On Return to Panchgani: The Search for Sureka

Like stories? Boy, does Samuel have a great story to tell. In three parts and with great pictures he tells the story of trying to track down a woman who figured prominently in his life when he was a child in India. -gw

Sureka is the woman who served as a maid for us and the Rushdys before us, and who became a part of both of our families. On the morning my mother and I left, Sureka was the most emotional. Whether she even heard me or not is irrelevant, but the 12-year-old-me told her that I would see her again in six years. I figured that I would be done high school by then and I could return to India to do a Baha’i youth year of service. About seven years later I did do a year of service, but it ended up being in Macau and Thailand. Now here we are eleven years and a university degree later and I happened to land a job one state away from Panchgani.

This weekend, as my camera and are walking down memory lane I will also following Sureka’s trail. At this point all I have is a list of names of people who may be able to locate her via e-mails from the Rushdys that are spread across the globe. I have no phone number, no last name and no clue where she is.

http://samuelbenoit.wordpress.com/2007/11/07/return-to-panchgani/

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http://samuelbenoit.wordpress.com/2007/11/09/the-search-for-sureka-ii/

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http://samuelbenoit.wordpress.com/2007/11/15/the-search-for-sureka-iii/

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{Re-posted with permission}

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More photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sbenoit/