In the din and hurry of life one lives, there are moments when one is stunned and shocked by events which are distant but impact ones being to the extent that one realises that the bubble of life could dissipate any moment. To me such moments have their own vital significance.
I lived one such moment this morning. My mom called me and I was informed that Phoolwati Amma, the elderly maid had passed away in her sleep following a probable heart attack. That was shocking and numbing for me to say the least. I sat with my eyes closed thinking about the past decade or so that Amma had been working for our household. A lady from distant Bihar but would lovingly call me Babuji and I had always felt like a kid vis a vis Amma and never wanted her to address me as such. But she would not budge and all she would say that she was helpless. It was an unspoken bond.
I can recollect her aged appearance and the multitude of lines on her face and skin displaying the life lived working hard and perhaps the experiences of life had imprinted themselves upon her skin in a very visible manner for all to see and realise the wisdom which comes with age.
She had been a calming influence in whatever little interaction I had with Amma. She would often on her own ask me as to why do I smoke and I ought to stop. She would keep mopping the floor or doing chores in the Kitchen and say all this without ever looking at me and her words were uttered with all belongingness. Well, she is no more.
I feel she had lived a hard life and it was so evident. The new pair of shoes that I had bought for her remain with me. I never got the opportunity to hand them over to her. Perhaps, on my return to home this weekend I shall visit her home and hand over the pair of shoes to her only son.
Amma has truly left a void..I am humbled by the departure and in her death she left a message for me to keep my feet firmly on the ground and live my life working hard and with a never die attitude.
I salute Amma for what she was to me and those who understood her.
Dhiren Singh
Advocate