She ran to her mom and peeked at the shouting lady. She understood that it was about her, but she didn’t remember herself being mischievous. She hid behind her mother trying to understand the situation.
Her mother, in a feeble voice, said, “She is just a kid.” Hell broke loose, and the shouting lady was furious! ” A KID! DID YOU JUST TALK BACK?!!!! YOU… AND YOUR PESKY KID! I WILL KICK BOTH OF YOU OUT! A MERE SERVANT TALKING BACK TO ME?!!!”.
The word ” servant” caught the child’s attention as she could see her mom squirming uncomfortably upon hearing the word. The lady aggressively left the spot, and the kid’s mom slowly sat to her child’s height with a smiling face and said,”Honey, i know you were having fun, but then you shouldn’t make any noise, it can be a disturbance to others”. ” But ma,”said the kid, ” aren’t those kids making more noise than me with those metal plates?” Pointing at some kids playing with metal drums and plates as musical instruments.
The mom looked at the other kids for a few minutes and looked back at her own child, saying, ” Sometimes, the world becomes a little more strict with the ones they want to nurture.” The girl looked surprised,” Nurture?” Asked she, while the mother noddingly replied,” Yep! The world sees a great doctor in you. So they are teaching you self-discipline.” The girl was so happy that the world thinks she can be an amazing doctor. ” Ma, what is a servant?” Asked the little 5 year old girl. The mother smiled and said, ” A servant is someone who has a big heart to help the others with their cooking and cleaning skills.” The confused child said,” Then why did she say a mere servant?”. The mother smiled, holding her closer to whisper, ” That’s because not everyone can be as humble as a servant, and so rude people think its ok to be rude as we are humble.” To which the girl replied, ” so being a servant is a good thing?” And the mother smiled and looked into the little ones’ eyes, saying ,” Yes, even though the world thinks otherwise, one should be pure at heart to be humble even at the rudest comments.” The smile on the 5 year old told the mom that she understood what she said.
As the little one grew up, she had to face a lot of comments that were rude and insulting. But never did the word “servant” ashame her. Whenever there was a situation that was not in her favour, she believed it to be the world’s way to discipline her. Whenever she was treated rudely, she believed it was the rude people who never understood her humbleness.
She grew up to be this beautiful girl who was hardworking and who had just completed her MBBS. Her mother was in her late middle age but looked old. All the hard work she had to do to educate her little baby to a beautiful doctor had creased her enough to look way older than she was. The girls’ skills and brilliance had bulit up her brand value, good enough to be invited as a doctor at a top hospital that was also willing to train and teach her further in her profession. Having a dream job, especially the one she was good at, and also given the opportunity to grow, she asked her mom to stop helping others as a “servant” while she earned the living for two. They shifted to a small apartment and led a beautiful life.
Years again passed, and she grew up to be a very demanded and successful cardiologist. One day, during her consultations, a patient entered her room. She was quite old with a walking stick, but her eyes seemed strangely familiar. They reminded her of a sense of rudeness and a strange fear in her creeped in, but she couldn’t recall how was she familiar with them. Admist her checkup, the lady kept asking her about her where abouts while she politely answered. Suddenly, the lady exclaimed, ” ARE YOU GANGA’S DAUGHTER?!” She was taken aback, but she noded a yes. The lady pushed her and started shouting. Her kids, who looked like well settled adults, came running to manage her. Seems the lady does not want to be treated by this doctor. With anger brimming inside, she removed her gloves calmly, replying , ” Do as you please,” and walked away. For the first time, she felt humiliated and was brimming with anger.
After her commitments for the day, she was sitting at her office recalling the embarrassing moment she faced earlier that day. Then, there was a knock at the door and came in the 2 adults from earlier. Unintentionally, her forehead slighly crushed, but holding herself back, she asked them to sit. They came in to apologise and request her to continue her consultation with their mother. She very badly wanted to decline, but the word ” servant” came into her mind. She was reminded of how humble a servant is supposed to be, and so she accepted their appologies and agreed to take care of the lady.
At the consultation table, the lady laid without making eye contact. The docotor spoke, ” Yes, i am Ganga’s daughter, Dr. Sahasra. My mother was a servant, and i am a doctor with the humble heart of a servant, which is the only reason why i am treating you.” The woman looked at the doctor surprised , ashamed and irritated at the same time, while she, Sahasra, continued her consultation with pride.
Chanjals World 