It was an unannounced visit and a surprise for her mother, whom she had last met almost 10 years back. In between, there had been a period of silence, broken trust, unmet expectations and tons of agony and tears on both sides. Sarah had travelled to as many as eight countries in this period, partly to get away from her inner turmoil but mostly to give wings to her new found freedom.
Professionally she was doing very well, climbing the ladder of success steadily, respected and recognized in her network. Being a complete workaholic, she spent most of her time in her cubicle when not travelling. Work accolades and awards constantly poured in and she was basking in the glory of success. But there was a vacuum that was hard to fill, a vacuum left by a deep and meaningful relationship. Between home, office and travel, Sarah took out some time every few weeks to spend a few moments of solitude and catch up with her inner self at the nearby beach. But as her thoughts wandered to the important relationships in her life, she invariably found herself missing her mom. So she immersed herself in work again.
A year later, recession hit and one fine day, she was let go. The office staff was being downsized and with it, Sarah’s world came crashing down. However, after the initial shock and dismay, she slowly gathered herself. While she could have easily contacted her professional network to grab another opportunity, something made her call her mother first.
It was awkward in the beginning but her mom made it better.
“Beta, I am listening. Please speak na.” She broke the ice with her warm words. Hearing her mom’s voice after so many years, she teared up. Soon, she found herself opening up, telling her mom about everything that’d happened.
Soon, they started speaking every day. A lot of issues between them got resolved as they communicated regularly. Sarah could feel the vacuum that she had felt all these years melt away. Slowly, she found herself regaining confidence, ready to face the corporate world again. But before plunging into yet another role, she wanted to meet her mom. She kept it a surprise because she wanted to see the gleam in her mom’s eyes and capture the moment in her heart forever.
When Sarah knocked on her mom’s door finally, she was a cocktail of emotions. As her mother answered the door and lay her eyes upon her daughter after a decade, she broke into tears. Sarah took her mother in her arms, and they shed happy tears. That night, as Sarah lay her head on her mom’s lap, she knew – home is where mom is.