I often ask my father about the things he reflects on in his life now, as he is in his 70′s. I think of the life that he came from and the one that he gave me in this country – and the contrasts are often such sharp juxtapositions of each other.

When I was 1, I was crawling up and hitting the television in our house or banging on the toys in my family room.

When he was 1, he was crawling on the dirt floors of his village in India, already malnourished and struggling to meet many of the milestones I was meeting.

When I was 4, I was jealous that my next door neighbor could already read.

When my father was 4, he was just gaining the ability to walk. Years of malnourishment had lead to delays in core milestones for him.