A DAY THAT WAS MEANT TO BE

On october 2nd, a bunch of NSS volunteers from college set out to' peace village' in wayanad. 

After a lot of excitement and hurry-burry, a bunch of us finally set of to the hills of wayanad, not to spend the day in merriment but to hold the wrinkled hands of people who needed comfort and hope to live their life. The day was meant to be a great moment of realization in my life. Built in a beautiful landscape, with a lot of mesmerizing sights all around, ‘Peace Village’ lived up to its name. Even after reaching the destination I didn’t realize how this visit is going to change myself.

1.       Ayshomma-

The first person I met and who warned me again and again not to speak to the people around me as they were not trustworthy, in her opinion. What made her think that? She kept on speaking more and more about various things. I could do nothing but just listen and hold her hands. With a parting hug I moved on to the next bed feeling the lump in my throat not being able to believe that this was a person who once proudly gave birth to children believing that they would be there for her for the rest of her life.

2.       Sarojini amma-

Half lying on the bed, with a urine collector beside her, Sarojini amma remarked on hearing that we were from Kannur, that there was a new airport in the place. White hair covered her head, but that mattered not. The pride in her voice when speaking of the airport she would never see shocked me. It was a moment that I had to believe that world was indeed a strange place to live in. We conversed a lot about family and life. I parted with her asking for her valuable prayers. I was helpless.

3.       Lakshmi amma (lachu)-

The person who taught me the lessons that I would never find in any book ever. The person in whom I found a lot of hidden wisdom, who gave me the confidence to face the barriers of life. The person whom I felt was not meant to be in this corner, secluded from the world only because of her disability. What shocked me the most about this person was when she mentioned about hypnotism when I told her that I was a psychology student. She also wanted to see me get married and begin a family life. A person who is absolutely unrelated to me speaking in a way that I was her own grandchild. She was hospital worker during her healthy years of life, who had a lot of experiences to share. Married at a very young age, she also had to face the death of her two babies during caesarean. When I fondly called her ‘Lakshmi amma’ she corrected me with the name lachu, saying that people called her so when she was a healthy worker. I asked her to pray for me and left unwillingly not knowing when again I would meet her.

4.          Ramani-

There are many people for whom education means a lot. Unfortunately, they did not get a chance to study and discover themselves unlike many at present who have been forced to study even though they don’t know the value of education. Ramani is the one person who spoke about how badly she wanted to study as a child but couldn’t attend school due to many reasons. Never take your opportunity of education for granted. It’s a privilege. She had a lot of stories to reveal about her family. She was affected with polio at a very young age. Sadly, from then on she was neglected and finally ended up to the current corner of the room.

5.       Shanthi-

The non-Malayali among the group who didn’t speak a single word except for nodding of head. She was from Orissa. With her shabby salwar and trimmed hair, she looked very young. Did her experiences make her silent or did she really want to say a lot of her stories to us? I don’t have an answer to that. I only knew that she enjoyed our visit. Her face with the sparkling eyes revealed it. Did anybody else notice it?

6.       Beena-

Beena was totally bed ridden but she took the effort to speak which made me speechless. She spoke about her condition, how helpless she was with the ability to walk and sit lost forever. Why do we take all our blessings for granted? Beena was suffering from a nervous disorder which makes it hard for her to even speak properly. I knew from her expressions that she wanted to share more of her experiences, but I couldn’t stay back because we had to leave early. Holding her slim and creased hands, I asked for her prayers and left silently.

Making every day, that you have been gifted with, as meaningful as possible, is very important. Look around you. Learn from people. Spend time with people. Let someone know that you do care for them. Every night before we close our eyes think of the day that has gone by, am I content with today or do I regret about it? Make today your best because you never know about tomorrow!