Two Years Away From India

 

Two years have passed, and much to the surprise of many, Manny is still here with me. He didn’t run off after getting that precious green card, and he didn’t disappear into the fabric of the United States, like so many secretly wished for.

Instead, we have learned to blend a family.

Recently, Manny apologized for being so grumpy when he first arrived. He says that everything was so overwhelming, and a complete blur. We have gone back to places he absolutely hated two years ago, and now he can appreciate most of it.

He has a great job that he loves, and has applied for a supervisor position.

The reason I haven’t written more on the subject is because we seem to have overcome the hardest part, and we are now on auto-pilot. We’re finally just a normal couple living day-to-day lives without “too many” cultural differences or discrepancies.

There are two major things left which can be attributed to a cultural difference, though… Tipping at restaurants, and sleeping behavior. 

No matter how hard I try to explain that servers in restaurants do not get paid an actual salary, Manny can’t grasp the fact that it is up to us, the customer, to pay their wages. I can’t say I blame him, and I do understand that the rest of the world does not have this problem. But, it is what it is, and we all just do it. Manny still despises eating out, preferring his own food, and I like to eat-out, A LOT.

Sleeping habits are a major difficulty in our marriage. Manny LIKES to sleep on the floor. To him, a hard bamboo mat, seems like heaven. I, on the other hand, have a very soft temporpedic mattress. Generally, he will pretend to fall asleep next to me, to appease my insecurities, but inevitably he makes his way to the floor.

He also likes to sleep in the pitch black with no noise, and I like to fall asleep with the T.V. on. I don’t attribute that to culture, but these differences really do create an issue.

The one thing I love most about my relationship is that, Manny lets me be me.

I know that Indian men have a reputation for being domineering, or controlling, but I don’t see that in our relationship. I don’t think twice when making plans to head-off on a surf trip with my son. I truly have no worries about what Manny will say, I can just be me. To me, that’s the most amazing part of our relationship. Trust.  A deep trust I have never experienced with anyone.

Remember my article —-> “Passion is a noisy thing, but true love lives quietly.” Sometimes, I’m in disbelief that I found what I was searching for, but I did.

In the beginning of our relationship, Manny claimed to be possessive. Him being a “Scorpio,” and me a “Sagittarius,” our relationship was doomed because I was too free. Which of course, I am a free-spirit. Clipping my wings is fatal to any relationship in my universe.  But, this too, I attribute to the way Indians discuss relationship rules beforehand. He knew that freedom to-be-ME was paramount to making this relationship work, and I knew that Manny needs to be HIM; introverted, peaceful, quiet and spiritual.

For the most-part, this works very well for us.

Where it doesn’t work, sadly, is between my mother and Manny… both “Scorpios,” both hard-headed and stubborn. They do love each other, if only they could show it more… my life would be perfect.

Manny is always putting family first, and I am not wanting for ANYTHING. He makes sure I have whatever products or supplements I want to ensure that I’m healthy and happy. All my son needs to do is merely mention that he would like something, and Manny has ordered it on Amazon before we even leave the store.

Sometimes, I am blown away that marriage could be THIS beautiful. I’m not exaggerating when I say that. I had very low expectations of what a husband would be like. As you know from my blogs, marriage was not in my plans. Instead, I married my best friend, lover, and partner.

Who could ask for anything more?

 

As this chapter of my blog comes to an end, I would like to leave you with some other great reads…

A friend of mine has complied a list of blogs for people in similar relationships to mine. They are all a great source of information, and I encourage you to check them out. I am not leaving you guys, I’m still writing great content on other topics. Please feel free to reach out, chat and follow me on all social media @BuddhafulBritt

Click this link for more—–>  BLOGS TO FOLLOW 

 

FOLLOW OUR STORY IN THE LINKS BELOW!

“My Indian Boyfriend pt. 1  “—>HERE

His Indian Parents Don’t Accept You? —> HERE

Culture Shock: The Good , The Bad, The Ugly: —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: Prelude —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: Showtime —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: Indian Astrology —> HERE

My Big Fat Sikh Wedding: The Dress —> HERE

Surviving Long Distance Love—> HERE

Open Letter to my Husband—> HERE

Our Story, Retold —> HERE

Culture Shock: What to Expect?-–> HERE

Culture Shock: Six Months in America —> HERE

Culture Shock: Manny’s First Christmas —> HERE

Culture Shock: The First Year—> HERE

Our Honeymoon: Rishikesh India—> HERE

K1 Fiance Visa: The Process—> HERE

K1 Fiance Visa: The Inteview —> HERE

Cr1 Spousal Visa: The Timeline —> HERE

Cr1 Spousal Visa: Interview Questions —>HERE

A Journey to:  New Delhi—> HERE 

A Journey to:  Jaipur India —> HERE

A Journey to: Dubai UAE —> HERE

Our First Diwali—> HERE

Giving Thanks, Shukryia  —> HERE

Being Sikh in America—> HERE

The Indian Grocery: Natural Products—> HERE

A Path to Happiness—> HERE 

True Love Lives Quietly —> HERE

Buddhaful Britt: Most Interesting Travel Blogger —> HERE

Buddhaful Advise: As We Think, So We Become —> HERE

Buddhaful Advise: Inner Peace —> HERE

Buddhaful Advise: Everyday Stress —> HERE“SUBSCRIBE HERE” to follow our journey at BuddhafulBritt.com