It is after a considerable hiatus that I decided to calculate how many days have elapsed since I came to work in Saudi Arabia. It is now Day 621! It seems as if the past can be encapsulated in a small box and presented to whoever wants it ... and yet, a lot of water has flown under the bridge. I spoke about the change of perception I have experienced. However, this change, that I speak of, has also occurred in my family members.
If the reader wishes, he/she can go back to this post to read about the various goals and purposes I set for myself before coming to the Kingdom. As may be apparent, I did mention that I wanted to make my female platoon at home independent and on their feet.
Well, I can proudly say now that this target has been achieved too! My wife, Nishrin, is able to handle most (not all) financial affairs without asking me; my elder daughter, Inas, has been working in a salon all on her own since the last eight-odd months, and has been completely independent; even Hannah, whom I used to always think of as a weak but very loving daughter, has grown up and is able to deal with her life quite without major turmoil.
Now and then, of course, all of them need me, as I, them, and that's all right, since we are a family. On the whole, though, things have been great, as the females of my household have all learned to live without my presence; in fact, if I may say so, at times, they seem happier for it, since I am not a perfect father or husband, and my attitudes have not ALL been great when it came to fathering my children or husbanding my wife.
So, it has been a win-win situation for all. While my clinic + Nishrin's salon was located at the same place, many of her clients found it awkward to visit her; now that my clinic has been "abolished" and the place converted into a full-scale beauty salon, her clientele are happy and the salon is doing better business. The cash flow has increased too, I may well add. And, Nishrin is happier too, as there is now no "interference" by me in her business.
I am not utterly happy, but, for a long time, I was quite unsatisfied with my professional income. Now that the Indian Rupee has been replaced by the Saudi Riyal, I am, for the first time, planning things like holidaying abroad or giving shape to the Child Welfare Charity that I will establish. In addition, we have been investing the surplus in the hope that money will draw in more money in future and liberate us from the stress of having to earn enough through our entire lives.
As I planned earlier, I intend to spend just a year or a little more than that in the Kingdom, then move on. What I will do next is not yet certain. I would prefer to cross the bridge when I reach it. But, suffice to say, I am extremely satisfied with the way my life is going at the moment.
Please do leave your comments. Thank you.
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