I don't know you but I am someone just like you
Its been an interesting morning today. I visited Sri Sathya Sai Hospital, Whitefield, Bangalore. I was an attendant to my ailing relative. Little did I know when I set out from home this morning, that today is going to be a very important milestone in my journey of life. All the spiritual meetings and books keep telling that every day of life is one step ahead in the Journey of life that actually is very short. This has been too philosophical to me until today.
I asked the person at the security desk about the procedure to go for a consultation in the hospital. They gave me a quick procedure which I followed. At every desk, I saw old men and women or middle-aged ladies who were volunteers working through the day at the hospital, doing whatever little they can for the community, which is for "People they don't even know".
I looked at the token given to me. It read 563. I took it to the reception desk and they directed me to another calm lady seated at the corner of the hall. I saw many patients waiting for the consultation. I concluded in my mind that today, nothing is going to work unless we decide to sit all day at the Medical College Hospital. But it turned out that the people there are so accommodating that we were seen almost immediately as the medical condition demanded. There was a lady who distributed butter milk to all the people waiting to see the doctor. Good idea on a summer morning. Bangalore Summer has never been this hot and humid ever, they say! Distributing butter milk to " People they don't even know".
Next, the doctor. Not every day you come across a 30 something guy who can keep such a calm, humble, and composed manner around him. There is a psychology about liking your doctor first before you start explaining your issue to him. I liked this person's quiet and directed attention. I put about a hundred sheets of reports, films and prescriptions in the name of medical reports in front of him. I did have so many! He quietly asked for exactly what he wanted and we both sorted the reports per the questions he had in mind. We correlated the queries with the reports and he answered me super efficiently. Then he called the patient in, listened to her as attentively as he did to my talk and then carefully wrote out the report per the institute norms. We took about twenty odd minutes inside the consultation room. He had seen the 70th patient for the day. He steps out and asks the lady outside " Aunty, Do you think I can take a ten minute break before the next patient comes in or is there anyone with an unmanageable difficulty??". I looked up at him once, because he stood very tall in my mind that minute.. Is he a common man or did he land from some strange land of nicety?
We met some really nice and helpful people every where - at the lobby, at the gate, at the reception, at the physiotheraphy counter, on the way inside the campus... It made me wonder if I suddenly landed in a different world - a world where people never yelled, a world where there was no cash transaction, a world where everyone greets everyone, a world where people lend a helping hand without passing on the responsibility, a world where people followed up on your progress without being bossed by a superior, a world where people were perfect in their duty without being ruled visibly by anyone, a world where people served each other without any salary!!!!!
It was just so unbelievable!!!
Mind wont keep quiet, would it?? On my way back, I silently fought all the past of mine that came as a trailer :
where I have expected something from work, friends, managers, relatives....
where I have felt awful if my demands had not been met...
where I have complained of many things....
where I have felt elated about things that made me happy..
where I have felt devastated about things that made me sad...
where I had blown up small mistakes into big massacres..
where I had thought I was important.....
many many things... In ten minutes travel time that's all one can think of..
Effectively, I stepped out of the car with a better confidence of facing life ahead because I just learnt that the greatest joy is in selflessness. The more we think of ourselves the more we are pained and the more we expect. We are no great souls. There are people better than us in every way... The smallest act of kindness and little compassion and a quick empathy is all you need to be happy. No amount of riches gives you the same feel as having given a helping hand to someone in need. Somewhere along my way, I seemed to have not realized or forgotten these things and got lost in my own world that I thought was Everything!!!!
An old school thought came back to my head :
Do all the Good you can, to all the people you can, at all places you can, at all times you can, in all the ways you can, as long as you can...
My school report card used to carry this thought on its cover. I think I finally Got It!!!
I asked the person at the security desk about the procedure to go for a consultation in the hospital. They gave me a quick procedure which I followed. At every desk, I saw old men and women or middle-aged ladies who were volunteers working through the day at the hospital, doing whatever little they can for the community, which is for "People they don't even know".
I looked at the token given to me. It read 563. I took it to the reception desk and they directed me to another calm lady seated at the corner of the hall. I saw many patients waiting for the consultation. I concluded in my mind that today, nothing is going to work unless we decide to sit all day at the Medical College Hospital. But it turned out that the people there are so accommodating that we were seen almost immediately as the medical condition demanded. There was a lady who distributed butter milk to all the people waiting to see the doctor. Good idea on a summer morning. Bangalore Summer has never been this hot and humid ever, they say! Distributing butter milk to " People they don't even know".
Next, the doctor. Not every day you come across a 30 something guy who can keep such a calm, humble, and composed manner around him. There is a psychology about liking your doctor first before you start explaining your issue to him. I liked this person's quiet and directed attention. I put about a hundred sheets of reports, films and prescriptions in the name of medical reports in front of him. I did have so many! He quietly asked for exactly what he wanted and we both sorted the reports per the questions he had in mind. We correlated the queries with the reports and he answered me super efficiently. Then he called the patient in, listened to her as attentively as he did to my talk and then carefully wrote out the report per the institute norms. We took about twenty odd minutes inside the consultation room. He had seen the 70th patient for the day. He steps out and asks the lady outside " Aunty, Do you think I can take a ten minute break before the next patient comes in or is there anyone with an unmanageable difficulty??". I looked up at him once, because he stood very tall in my mind that minute.. Is he a common man or did he land from some strange land of nicety?
We met some really nice and helpful people every where - at the lobby, at the gate, at the reception, at the physiotheraphy counter, on the way inside the campus... It made me wonder if I suddenly landed in a different world - a world where people never yelled, a world where there was no cash transaction, a world where everyone greets everyone, a world where people lend a helping hand without passing on the responsibility, a world where people followed up on your progress without being bossed by a superior, a world where people were perfect in their duty without being ruled visibly by anyone, a world where people served each other without any salary!!!!!
It was just so unbelievable!!!
Mind wont keep quiet, would it?? On my way back, I silently fought all the past of mine that came as a trailer :
where I have expected something from work, friends, managers, relatives....
where I have felt awful if my demands had not been met...
where I have complained of many things....
where I have felt elated about things that made me happy..
where I have felt devastated about things that made me sad...
where I had blown up small mistakes into big massacres..
where I had thought I was important.....
many many things... In ten minutes travel time that's all one can think of..
Effectively, I stepped out of the car with a better confidence of facing life ahead because I just learnt that the greatest joy is in selflessness. The more we think of ourselves the more we are pained and the more we expect. We are no great souls. There are people better than us in every way... The smallest act of kindness and little compassion and a quick empathy is all you need to be happy. No amount of riches gives you the same feel as having given a helping hand to someone in need. Somewhere along my way, I seemed to have not realized or forgotten these things and got lost in my own world that I thought was Everything!!!!
An old school thought came back to my head :
Do all the Good you can, to all the people you can, at all places you can, at all times you can, in all the ways you can, as long as you can...
My school report card used to carry this thought on its cover. I think I finally Got It!!!
Comments