She’s ready to leave. She walks toward the black taxi cab loaded with eight large and heavy blue suitcases. She stops. She realizes that she forgot to say goodbye to someone who meant so much to her: her warmhearted and affable great grandmother. Her nani.

She ran through the driveway that led to her aunt’s house and walked into her badhi nani’s bedroom. Her badhi nani was lying down on the bed. She sat beside her.

Tears filled her eyes. She said goodbye, arms outstretched to hug her badhi nani.

Looking down at her watch, she saw that she was late, so she ran, dashing towards the cab where the driver and the rest of her family were waiting. They were heading to the airport. They had to go back to America.

She felt miserable about leaving her grandparents, cousins and her badhi nani in India. In 2016, two years after she visited India, she received a phone call from her grandparents. Her badhi nani had died. 

She suddenly broke down into long and excruciating sobs that left her gasping for air.  

When she thinks about her badhi nani, she always recalls her long and silky white hair. Her radiant smile. Her comfort and warmth that made her feel safe and fortunate. Her light brown eyes that sparkled like crystals. The natural glow on her face that gave her a fair complexion. She remembers all of it.

Without her badhi nani, she knows that she will always feel an emptiness inside of her. Although she comprehends that her badhi nani is no longer with her, she will always be present in her memories.