My mother, Shweta Naphade, is from Mumbai (otherwise known as Bombay), Maharashtra (a western state in India). She was born to a middle-class family. Her mom was a housewife and her dad was a civil engineer in charge of building bridges and roads of the city of Mumbai. Almost everyone from an educated middle-class family in her time aspired to be an engineer or a doctor. She worked hard in her childhood studying more and partying less. All that hard work paid off and her rigorous education got her to the USA.
After coming to the USA with $100 in her pocket, a bag of clothes, and a baby that was 14 months old (my sister), my mom first learned to drive. Then she got a job in IT industry as a programmer. Her engineering background in computer science helped her build a life in this new country with my father.
At first, my mom didn’t know anyone in the USA, but over time, after she moved to Cary NC in 1995, she met an astounding number of fellow Indians, including many from her home state of Maharashtra! Many more of her family members have since moved to the USA and live throughout the country. Also, now thanks to technology such as Face Time and Skype my mom can communicate with her family in India frequently.
My mom faced some major challenges when she came to the USA. The primary challenge was adapting to life in a different culture. “Different language, different rules and regulations,” she says. “The American English had different nuances than the British English taught in Indian schools. So at first, it was hard for me to communicate effectively with people at work, but within a few months I lost my accent (mostly) and caught on.” On a less crucial note, she adds that “after living in India’s warm climate for the first part of my life, adjusting to winter in NC was a quite difficult. I was definitely not used to either snow or ice.”
My mom thinks that despite recent happenings in this country, “in general, Americans are respectful towards immigrants. I love the concept that anyone who comes to America and works hard can climb the ladder of success.” My mom loves this country for one reason most of all: for being able to fulfill her American dream.
