These Brentwood Streets
As I come to the end of my stay in England, I made a list of the ten things I love about my life here.
The Dawn Chorus
The morning medley that starts around 4.30 AM every morning without fail and continues till 9.00 AM. With every passing minute, more birds join in and it sounds a riot! I will certainly miss the song birds in Chennai, where the traffic and the pollution have driven out the little birdies.
The Weather
English weather gets pretty poor press and not without reason. But I like it for its unpredictability. It will start out sunny but the afternoon might bring thundershowers or even hail, if you are particularly unlucky! Dressing in layers and never going out with an umbrella become second nature pretty quickly. I love to breathe in the air when it carries a nip in it – smells so much cleaner and fresher.
The Greenery
There’s a massive country park near my house and the roads are carved without disturbing the trees. Driving through those tree-laden roads that go winding down gives you such a heady rush, I tell you! There’s something about looking up at the leafy canopy that brings pure joy in your heart.
The View from my Kitchen Window
As soon as spring hits, the barren trees start sprouting and suddenly around Easter, they are covered in green leaves. It completely alters the visuals and the number of birds that come and enjoy it dramatically increase. Such a thrill to look at whilst cooking or washing up.
The Small Town Aspect
This is one of the best reasons of living here – close enough to the city that you can go for a night out but still, with its unique mix of country that you don’t feel lost in it. Something that is appealing to more and more people that population is exploding, unfortunately 
The Wide Open Spaces
There’s something about Britain and its love of wide open spaces. You might be in the middle of a great city like London but you don’t have to go far to get to some green, a water feature, some ducks and a calming spot to unwind with your lunch. As I lived out of the city, I had my pick of country parks to choose from and boy, will they be sorely missed!
Mine Own Life
I am a bit of a loner and having no one to question me and my actions was the best part of living here. Sundays meant lazing in bed until whenever, without a milkman or a courier guy to rouse me out of bed.
The People
I know many people find the English quite cold – I did too, when I came here 10 years back – but over the years, their reticence has grown on me. In their “I shall mind my business and leave you to mind yours”, I found comfort. In their “let’s rally around now that the time calls for it”, I found solace.
The History
This is true of the whole country as such, not just Brentwood. I love English history and have loved visiting places that made the history come alive for me. When I visited the Hampton Court Palace, I could imagine Henry VIII walking the corridors. At Hever Castle, I could imagine a young Anne Boleyn wandering around the gardens. In Lake District, as I saw the cheerful daffodils dancing in the breeze, I could see Wordsworth drawing inspiration from them. I could feel everything in me stand still as I stood at the Glenfinnan Viaduct, as a lonely steam train whistled its way past. The rolling hills, the hedges, the age old forests… there’s things about this country that has me in its thrall.
The Way of Life
I love the importance given to your life – it isn’t all work,work, work. Weekends are yours to do as you see fit and despite the fact that most weekends would see us do the mundane, I liked how we could hangout as a family the whole weekend, instead of losing the time on useless things. Spring meant picking our own berries at the local farm, summer meant days at the park, the race for life, the various events at the country parks, a short break or two, autumn meant new school year and all that it brings, winter meant christmas, school concert, the new year, snow…..
