Two Leaves and a Bud
by
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I stood quietly and slowly turned. I walked to the edge of the drop and looking straight ahead at the immense vastness in front of me, I was frightened. In later years I would come to love the deep valleys,woods, far away winding rivers, and the full Himalayan mountain range, but at the moment it all seemed to be the end of the world. I was alone and afraid. I couldn't seem to remember saying goodbye to my mother, and I felt a strange rumbling in my tummy. The fear of being alone without my mother and brothers overwhelmed me and I started to scream. I could not catch my breath, or maybe I was just holding it, but either way, I could not make myself stop. I was running out of time and started walking in a tight little circle, moving unconsciously closer towards the edge of the cliff. I'm not sure how long I continued this way, but I finally realized that I was lying on the grass. I heard a voice. Not a child's voice, or my mother's, but one that sounded strange. It was telling me that I must stop crying and I should try to sit up.
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About the Book
In the early 1940’s, a young Anglo Indian mother is abandoned by her husband and left with their six children all under the age of ten. Without financial support, her heart is broken when she is forced to give up her children who were placed into Dr. Graham’s Homes, a group home in Northern India, staffed by British Missionaries. The author who was the fourth child and only girl among the six children tells a compelling and candid account of her childhood within a restricted and sheltered environment. A story enfolds of the struggle to find her identity where she finally embraces both her Indian and British roots, and her passion to reunite with her mother comes through with emotion and poignancy.
About the Author
Yvonne Tomlin, a first time author, graduated from The University of Poona, India and taught Kindergarten children in South Asia. She was also the Director of Sports and Physical Education for two years at Dr. Graham’s Homes Kalimpong . In 1991, she received her Medical Associates degree and recently retired from the medical profession. At present she is an accomplished artist living and enjoying life with her family in Florida.