ranjit was doing great at his job, and Kiran was able to go back to school and become a pre-school teacher. They felt grateful for each other, God, and their miracle, Hurleen.
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