Transformers..of a different kind

The stage was set for a long, long day. I woke up at 5 AM and got ready by 6 AM. I reached office in 30 minutes, coordinated the transportation for 10 people and I was at the designated location by 7.40 AM. I had reached a not so big marriage hall in the heart of the bustling Business district of T. Nagar. When I entered the hall, I realized that there were at least 100 people in that hall already. I was prepared for this. My friend who was at this place the previous day had informed me that there were close to 400 footfalls the previous day, more than twice the number that we had expected. I had also spent a few hours the previous night at the camp to get a feel of what the following day would be like. “A daunting task ahead”, I told myself. But, I didn’t let the situation stop me from acting.

I was handling a bigger responsibility the previous year. I was helping to coordinate a five day camp, for the same cause. It was quite hectic. But the average number of people who visited the camp each day that year was close to 200 – a very manageable figure, we found out. And now, there I was, in the middle of a two day camp organized by my company, in association with an NGO to offer artificial limbs, crutches and calipers free of cost to the needy – a very noble gesture.

The technicians, who had worked till around 4 AM the previous night, started work again at 8 AM, to make the required feet, calipers and crutches. I was running around the whole day, along with a bunch of colleagues who had also volunteered to run the camp to help these 300 odd people stand on their feet, quite literally! It is not the fact that we were able to benefit more than 300 people within a span of two days that struck my mind. There was something much more powerful.

There were several occasions during that day when everything in my body stopped, except for my brain which had thoughts that flashed like bolts of lightning. Those are the moments, which I will remember most vividly, and those are the moments that I will share.

The first bolt of lightning hit me when I was on stage as the MC of the inauguration of the camp. Donning a tie for the first time in my life after I had finished school, I was proudly narrating that the collaboration between my company and the NGO has benefited over 16000 people in 3 years. For the next few seconds, my lips were reading the script but my thoughts were lost in space. More than 25000 people lose their limbs every year in India due to diseases and accidents. So many?! Without limbs?! How would I live if I lose a limb? I couldn’t imagine. But the moment passed and my thoughts fell back in order.

7.40 AM - It happened again, when I set foot at the camp site. I saw a sea of people – men and women, children and octogenarians, native and alien. The very sight of so many people who needed some assistance or support to even walk properly, stunned me. It was the same feeling that I had during the previous year’s camp – but this time, for some reason, it left a stronger impression.
9.30 AM - Ouch!! A screw that was left on the floor drove straight through my shoes and right into the center of my sole. My reflexes quickly made me lift my injured right foot and hop for to the room reserved for the volunteers. Someone helped me with an antiseptic and for the next few minutes, I was barely able to place the foot down. My left leg was beginning to feel stressed because of the excess weight that it was trying to balance. My body rested on a chair, but my mind raced. If carrying my body on one foot for a few minutes could be so hard, how are these people carrying themselves around for so many years?!

11 AM - A very sweet talking girl whose name I do not recollect, was sitting on a chair. Her legs were crippled by polio. I assumed from her height and looks that she was barely 15 years old. But, I learnt through her uncle that she was actually 20 and that she was mentally challenged as well. It took me by surprise. I walked back and stared at the girl. She smiled at me. I put myself in her shoes for a fleeting moment. It was agonizing. For the next few moments, I was talking to myself. I was amazed at how lucky I have been, not to be affected by any such commonly existing disease. I wondered at how I had been taking for granted the body that I have been blessed with – a body that was the envy of around 400 people sitting in that hall. I felt special.

8 PM - Indran had lost one of his legs to a falling rock while working in a quarry. Since that fateful day, he had not worked. He had come to the camp traveling over over 500 km searching for a way to transform his life. He and his wife were waiting, quite impatiently for an artificial limb since the previous morning. Finally, the coveted prize arrived and it was fitted. I was holding his hand as he took his first steps, like a toddler, after two years. He was elated. Though he felt some pain and discomfort, the pleasure of being back on two feet overcame it. He left happily with his wife, promising to start a roadside shop to win bread for his family. As he walked into a waiting auto rickshaw, I felt a great amount of satisfaction for having played a small role in transforming a person’s life for the better. It’s a feeling that I can never express in words or pictures.

8.30 PM – Two women, who had left their young kids at home and had waited for two days to get their calipers, summoned me. This was quite late on the last day of the camp and they had to travel a long distance to reach home. They requested my help. I was distraught to see that the measurements that had been taken for preparing their calipers were missing. One of the ladies was in tears. We took the measurement again. I took the help of a colleague who was working with the technicians and requested him to give preference to the calipers of these women. I promised that I would try and ensure that they reached home at the earliest, with their calipers. I hoped against hope to keep my promise.

11 PM – Their calipers had not yet arrived and they were clearly upset and worried. The technicians were having a well deserved dinner. I promised again that I would ensure that they reach home with their calipers and that I would pay for their transport if it became too late. I went into the working area along with my colleague and requested the technicians to work on those two calipers first. Finally, 30 minutes later, they were fitted with calipers and they were able to walk away. A kind hearted gentleman offered to drop them home by auto. One of the women thanked me profusely and asked for an autograph! That was the first time someone had asked me for an autograph. I just wrote my name behind a piece of paper and gave it to her. In my heart, I was thanking her for giving me the opportunity to help someone.

12:00 – MIDNIGHT – A well educated working woman, who had come with her mother, had a new set of light weight calipers fitted. She tried to take her first steps, but she stumbled. Her mother tried to hold her hand. Instantaneously the lady’s hand went up. She glared at her mother with the eyes that clearly said “Don’t touch me!”. She took the next step successfully and walked back to the chair. She turned around and told her mother, “I can walk. I don’t need support.” I was watching all this standing right beside her, in stunned silence. What grit and determination! There are so many people with good strong two feet who don’t display such an attitude. I walked to her and said, “I like what you did. I admire it and I envy you”. She gave me a knowing smile, and rested in a chair.

1 AM – An old lady who had lost everything but the piece of clothing that she was wearing, was getting an artificial limb fitted. She had been pleading every one of the volunteers to get her limb ready at the earliest. But, as it turned out, she got it at 1 AM. She happily, VERY HAPPILY, walked to the corner of the hall, took off her newly fitted leg and used it as a pillow and went into a deep, content slumber. I felt as if she was totally at peace, after a very long time. I shared the same feeling.

2 AM – It had been 21 hours since I woke up. And I had barely rested for 30 minutes since I had stepped foot inside the camp at 8 AM. Most of my colleagues had left. Only 5 of us remained. We were pretty much drained. There was a seething pain in both my legs. We decided to call it a day. We packed up all our belongings and walked off from the camp site. I stopped at the entrance and looked back. The technicians were still working hard, as if the day had just begun. They were working on satisfying the requirements of the remaining 15 patients. I knew that they wouldn’t rest till the last one was on his own legs.

3 AM – I had taken a shower and had applied pain killer spray all over my legs. I fell into my bed and stared at the empty ceiling. What a day! Image flashes from the day ran through my mind like a high speed slide show. I felt proud to be part of a company which was committed to helping so many people. I felt happy to be among a set of like minded people who spared the most precious gift of time for public service. I felt inspired and awe struck by the technicians and doctors who kept working tirelessly to help anyone who walked in.

I remembered one of the beneficiaries telling me, “We do not need your sympathy. We do not envy you. Treat us equals. Do not discriminate. We are no less privileged than you are.” Strong words from a strong lady. What I was feeling was not sympathy. It was a feeling of fulfillment and a burning desire to do more. It was not a day in which I had played a small role in helping to transform the lives of a few people. It was a day in which a lot of people had played a huge role in transforming the perspectives and lives of a few small people like me. With those thoughts, I closed my eyes in peace.