Age:
High School
Reading Level: 4.8
Chapter 1
A brisk autumn breeze, sharp as needles, jolted Chandra out of her trance.
How long had she been standing here? How long had she been staring at the light pouring out of that evil, twisted grin? How long had she been wishing she were home?
It was a jack o’ lantern. Chandra knew that, but the flickering light at this time of year made her think of Diwali.
Diwali, the Festival of Lights, would begin soon in India. It would last for five days, and Chandra would miss her home, her friends, and her family for each and every one of them.
She shivered in the twilight and looked at the carved pumpkin sitting on some stranger’s porch. She was in a strange land with strange customs.
She’d told her family she would adapt. But she wasn’t ready for the wave of homesickness that kept her standing in the chill evening, staring at a jack o’ lantern.
Chapter 2
Chandra was an exchange student. She’d only been in the United States for four months. During that time, she’d concentrated on her studies.
She let American culture and customs flow around her like pools of foreign water.
Chandra had assumed the way of life here would seep into her gradually without any effort on her part. The foreign water would begin to feel less foreign as time went by.
But…Diwali…the beauty…the grandeur…the lights of Diwali…
Back home in Mumbai, preparations for Diwali would already be underway. The hunt would be on for supplies and presents and new clothes and ingredients for delicacies.
On the first day of the festival, Chandra’s mother and her sisters would dust and scrub.
They would put a thousand finishing touches on little household chores that had been ignored.
Her father and brother would make small repairs. Chandra imagined the chipped tile on the edge of the kitchen counter would be replaced. The tiny tear in the screen door leading to the backyard porch would be mended.
Everything would be shining and clean and in its proper place.
Everything would be ready.
Chapter 3
India’s Festival of Lights fell between mid-October and mid-November. The exact dates depended on the moon.
It was not a full moon celebration. It was a dark-of-the-moon time. That was when the lights of Diwali would shine their brightest.
The heavy monsoon rains would have passed and the weather in Mumbai would be fine and hot.
Chandra hugged herself, pulling her winter coat tighter against the cold.
She closed her eyes and imagined the sultry warmth of home caressing her cheeks. Behind her eyelids, she could see the colors of Diwali come alive.
