downside

Priya scrolled through her phone in her Boston apartment, seeing another friend's wedding invitation from Srivilliputhur. Her heart ached. Moving away had meant career success, Instagram validation, countless likes. Yet something essential had slipped away. She'd traded temple mornings for corner office meetings, family dinners for networking events. The social rewards felt hollow now. On impulse, she booked a flight home. Walking Srivilliputhur's familiar streets, she remembered why she'd left—and why returning mattered. Her mother's embrace, grandmother's Tamil stories, the temple's peace—these couldn't be replaced by notifications. Sometimes success meant choosing what you'd lost. Sometimes home was the greatest reward of all.