Jarred!

How to describe my first week back in India? 'Jarred' might be the most appropriate one word response. I like it cause it can mean so many different things.

1. A cylindrical glass or earthenware vessel with a wide mouth and usually no handles.

Of course, I love my pickled mango, which usually comes in a jar, it adds some serious spice to any south Indian meal, which I have missed immensely. I didn't realize how much better the pickled mango is here til I got back.

2. To make or utter a harsh sound.

Yep, just spend 10 seconds on any street in India and you’ll be jarred by a chorus of horns, rickshaws without mufflers and diesel-spewing buses. It is a common saying that India is an assault on the senses and it certainly is on the ears. Auditory overload is the norm here and your eardrums are constantly jarred.

3. To bump or cause to move or shake from impact.

I’ve already been on a few investigations and being in the car is certainly a jarring experience, from potholes to our vehicle swerving to miss oncoming busses or departing the road onto the shoulder to avoid a passing truck, driving in India is certainly a jarring experience.


4. A jolt; a shock.

Being back has certainly jarred/jolted/jogged my memory. All the smells, sounds, sights are as familiar as they are strange now. I think my blog on the smells of Chennai is a good description of what I mean. As different as Tamil Nadu is from the States, after spending six months here it is strangely like home to me, I forgot how much I missed it and I’ve been constantly surprised how often my memory is jarred- kinda like ‘oh yeah, I remember how this works, or this sounds, or how I do this’. Being gone for eight months was enough time to forget many of my most and least favorite things about this place and I think returning has brought it all back. Here’s to being jarred!