What an amazingly busy day!
When I got that call from my recruiter about the offer letter, I was less sure whether I would move to Michigan or not. After a series of negotiations and receiving rejection from other employers, I chose Michigan as my next destination.
When I was planning to move to Michigan, I told myself, my stint here would be a short one and I won’t be able to stick around for more than a year.
Three years have gone by and I am still here, and I couldn’t be happier with my decision.
Getting back to this day.
My fellow SGGS student in India and my future roommate, Ravi Soni, was kind enough to offer me a spare room in his apartment.
Ever since I left home for studies and jobs, I have been extremely fortunate and lucky to have been surrounded by lovely people, who helped me reserving the roof over my head. When I joined SGGS in Nanded, it was my fellow seniors, to whom I met by chance and they helped me reserve a room and a mess near their place.
When I moved to Bangalore, it was my SGGS senior who helped me reserve an apartment close to my workplace, so that I didn’t have to spend money and time on travel.
When I moved to the US, it was my roommate, Shlok, who took care of all logistics and made the cultural transition smoother than ever.
And now, it was going to be Ravi, who made sure I didn’t need to roam around to search for a place.
It was a good decision for me, as I didn’t know how to drive, so Ravi was going to help me going to places to shop and roam. When I was moving to Michigan, I didn’t know how important it would be to know how to drive. I learnt that the hard way, but that story is for later.
Again, getting back to this day, it was filled with emotions and gratitude.
Emotions for the time I spent at this wonderful place, surrounded by all my roommates, friends, and friends like family.
I had booked an afternoon flight, so I made sure I stop at all places which are important to me and bade final goodbye before hopping on that flight to Michigan.
I stopped at Asmita bhabhi’s apartment. I made sure I bid goodbye to them in person. I had lunch with them and had a wonderful time there.
After that, I made a quick stop at UConn’s downtown campus and did my part to bid goodbye to this wonderful place, which made it possible to start living my American dream.
After UConn, the next and last stop was my apartment at 55 Trumbull St, I visited the basement and gym, where I spent most of my time and had fun doing it.
It was truly an end to my amazing time at Hartford and I could not wait to start my new life in Michigan. It was like a bag of mixed emotions. I was sad that I was leaving my cushy life at Hartford, surrounded by lovely people and my downtown life. At the same time, I was happy about the future that was awaiting for me in Michigan.
The moment was upon me when I was standing outside my apartment building and my Uber notified that my ride was 2 minutes away. I told myself that this was it and there was no turning back. I was preparing myself to bid goodbye to this lovely place for good and return it here only as a visitor.
Within a minute or two, my Uber was standing before me. I hopped in it, kept my bags in the trunk, took one last look at the building and then carried on with my life.
I got to the airport in 15-20 minutes, and during this entire time, just thought about the good times that I had had at Hartford. My first day as an international student at UConn, the first time I sat in a classroom, the first time I travelled in the US, the first paycheck that I received, the first time I met *her* in the US, all the fun and memorable times I spent with both Shlok & Nidhi, all the fun outings with my cricket buddies, and countless bar hopping and their related experiences. There were too many things to reminisce.
I reached the airport and took care of all the official things. Waiting outside the boarding gate, I had enough time to think about all the lovely people that I had experience with at Hartford and the uncertainty of my new place in Michigan.
Every time I had moved in the past, I had been extremely lucky and fortunate that I had been surrounded by lovely people and I was praying that it would be the case in Michigan too. Being alone, anticipating so many things, and getting excited about the future that was unfolding before my eyes, I had nothing but hope for myself and I knew I would need to work harder to achieve it & I was ready for it.
When I was alone with my thoughts, I was disturbed by the boarding announcement and all my thoughts were evaporated in a few moments. The next best thing I could do was to sit back, relax, and enjoy my life that was unfolding before me faster than I expected.
The flight was uneventful as I slept most of the time. Upon arrival at the airport, I called Ravi and he greeted me the same way we used to during out undergrad. It was soothing to find out that neither of us changed in those few years. We were meeting for the first time after graduation and it was a nice feeling.
He made sure I was comfortable and had everything I need in the apartment. It took us about 20 minutes to reach at my new place and he was kind enough to cook something for me for dinner. I didn’t know he was that great a cook and definitely surprised myself. I realized – my roommates have always been great cooks.
It was a long day, it was a busy day. At the end of the day, I was lucky to have had a nice place to stay in a new city, a new place and I couldn’t be more grateful for the amazing people around me.
More to come!
stochasticity 
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