If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
The content explores the complex emotional ties individuals have with their homeland versus the allure of luxury abroad. It emphasises that while some people are drawn to comfortable living in foreign lands, many others value their cultural roots and are unwilling to abandon their ancestral soil. The author uses metaphors, such as the uprooting of paddy and mango saplings, to illustrate the shock of displacement. The essay reflects on themes of identity, belonging, and the inherent love for one’s country despite its flaws. Ultimately, it champions the idea that true fulfilment comes from an appreciation of one’s homeland rather than seeking perceived greener pastures elsewhere.
Table of contents
Key Takeaways
- The article explores the emotional ties to one’s homeland versus the appeal of luxury abroad, highlighting cultural roots and the sense of belonging.
- It uses metaphors like uprooting paddy and mango saplings to illustrate the shock of displacement experienced by individuals.
- Despite facing hardships, many prefer to stay connected to their land, valuing their childhood memories and cultural heritage.
- The article emphasizes that no country is inherently good or bad; it’s the people who shape it and their connection to the land that matters.
- Finally, it advocates for a heartfelt appreciation of one’s country, recognizing flaws while celebrating its beauty and resources.
Fish out of water
Closely watching swimming fish in an aquarium, he felt amused. The way fish swim and open their mouths to take in water or eat food mesmerised him. “Can they live outside water,” While watching them gaily swimming, he heard his own voice in a manner as if his clone spoke to him from nearby. Fish are aquatic animals who can’t survive outside water. What would happen if a person were placed in a luxurious environment in an alien country away from homeland where one can enjoy every luxury one wished for or imagined? He was thinking aloud.
Luxury or Hardships: Emotional ties with homeland
The question haunted him. He kept on probing it to get an appropriate answer. Some people prefer physical comfort, ease of living, a plethora of luxury and a lot of money over the frugal life of their homeland. They can compromise their personal liberty and accept them all when offered. There are, nonetheless, those who would prefer hardships rather than to shift their loyalties. They would not like to leave the soil where their forefathers lived, toiled and raised their families. They would feel uprooted and displaced. Money or comfort can’t fill the void created by their displacement. Yet it is not a universal fact. A little deeper look reveals some other things too.
Paddy plantation
To start with, take an example of a paddy. The farmer prepares a nursery of saplings and later uproots them to replant in a field inundated with pluvial water. The saplings grow to become mature plants and yield paddy. In this process, the plants are transplanted to another area, different from the place where they actually germinated and grew into saplings. A similar example can be a sapling of a tree, for example, a mango. People take the sapling and plant them on the desired site to grow and fruit.
Uprooting gives shock
The examples cited above have something in common. Firstly, they are replanted in the same environment and soil. Their basic environment, soil and climatic conditions don’t change. It is quite impossible to replant and grow a sapling from hilly areas to a comparatively harsh and different environment of plains. The shock they get is enough to cause them to perish. Secondly, the plants do not have senses or sensory organs and brain. They can’t think and don’t have emotions. Despite this, they get shocked. It is clear, thus, that forced displacement from homeland (either by self-desire or external conditions) yields something but with a high cost. In human beings, the cost is manyfold if added to its emotional cost or cultural uprooting.
connection and emotional ties
People who settle in foreign countries, often feel disjointed and alienated because of the paradigm shift in culture, customs, traditions, language and topography of the new region. They try to connect with their roots which are far away from their present place of settlement and feel lost.
homeland emotional connect
A person living in the harshest of the harsh frigid conditions would not like to leave their place. They may face difficulties in getting drinking water and fresh food, but they don’t think of leaving their homeland. Similarly, those living in inhospitable hot deserts don’t think of leaving their place. They work hard to improve the living conditions, but are not willing to change the land. Some may term it foolishness, but from their perspective, nonetheless, it is not. People love their land where they were born and brought up. It is their motherland, which can’t be disowned. (Sociology.Institute)
Childhood memories: Emotional ties
The birthplace and the land which give ample during the growth period leave a permanent mark on the minds of a child. This condition is seen in children who are born in one city, grow up in another, become mature in yet another and settle in another city. The childhood memories become their most cherished belonging. They enjoy wandering down memory lane like they slowly savour their favourite sweets or fruit. A child who grows up playing in the soil of their land, breathing in the fresh air of their village or city can not forget it even if they get enough wealth elsewhere. The thought of settling abroad may appear rosy but it is like grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. It often becomes a difficult decision for those whose priorities are different.
Wish for progression
Individuals are different and so are their thought processes. The common thing is the wish for progression. The living world as a whole vies for a good future, enough food, sufficient water and decent shelter. Being the wisest of all, human beings have institutionalised their wisdom and demands. Since antediluvian times, humans as wayfarers used to wander in search of food and shelter. Later, after adopting a settled life when they started farming, they learned about possessions and possessiveness. They developed an affinity with their land, river, alluvial flats, tamed animals and home. This gradually became deep rooted to become a genetic trait, inseparable and intrinsic. They called it their homeland.
good fortune away from homeland
People go abroad in search of good fortune. Sometimes they follow an illegal way to enter the foreign country and live without fulfilling the legal formalities. This is unethical, besides being illegal and punishable under the law of the land. The lust to settle abroad often brings them into difficult situation, and to come out of that, they try to seek help from their native country.
Legal visit
Legally visiting foreign countries is not bad. It helps both countries, increases mutual understanding and teaches new ways, customs, cultures and languages. It seems ridiculous when a person marries in one country and settles in another. They seek help from their homeland in case they meet any untoward conditions like war or internal disturbances. This attitude may suit some, but it is viewed with disdain by the majority.
Imperialist mindset
The lust for power and to have more than what is needed instigates the desire to acquire more by any means. It leads to an imperialist mindset which tries to colonise other less developed countries whose people are poor, but their country has natural resources aplenty. The imperialist nation, like England, had colonised most countries of the world including India. They were not concerned for the welfare of India, but for themselves. They looted and siphoned off the wealth to their home country. Similarly, invaders came, looted India and left, baring of Mughals who settled here. The historical incidents show that the foreigners and invaders had no love for the country except for its wealth and resources. They left, but after sucking the country, converting it to an anaemic. Now a free country, India’s future is in the hands of its children who love their country and home.
Obsessive opposition
In the present tech-driven world, people are connected by several means. They can work from anywhere to earn their livelihood. Those who are driven by material possessions are opting to settle abroad. This is good for their personal development. Contrary to this, there are quislings who, despite enjoying the best possible benefits, abuse their country and openly howl to leave it if they had the money. It is deplorable.
Every country is good
Countries are not good or bad. Nature has given more than enough to the globe. As humans grew, they drew lines and demarcated their territory. Like a home which has boundaries, countries have frontiers. Eventually, it is the citizens who make a country. The hardworking people make their homeland great.
Call of Prinia
A Prinia was making a call sitting on a twig of Plumeria. It broke the chain of his thoughts. After a deep cogitation, he found that a home is more than a brick-and-mortar structure. His country has given enough. It is beautiful, full of natural resources, with some of the primordial forests teeming with wildlife and lofty mountains. The land is fertile, people are cordial and hardworking. There is no reason to think elsewhere to settle afresh. He soliloquised in a low whisper as if committing, “I love my country very much. I was born on this soil and shall breathe my last here. It is the best place on the Earth.”
Emotional ties: Promise to self
It can be a fashion for anyone to curse the country on any pretext, but those who love it would not do it. No country or society on this globe is flawless. They too have ditches. The glamour and shine of other places have a long history of oppression and negativity. It is a matter of pride that when they were wandering in jungles, India was thriving. The country was wealthy and at the zenith of intellectual superiority. It is the blissful feeling of love towards the country, not jingoism.
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Kamal Kishore Srivastava
A retired government officer turned writer and photographer, Kamal Kishore Srivastava is a regular blogger and essayist who explores life’s deeper meanings through immersive reflections on nature, impermanence, and happiness. On his blog Nature’s Narrative, he blends philosophical storytelling with practical insights. Writing 1,200–1,500 words or more regularly, Kamal is committed to refining his craft, expanding his audience, and building a sustainable space where thought and feeling intersect.
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