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Family Reunion – VE. S. Family Style -November 19th, 2013
By: Soundhra Lakshmanan, St. Louis, USA
Three generations from four continents gathered together for seven days to have fun, to explore our roots and most importantly to pay homage to our ancestors. We, the descendants of Thiru VE. Shanmugam Chettiar and Soundharam Achi, convened on our native soil in the village of Nachiapuram in Tamil Nadu, India in August 2013 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of our beloved father, grandfather and great-grandfather. ThiruShanmugamChettiar is my paternal grandfather, or Ayya in Tamil. I have very few memories of my Ayya since I was raised in the U.S. and did not have the fortune of spending much time with him. Nevertheless, I was excited to learn more about him, to see why he was given the Justice of Peace designation by the Singapore government and to reconnect with my father’s side of the family.
My father and his brothers brought up the idea of the family reunion to celebrate Ayya’s centenary. They wanted the younger generations to learn about Ayyaand more importantly, to learn from him. They wanted us to carry on Ayya’s legacy of charity. The highlight of our week together took place on Sunday, August 4th as we dedicated a school auditorium that was built by funds donated from our family. This auditorium stands on the grounds of J.V. High School in Nachiapuram, a place where children from surrounding villages come to learn. The school has a strong connection to our family sinceAyya was instrumental in starting and administrating at the school and since his sons studied there. The dedication ceremony will be etched in my memory because of the immense gratification I felt in our family being able to provide a beautiful auditorium for the school children. The building of the auditorium will continue Ayya’s legacy of charity and focus on education, inspiring all of us to continue this legacy.
Preparations for the reunion startedone year before because gathering 50 people from all over the world is no easy task. We are all busy with our own lives and have created a network of friendships in our adopted countries to substitute for family. I knew this vacation would be more meaningful than others because we came with a dual purpose, celebrate our ancestors and spend time with each other. I was able to meet nieces and nephews whom I’d never met before. The third generation was able to meet and bond with cousins they had only heard about. Late night story telling sessions, card games, friendly competitions of badminton, sightseeing, and multiple trips to an ice cream store were all a part of the bonding process. We had the customary visits to temples, which were more gratifying by being in good company.Our appetites were well taken care of by being fed a variety of delicious Chettinad and fusion dishes from our wish lists. My personal favorite was the kumayam!
Of all the trips I’ve made to India, this summer’s reunion was unique because I learned more about my grandparents and had the opportunity to cultivate deeper relationships with my family members. One might argue that all trips to India should be this way, yet this trip meant more to me because we all came together with a common goal in mind. We weren’t distracted by the big production of a wedding; we were there simply to spend time together. Career opportunities have relocated us all over the world, but we’ve concluded we should reunite more often to have a sense of family and to know our roots. Once you know where you’ve come from, it’s easier to chart where you’re going.