Ginger Chai
City — Edinburgh
Year — 2018
The sound of bagpipes, the lanes, and closes, beautiful hills, charming sunset points, basically nature in its purest form co-existing with humans — one is bound to fall in love with Edinburgh. Not only is the town supremely charming, but it is also the people that reside in this town, that add value to its beauty.
As I was getting the hang of University, my new room, new people around me, my course, professors — everything was going on fine only, until one day when I met a beautiful soul in this picturesque town. Little did I know, that a half an hour meeting over a cup of ‘chai’ would bloom into one of the most beautiful bonds — a friendship that I’ll always cherish.
I was pursuing my masters from the University of Edinburgh when I got a chance to meet Mrs. Helen Reid Thomas — who became one of my closest friends in this new town.
Initially, we connected through a mutual friend from my hometown which was also the same town she resided in for a couple of decades — Agra (India).
We spoke about everything under the sun — her university days (she had studied in the same Uni as me), how it was when she used to stay in India (back in 1970s/1980s), food (we spoke a LOT about food), our cultures and most importantly chai (I adore the way she loves chai!). She had traveled to a great extent, had experienced the War, was extremely fond of hiking and trekking — so we spoke a lot! She used to stay on her own and had tastefully done up her home — especially her kitchen because she loved cooking and truly valued that holy space!
Being in the university, you are surrounded by books and a lot of material to read from. This material can only provide you knowledge upto a certain limit, but there are some lessons in life that can only be learnt once you’ve experienced them.
A question — how does one make you feel at home? I’m yet to come across a textbook giving me the correct answer to this question. Fortunately, Mrs. Thomas demonstrated this to me. It was December 2018 — with Christmas feels all over the town — most of the people had left for home to be with their respective families, and here I was — in Scotland — miles away from home. Mrs. Thomas was kind enough to call me over for some chai. After spending a lovely afternoon, as I was about to leave she took me to her Christmas tree where they keep gifts for all the family members and gently handed me one of those gifts. And at that moment, I felt so many emotions! It wasn’t about receiving a gift — it was something bigger — it was about the feeling — of being home! While I was overwhelmed with emotions and had no clue as to what to say or what to do — tears rolled down my eyes. And, she calmly stood there and gave me a warm hug.
As humans, we are so consumed in our daily routine — that we forget to savor experiences and express gratitude for all that we have. Thank you, Mrs. Thomas, for showing me what kindness, love, and warmth looked like, for always being a true friend and for making Edinburgh so special.
To more ‘Ginger Chai’ afternoons with you!
