Today I finished Interpreter of Maladies. These very last sentences of the final story gave me chills. It made me think about my own life – born and raised in Indianapolis, attending Penn and roaming the streets of Philadelphia, and now working and maturing in Atlanta. All the experiences, all the people with whom I crossed paths. Sometimes I look back at Penn bitterly. The stress, the hyper competitive culture, the brutal classes. But those things don’t matter anymore; Penn fundamentally changed the trajectory of my life, and I’m infinitely grateful for the people I’ve met and the places I’ve visited along the way. Honestly can’t imagine my life any other way.
But that’s all in one continent, merely one country. My mother’s life is even more bewildering. Born in Zanzibar, raised in Mozambique, lived in Pakistan and Tanzania, and now settled in our humble hometown of Brownsburg, Indiana. Much like this excerpt, from seeing what my parents have done, anything is possible for me.
Jhumpa Lahiri, just wow. Thank you for this incredible journey, and I can’t wait to dive into your other works!