When my mother imagined her life in this new world, she could not imagine it without the grounding forces of her religion and culture. She decided it was vital to bring over a murti, a brass idol of a Hindu deity. Passed down from a long lineage in her family she was honored to be given that special murti in her family. 

Being the youngest in a family of seven was not a cherished position in the family, in fact, according to mom, it meant she had all the tattered hand me downs and all the wretched dirty work of the family. Given this murti made her feel cherished and distinguishable amongst her brothers and sisters, rather than overlooked because she was the youngest. 

Part of this honor comes from the undeniably of the murtis very connection with God itself. In Hinduism, the form of god directly takes place inside the murti establishing that one-on-one connection that cannot be severed.  It becomes a vehicle for your mind and soul, a vehicle that can never be ticketed with the problems of this world.  Especially in Guyana, where the rural lifestyle is prominent and grueling. When times were hard she looked up to this murti and now it sits in our home where my brother and I can do the same act to the brass idol my mother and ancestors once did long before we were born.

– Ashley Reta Singh

Relationship:  Child of im/migrant Child of im/migrant