From One Nest to Another.
*I wrote this letter a few months ago after returning from a long vacation. It is now finding its way to my blog, lest it be forgotten.*
Dearest Reader,
How have you been? It has been a long time since I last wrote to you, and oh, how I have missed it! I was away, wandering through different places, collecting memories like souvenirs. But now, I have returned, eager to share the stories and lessons my travels have gifted me.
This journey took me back home—to India—a land that feels like the very core of who I am, even though I no longer live there. There is something profound about returning to the place where your roots first took hold, where the streets whisper familiar stories, and where every scent, every sound, feels like a gentle tug at the heart.
I was born in the South of India, where my family still resides. The country of our birth shapes us in ways we often don’t realize until we step away from it. India gave me my identity—cultural, spiritual, and intellectual. It taught me resilience, adaptability, and the value of hard work, all while nurturing a deep sense of love and connection. Everything I am today carries traces of what this land has instilled in me.
This visit was a bittersweet one—filled with moments of joy, nostalgia, and the quiet ache of knowing that home, in some ways, is no longer just one place. But as much as I cherished my time there, I am happy to be back in Pennsylvania, in the comfort of my own space, my routines, and the life I’ve built here. I missed the U.S., my home away from home, and the familiar rhythm of days that feel truly my own.
I missed this country. And I missed writing to you.
Have you ever left a place that shaped you, only to return and see it with new eyes? What did that homecoming feel like for you?
I’d love to hear from you! Share your daydreams and stories with me at nuraine.sadaf@gmail.com or share your thoughts in the comments.
“Let’s bring a little bit of the past into our present, one letter at a time”.
Yours lovingly,
Nuraine
PS: Thank you for writing to me, Allison. 🙂
My Substack publication: https://open.substack.com/pub/nuraine/p/letter-1-082424?r=1r1cfn&utm_medium=ios
Nuraine Sadaf 