Over 27 years ago my parents came to America. Their hunger for the American dream wasn’t the only thing on their mind… A year after my parents’ arrival, they gave birth to me, Hitesh Khalashi, on July 11th 1983. I was the first born out of three kids. Being the oldest has always left me to be the caretaker, which has caused me to grow into a natural leader.
My household was always filled with so many people. At times there would be five families, and sometimes more, all under one roof. You would think with that many people we would be living in a huge house in some fancy neighbor, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case. I lived in the projects in Downtown Sacramento. When I wasn’t outside playing with my family and the local kids, I would be in the kitchen watching my mom’s and grandma’s every move. I always wanted to know what they put in the food that made it so tasty and special. One of my fondest memories was seeing my grandma a.k.a Dadi, smash peanuts with sugar to make Peanut na Ladwa! My Dadi never forgot where she came from. She would occasionally send whatever money she could back home to support my family.
She would always inform me about how life was in India.She made it out to be such a magical place. She raised over 19 grandkids before her passing, three years ago. I’ve always wanted to experience India for all it’s worth. This trip to India is not only for me, but for Nisha and my other friends to see how life could have been if our parents didn’t make the sacrifices they did.
