I have created my memoirs narrating my sentimental journey of life spanning almost eight decades-growing up in India, leaving my beloved homeland to pursue my dreams of a better future in the West, and living an affluent life bridging two cultures. I have made an attempt to personalize the intricate customs, culture and values of the bygone era of my ancestors along with its rich traditions, the struggles that my parents had endured to raise us, my educational pursuits in becoming a doctor, the moral dilemma of my migration, and the adjustments required for life in my adopted home. It goes on to elaborate how I succeeded in adapting to the new life in the US, in getting qualified as a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and rising to become the president of a nationally reputed clinic, of being invited and inducted to the prestigious Royal Society of Medicine, London as a Fellow. The book narrates my attempt to discard all my success in the US and returning to India to offer my help to the needy but having to come back due to circumstances beyond my control. I have recounted my efforts of how I maintained strong ties to my motherland, serving my obligations to my extensive family in India, even after choosing America as my final domicile. The manuscript includes my passionate involvement in several social and philanthropic causes in America, my chosen land and how it had set the trend for my three children, who are following my example.
There were a few genuine reasons that prompted me to start this project and enabled me to complete the attempt……
But the most interesting reason that I discovered, which motivated me to continue the attempt was that I began to actually enjoy revisiting the life that I had left behind. This was a revelation. I began to feel that I was drawn back to the precious years of my childhood, to the people whom I loved and adored, and had since lost, along with all the memories that had been stored and rusted with only an occasional glancing back. As I slowly recalled those remnants of my past, I became overwhelmed. I felt elated and excited at times — sad, depressed, gratified, fortunate and triumphant at others. Some of those experiences embraced me as if they were reoccurring at the moment. I smiled and laughed and more often sobbed and cried out of control as they came flooding back to me and choked me. All such beloved sensations gave me a certain inexpressible contentment; something I never imagined possible when I started writing. For that one reason and perhaps for none other, I realized it was worth my time and dedication to create such a narrative.
“My Mother Called me UNNI, a Doctor’s Tale of Migration” is my story, like that of many immigrants like me that I would proudly want to share with others.
My Mother Called Me Unni - By DR Venugopal K. Menon 