Dear Parker Pen Company,
I would like to share my story regarding experiences with one of your pens. It is a slightly long story, so I hope you will bear with me as I take a trip down memory lane.
My maternal grandfather was an IAS officer in India. In 1971, his colleague gifted him a beautiful Parker fountain pen – a gold capped pen with a bottle green body. Since my grandfather did not really like fountain pens, he simply kept it aside without using it. In 1974, when my parents got married, he gave the pen as a gift to his new (and first!) son-in-law. My dad likes to store what he considers his expensive possessions very carefully; and so for the most part he too did not use the pen except on some special occasions.
I was born in 1989. As a six year old in the third grade, I found myself without a viable writing instrument late one Sunday evening. With an exam the next morning, I did what most six year olds would do in such a situation – I cried. In an effort to calm me down, my parents gave me this special pen to use for the exam, while extracting the promise to guard it well and treat it with care. I happily agreed, and was honored to be entrusted with this rare object- that was the year 1995.
Since then, I have written every exam in my life using this Parker pen. I used it throughout my school years. I even wrote my 10th and 12th grade nationwide competitive exams (known as the CBSE board exams) in India with it. It’s a multilingual pen, having seen me through English, Hindi and German. As a child, I argued with my mother when she would refill the pen for me. My perfectionist-driven anxiety spilling over had me convinced she was doing it wrong and I would run out of ink during my test- I never did, though!
I wrote all of my exams during my Bachelors and Masters degree programs with it. My family members were known for asking ‘Did you pack your pen?’ before each one, and there was never any doubt which pen they meant. I signed the final draft of my PhD thesis in Mathematics at Vanderbilt University in 2018 with it. I signed the documents for the publication of my first research paper, as well as my first postdoctoral position contract with it. And through all this time, I am happy to report that I never once broke the promise I made to my parents. I have always considered this pen to be my lucky charm, and I marvel at the fact that it has survived my journey around the globe, which has spanned 3 continents thus far.
I recently noticed that my beloved Parker pen has started to blot when I write with it. It has lived a long life, and while I am sad that its days are numbered, I feel an immense sense of gratitude and happiness for the time it has been in my possession. I intend to hang on to it, even when it is no longer practically useable, as a sweet reminder on an era gone by.
I share my story to thank you for your role as the creators of this wonderful instrument, which carries with it the history of 3 generations and 50 years in my family. No price compares to the value of sentimentality, and so I hope reading my story gives you no small measure of satisfaction.
With many thanks and sincere regards,
Dr. Sahana Balasubramanya.