There is every chance that the Anglo-Indian lifestyle and culture that I grew up in, after the independence of India, will be lost; in fact, is already disappearing because of the mass exodus to the western countries. Those Anglo-Indians that have stayed back in India are slowly assimilating into the Indian way of living, except for their Christian religion. They are now dominated by the Indian culture in terms of clothes they wear, food they eat, and the spoken language.

The Anglo-Indian culture and lifestyle, I know was carried over from the British Colonial times. A unique culture and lifestyle which was very British yet it had the influence of the Indian environment. The Indian influence differed from state to state according to the regional Indian cultural background with the spoken accent of the English language, food habits and celebrations. Although dominated by the British and western culture, the Anglo-Indian culture also adopted some of the regional and state culture from India.

I decided to write about my growing up in the Anglo-Indian culture I knew from 1940 to the present time in the form of an autobiography, UNWANTED and later BITTER SWEET TRUTH. I realised how important it was to capture that culture which was losing its importance in the present world of technology and science. The plight of the culture so dear to me is at stake and therefore, through my life story I tried to record how we Anglo-Indians once lived and existed. Later this year I felt the need to write my second book, a fiction - PEACOCK AND THE GUM TREE.

Esther Lyons is a Teacher at the Marist Brother's Special School in Lewisham, NSW. She did her Secondary teachers training at St Mary's College, Allahabad and received a B.A Degree from St John's College, Agra. In Australia she completed a Dip Teach, B. Ed from Sydney University, a Graduate Diploma in Special Education from Bathurst University, NSW, a M. Ed in Pastrol Care from Catholic College, Sydney. She also completed a Diploma in journalism by correspondence.