Women's day came and went like a breeze. I suddenly realized there is one special woman whom I see day in and day out with a cheerful smile , come hail or storm. I thought it necessary to bring her inspiring story to all of you, before the season fades away.
She is the domestic help in my house, ever since I came to the 'CITY of GARDENS'. People had warned me that it is very difficult to find a good domestic help here, unlike the north and being a cleanliness freak myself,I was wondering how tedious a task it would be to find a good helping hand. One morning, walks in ALUVELAMMA seeking domestic work. There was something in her that impressed me instantly. She was neat to the hilt, hair oiled and braided neatly. She had left her hometown on the coast of Andhra Pradesh to seek a more lucrative salary in the city of Bangalore. She said she had four children, all of whom she was educating, with the help of some charitable institution. There was a conviction in her voice of how important it is to have educated children. I was amazed to hear that come from an uneducated woman.
The next part of her story indeed bewildered me. She said she had lost her husband, a fisherman by profession, at sea when one of those horrific storms hit the coast. He had gone out for a 'catch' on one of those storm tossed nights, never to return. I had goose pimples all over. She said she was supporting a specially-abled younger sister and her younger brother who had just met with a major road accident and had an incapacitated leg. We have read these gory headlines many a time on the front page of the Newspaper screaming the statistics of loss to life and property ,year after year in coastal Andhra. But while we rest on the arm chair with a steaming cup of filter coffee reading the morning news, we so easily turn the pages not feeling even a pinch of any sort. But when we do go into the lives of such people, we realize the cruel games life can play at the spur of a moment. Life is indeed transitory and mysterious.
She assured me that she would do a good job and I employed her instantly. Days and months passed, Aluvelamma would reach my home at the dot of time, neatly dressed spreading a breath of positivity and a pleasant countenance. She easily adjusted to our home and as I got to know her better, I found that indeed she was struggling to make two ends meet. I started helping her in whichever way I could even finding her an extra employer.
It seemed that bad luck had chosen her as one of its favorite victims - soon her mother was down with cancer and she passed away in the course of a few weeks. There was no stone left unturned by her. She would rush from the workplace to make fresh food and carry it to the hospital. She would spend sleepless nights keeping awake there. She would rush back home at the break of dawn, just to have a bath and get back to work. She sold almost every possession she had, including her earrings, to pay the expenses of the hospital. She never complained once about her fate. She took her mother from one hospital to a better one without thinking of what it would cost her. That day I realised that God had sent her to me with a purpose. In the Bible it is said that 'what the right hand does, the left hand should not know' hence I would not like to list out the help we have been able to render to this poor soul. The other day she told me emphatically, that even if I shift home, she would give up her other job to continue working for me.
There is a reason why I wanted to bring this to you all. There are enough number of people who are suffering right around you, yet you may not know about it, unless you make a special endeavour. Everybody is placed in a particular position. You can help anybody the way you want and choose the means to do so. It is not enough to just celebrate a women's day. It is equally important to bring up the lot of the WOMEN!
Let's celebrate each and every WOMAN. She is Lakshmi - the Godess of Wealth, Annapoorna - Giver of food and nourishment, and a part of Brahma - the Creator of Life resides within her, called the Atman. In the present day context, she works outside as well inside, thereby playing the role of Lakshmi, she provides food and nourishment for her family and those around her, thereby being Annapoorna and continues the legacy of life. If there was no woman, there would have been no life.
Happy Women's Day!
