His parents left Mauritius well before he was born because they wanted a better life for their children in England. The minute Nadeem was of age, however, he decided he needed to get back to the roots. And he is here to stay!

Growing up in England was ?hum, full of challenges for young Nadeem. The lasting impression this experience has left him was that of being ?different.? ?Not that it had anything much to do with skin colour. Had I been the only kid at school wearing glasses, other kids would have picked on me as well.? Says Nadeem. Still it left him with a feeling of always having to ?have eyes at the back of my head.? So it was no wonder that Nadeem was keen to move out of Canterbury when he went to Uni.

His parents would have none of it; ?but I had to find myself and be my own person.? And this he did. His lips were pierced, his hair dyed blue, his cut became spiky - Nadeem became ?somebody else? in the process of trying to find an identity. But, he says, surprising me, ?there was always a constant since I was sixteen. I always knew I was going to get married and have children. The question was; where to raise them!?

I was frankly taken aback. Most young people nowadays don?t even think about marriage until it gets too late to postpone it forever. Responsibility is a word that scares many people. Not for Nadeem. Indeed he is looking for it.

?I don?t know why?, he admits. Is it because he has always felt a need to ?belong?? Nadeem smiles but, after a while, says he?s not too sure ?but it might be an ego thing.? I smile back. Nadeem, you see, makes it a habit of observing people?s body language to try and learn more about them. ?It?s like a snapshot?, he says. ?But not very reliable?, he adds as we?re smiling?

Nadeem always had what he now calls a misconception; ?I always thought Mauritian people weren?t very bright?, he says sheepishly. But then he let himself get convinced to accompany his mother on a visit to island. And? to cut a long story short, at the end of the visit, Nadeem?s decision was made. He was here to stay!

What made him change his mind is what makes the most unwavering of us waver - love! He found it and it awoke that dormant want in him since he was 16 - marriage.

?I?m at peace here. Language is the only barrier ? my Creole will never be Mauritian enough and I will always end up paying more for things because of my accent. But, at least here, I have learnt to stop using the eyes behind my back. Who knows, they might even disappear! Even though home is still England?, says a wistful Nadeem.