THE STORY OF MR NOBODY…..

The human race is narcissistic and a condescending one. Self preservation is one of our best qualities and we do it better than anyone else. And this sense of self preservation makes us a little too distant from everyone else’s problem. In my quest to tell stories I met a humble man named Hussain. He dear readers, lost the race that all of us are running in, and here is his story.

I’ll be paraphrasing,” I used to be a content man. I had a beautiful wife with a smile that could turn anyone’s bad day into a good one, and our two children meant the world to us. I had four acres of land which gave me everything from food to shelter and most of all my happiness. And one day it was all gone, just like that. My village became a victim to drought. My green fields dried out, the smile on my wife face slowly disappeared, and it did not show up again ever. My two sons left us and moved to Bangalore. Poverty came into our home as a guest, and now she is a member of our family. Rain did not show up for some time. When we looked up to the government for help they gave us a meager five thousand per acre. That money wasn’t helpful in sending our guest out of our house. Three months passed by, my health was getting worse day by day, and my children were in no situation to come back. So I thought of visiting them and get a medical check up done with their help. As I left my village I made a promise to my wife that when I return, I will be fit and fine. A little bit of happiness blossomed in me as I was excited to see my kids, but to my surprise that wasn’t the same with my kids. My kids sent me out of their home. With no place to go and no money to travel back, I sat on a footpath. A person passing by dropped a coin onto my lap, that’s the movement I became a beggar. I started to beg everyday and made do with what I received. A meal a day to keep me alive and street for my shelter. I often think of going back, but then I made a promise to my wife that I will return only when I am well. To forget the pain that my body suffers and to get over my lost dignity I started drinking alcohol. In my village, I was a respected man, everyone knew my name, but now I am a nobody.”

The short conversation I had with this man left a lasting impression on me. A man could lose anything but not hope. Hope is what drives man to move on in life. Even though he had lost everything the man had a very humble heart. He wished me goodbye with a big blessing that made my day. Thank you, Hussain Saab for that.

-Chandrashekar.C 😊