Under the Wings of the Lord Almighty

We were all tired of the unending search and not at all enthusiastic over the prospects of spending Christmas in New Delhi. We did not plan anything because of this house search. On December 20, a heated discussion happened between our two children and I on one side and my husband and his convictions on the other side. None of the first group wanted to stay in New Delhi and the decision was final. On December 21, we started making arrangements to travel to the USA for the rest of the winter break and we finalized our flight reservations for December 23, 2008. We frantically packed our luggage and did some last minute shopping, headed to the airport, looking forward to our return.

That day, we discovered another facet of our host country. By such an unthinkable combination of facts, my husband’s visa had expired. His diplomatic ID card was not considered a valid residency document at the airport. How can a country prevent him from going out of it with a valid diplomatic ID card? It was the first time I was witnessing this type of situation. Despite all the reasons conveyed in good faith, my husband was not allowed to board the plane, being considered an illegal alien. The agent that dealt with us was rather rude and he refused to help us out. The issue was escalated to his supervisor, but we got the same response. Here we were, the kids crying on one side, myself upset on the other and refusing to leave on vacation without my husband. I was wondering if India was at all fun and if our stay there had any purpose. We were eliciting the curiosity of the airport customs staff. What could we do… with the plane waiting for us? The airline staff was waiting for us to make up our minds. The airport customs staff was advising me and the children to board the plane and leave my husband behind. Neither I nor the kids wanted to leave their dad behind. My normally calm son was so upset that night that he filled out two suggestion cards for the airport authorities. My daughter was begging the officers to let her dad travel with her. None of the family members’ supplications helped. Things got even worse: my husband was simply disembarked. And the rest of the family followed suit. That night, December 23, was a bad one!

We came back to our hotel around 4:30 am, exhausted mentally and physically. Neither I nor my husband could sleep thinking about all the implications … the biggest one being to spend the entire Christmas Break in Delhi, with a family that was not happy! Early in the morning, my husband prayed with fervor, and headed out to the office. With the advice of the lady responsible for the visa processing, he prepared all the required documents and waited earnestly for her arrival.