LESSON LEARNT
Vengrai Parthsarthy
Life is one long saga of learning. Some lessons, we learn from ourparents, some from our teachers and most in the school of hard knocks.A friend told me of the lesson of his life he had learnt from from an old lady.
Here is his story in his own words:
“I visit the temple in Triplicane frequently though I am not whatyou can call an obsessively regular temple-goer. Sitting on the steps, watchingmen and women– fervently praying or chanting some mantras, or circum-ambulating the inner precincts of the temple., I used to wonder what they were praying for . Perhaps someone was ill or someone was appearing foran exam or was praying for a good son-in-law. Possibly, they were nearby residents
just wanting to have darshan.…to each his own.. On such occasions I like to give some prasad or small change to the old, people waiting near the exit, for alms.
After one such visit, as I was coming out ,I saw a dilapidated old lady in a corner, totally oblivious to the people around her. She seemed to be in a world of her own.I was in a generous mood and since I had some money in the purse being pay-day, I thought I will play the Good Samaritan. I gave, or
rather, offered her a five rupee note.What followed shook me to the core and took me quite a while to recover from.
She gave me a withering look which rather surprised me : ”You, You are giving alms to ME, to ME.. Who do you think you are.. Some Karna?Do you know who I am ? “, she thundered drawing the attention of some people nearby. I was flummoxed, and totally at a loss for words. I could do nothing but say ‘Sorry’, ‘sorry’, again and again and slithered away like a thief at night.
I don’t know who she was. perhaps a once-rich woman now fallen into bad days.. perhaps an ungrateful son or bossy daughter-in-law had driven her away.. or , may be a drunken husband Whatever it was, she was unbelievably offended. She had her self-esteem in tact though her once rich pattu sari was in tatters now.
It was my self-esteem which was in tatters”..