Brace yourselves. The following post is exceptionally long
due to the fact that is contains another piece of what I would consider a piece
of writing nothing short of brilliant. It is the tale of an ordinary man and
his coming to terms with life, death and everything in between. It elaborates his
struggles, accomplishments and those moments which stuck with him throughout
his long life.
I first came across it rather serendipitously earlier today
while trying to find an old document I needed for college. It was written on
the backside of sheets of old medical documents that the author had received after
a root canal. The fact that it was handwritten on such an arbitrary piece of
paper and also the fact that the lines on which he would write were hand drawn so meticulously, all added
to the charm of it. A modern day artifact.
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To answer the gnawing question on your mind, the author is
none other than my grandfather. Throughout life my perception of him was that
of a very articulate, systematic and methodical man. His entire life (or at
least what I thought I knew of it) was always expected to be highly organised.
This statement was justified by the way he kept and still keeps to this day all
his day to day tools and equipment. All his articles and belongings would be
neatly organised based on utility and he maintains various boxes, the contents
of which are specific to the task at hand such as shaving, toiletries and
medication. He would never do anything to compromise the integrity and honor
of his sense of morals and ethics. He is, to me, the embodiment and
personification of honor and dignity.
After reading his story, my entire perception about the man
changed instantly. As a kid, whenever I would visit him and my grandmother on
our annual trip to India, my cousins and I would intentionally steal his
screwdrivers and hammers so as to see the extent of his rage. It never came. However,
he was much more than the simple, quiet man who would lovingly reprimand me for
messing around with his things. His vocabulary and flair for writing is what
surprised me the most. His grip on the English language for someone of his age
and rural background literally left me awestruck.
So here is, in its entirety, the story of his life. I had to
type it out meticulously. But I’m sure it will be worth it, simply because
legacies are meant to live on. This story is indeed his legacy in ink and one
which gives me great pride to be part of. Most of you reading this may not read
past the first few lines as there is no personal agenda or sentiment attached
to the task, as it is in my case. However, if you do choose to read it, I thank
you for taking an interest in something that has had such a profound impact on
my life. Also note that I have not altered even a single word, for the simple
reason that I do not want to tarnish the beautiful essence of what the author
has captured in the story. What you are about to read is word for word what my
grandfather himself penned down. Although an exact date was never written, the
medical document on the back of which it was written is dated 2010. So I think
it is safe to assume that this story too was written somewhere around that
time.
“I, who retired as a Gazetted officer after serving the
state government for 39 long years, started my career as a lower division clerk
(LDC), with a meager salary of 70 rupees per month, in the year 1952. I was
born in a humble lower middle class family, struggling to make both ends meet.
With his limited resources and with no assured monthly income as such, my
father, who had no English education, had the foresight to provide education to
all his 7 children i.e, 4 sons and 3 daughters. My mother, though uneducated,
as was normal in our society in those days brought us up in a disciplined
manner. She was a very hard working woman, who managed our family affairs diligently
and with utmost efficiency and assisted my father by providing minor and
marginal financial support through maintaining a buffalo, gifted to her by her
father (he had a number of cattle and 1 ½ acres of land under the local tank)
as she was the eldest daughter, with a huge family, by selling the surplus locally.
Being the then youngest son, I was assisting my mother in her minor tasks like
fetching fodder from the haystack located on the outskirts of town and also
carrying, along with my mother, the buffalo dung and other garbage to stock
where it is collected daily and sold as fertile manure, once a year, earning
supplementary income for the family.
However, because of my fate, I was forced to discontinue my
college studies halfway ie, in the middle of intermediate, due to financial
constraints and seek a job in my 19th year as a lower division clerk
in state Govt. service which was also not easy to secure in those days, though
my two elder brothers completed their intermediate studies and secured
government jobs in the state government service. While working as a clerk, I
got selected Railway Department as an assistant station master. But on the
advice of my superior officer, who remained my life long well-wisher and who
treated me with affection, I declined to accept that job. At one stage I
prepared myself to become a Hindi pundit. But my destiny was in this department
in which I worked until retirement. To be frank, I am not ashamed of disclosing
these hard facts which I have not disclosed hitherto. Moreover, I feel proud of
my past and my present.
After natural struggles, quite common in a middle class
family, I climbed the steep ladder step by step slowly but steadily and reached
for the present top position, which cannot be considered as a great achievement
in the present standard. But with my minimum educational qualifications, I
could not aspire for more and brand myself as greedy. Standing on the floor, I
could not dream of plucking the coconuts and the twinkling stars far above my
head. I was therefore, content with what was gracefully provide by the lord of
the Seven Hills. I always believe that I should deserve before I desire and I
have no regrets in life whatsoever.
I am the first Gazetted officer for my parents. By the grace
of God, I was able to provide education to all of my 3 children and they are
well settled in life and they are happy with family and children. With the
mentioned family background, people who know me may say that I am a “successful
man”. I don’t know how far there is justification in the said remark, which I
feel proud at times.
After normal struggles, which are quite common for a lower
middle class family and after swimming the fearful and turbulent ocean of a
family for 77 long years and facing some cyclones of moderate nature, my arms
have now become cold and weak and I am really tired physically and mentally and
feel that I need to rest from all activity. Though I appear outwardly younger
compared to my age of 77, I am not that healthy and strong. My wife too has
become very weak and tired, burdened with domestic work and suffering from age
related ailments which are common for women of her age. We both are getting on
well on the strength and support of the expensive medication which I could
afford with my financial resources, without the need of any external help. But
we both are counting our days quite naturally.
Though we never stepped onto an aeroplane upto my 67th
year, we both traveled to a far off place like Cape Town (South Africa) twice
and spent a total of 6 moths in that wonderful land and tourist paradise in
S.A. I declined to undertake journey to the USA, in spite of pressure from my
son there, because of the age related health problems and because we both are
now physically and mentally not enthusiastic to undertake any such journey, in
the advanced age either in our own country or elsewhere, outside.
All this not to boast myself about my achievements, but it
is to show how powerful destiny is and how we are all only tools in the hand of
fate. As far as I am concerned, I have no unfulfilled desires and ambitions
because I really believe, in the heart of my hearts that the Lord of the Seven
Hills has been very kind towards me and my family from the very beginning and
he has provided me more than what I really deserve and desire. He has provided
me a humble house to take shelter, to protect myself and my wife from sun and
rain to keep our bodies and soul together, financial resources to meet our
essential needs and natural desires of our age, without any need to stretch my
hands before anybody, not even before my sons. I neither expect nor accept any
financial assistance from my sons, though they offer such assistance, without
my asking for the present. But I do not know about the future, because nobody
knows what is in store for him or her in days to come.
My last and final wish in life and my sincere prayer to the
God of the Seven Hills is a peaceful exit from this world, to go behind the
unseen curtain, from cohere we all have come to play our prescribed role in
this world, without troubling myself and without troubling others around us,
which is described by elders as “Anayasa Maranam”. I wish that on hearing my
demise, people known to me should exclaim “Oh we saw him only yesterday
evening, how unfortunate he is”. I do not know whether the God is kind enough
to fulfill this last desire of mine and grant me this boon or whether he would
reject this, labeling me as very greedy and unworthy and undeserving. However,
I am ready to answer his call and say aloud, “Yes Lord I am coming”.
I am now watching with eyes wide open, the seeds I have sown
are now flowering profusely spreading pleasant fragrance and bearing huge and
delicious fruit. What else gives me more satisfaction and contentment than this
for a poor parent?”
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