People and Events I Was 14 When

¶ … People and Events

I was 14 when my parents died in 1998. My younger brother and I were left with no financial support. It was devastating and scary, as I had to grow up really fast. I learned that the ones you love the most can be gone in an instant. Being born, raised, and educated in a small town in India, I had developed small town ideas. I had to change the way I thought about living and survival.

In order to survive, I went on the road and worked as a part-time teacher seven hours a day to provide bread for myself and my younger brother. I knew that life would never get any better without education. I continued my education while I worked. The days were long and hard trying to get my education and work to survive at the same time. This went on until 2002 when I finished my Bachelors in Computer Science. I continued teaching and working on my education with some financial aid until 2004, when I graduated with a Master's in Computer Science. This experience taught me independence as I had only myself to rely on. It also taught me responsibility as my younger brother relied on me as well for survival. Without working, we would have no food to eat. I learned the value of hard work and how to survive tough times.

In 2001, I met a girl. For several years we saw each other and talked a lot getting to know each other. This experience taught me about relationships and how they develop and grow. It was new to have someone outside my family to talk to and help me to resolve problems of difficulty. It was a new experience to be able to share laughs and good times with someone who cared. I learned that there was more to life that working and getting education. There was actually good times that made life easier to bear. I married this girl in 2006.

I started learning about different cultures when I was given office assignments in China and Finland during 2006 and 2007. This experience taught me about the value of the different cultures. Different cultures have different belief systems and communications with each culture is different than the culture in India. This was a valuable learning experience as I learned that cultures direct the way business is done in each country.

In January, 2008, my wife and I settled in the U.S.A. This brought about more learning experiences as the multitude of cultures that are in the U.S.A. taught me different things. It taught me more ways that needed to be communicated among the different cultures. The belief systems from each culture had different values that needed to be communicated in various ways, depending on the culture being dealt with at the particular time.

My life changed forever when my parents died. The way I had to learn to survive and still get my education taught a lot of independence. With my younger brother relying on me as well, I learned more about responsibility of caring for others. Meeting my wife had even more lessons as I learned more about relationships and the act of sharing life with someone else. I no longer had to take all the responsibility of life alone. My wife had become a lifelong partner to share the good and the bad, the struggles and the happy times. At 34, living in Seattle, WA and working for SAP America as a Technical Account Manager, life has become so much better. Because of education, I have the abilities to provide a greater degree of support for myself and a loved one, my wife.