One afternoon Ashwin came to me to join my tuition class. He was in ninth standard. His hand was plastered. He showed interest in joining my classes, but no adult had accompanied him for the enquiry. Ashwin was sincere and honest, so I asked him to join from the very next day. One day his mother came to pick him up. We talked briefly about his progress in the class. She then took him outside and returned alone. She said, "Teacher, please pay attention to Ashwin's studies. He remains absent from school quite often.” I assured her that I would do so. But then she continued worriedly, "No really teacher, Ashwin gets extremely exhausted sometimes because of which he has no option but to rest. He has Cancer, you know.” I was shaken by the news. I said, "Oh my God, I wasn’t aware!" She added, "I came to see you as a teacher. His studies are being overlooked because he misses his school a lot. He joined your class so he can cope up with other students. Please help him."
I learnt that Ashwin was undergoing treatment but did not see much improvement. Finally, the doctor suggested a bone marrow transplant. But the operation would cost them an arm and a leg. Ashwin's parents were middle class. It was nearly impossible for them to scrape together such an amount. So Ashwin's mother started to get some help from other sources. Some Charity Institutions did help. The kids in my tuition gathered funds on their own too. We all went to support and lend our helping hand to Ashwin and his parents. I appreciated my students for their thoughts and eagerness to help. The date of his operation was scheduled. When we went to Ashwin, he was relaxing in his room but once he met us, he was delighted. The children spent all their time chatting with him. Later, we returned, wishing Ashwin well for the operation.
Until the operation was concluded, Ashwin's mother was under tremendous pressure. Finally, the operation was successful. Both parents were overjoyed to hear that and so were we. But he had to be very careful. The operation had weakened his immunity, so there was a risk of infection. He was kept in a separate room where only doctors or a nurses were allowed to go. His Mother and Father used to sit outside and take care of Ashwin. He felt rather lonely in his room. Mobile phones, internet were not there in those days to entertain him. He spent all his time thinking alone.
One day the patient in the adjoining room expired. Ashwin was terrified to hear the noise in the patient's room. The doctors and nurses rushing, the patients’ relatives screaming after the loss, everything scarred him. He experienced everything from his place. He collapsed in his mind. He asked a nurse if everyone had to go through this stage.
His health started deteriorating since that day. He did not respond to treatment. Even the doctors did not know why this happened so suddenly.
The next day his condition worsened and he took his last breath. His parents collapsed. The body was to be brought from Mumbai. They had chosen Mumbai because it had best treatments and the city was their last hope. We didn't know what to say to the parents who had lost their only child, or how to console them. We felt very bad but there was nothing anyone could do. We used to remember him at least once a day in our class.
Many days passed. I once met Ashwin's mother in the bus while going home. She seemed to have recovered from her loss. When I asked how she was, she said, "Teacher, I now work for cancer patients to help those who are sick and unable to afford the treatment. Others should not suffer like me and my son." She gave me a leaflet of 4-5 stapled pages, which contained information about the cancer hospital addresses, phone numbers of several doctors, where different tests can be done, what they are for, the estimated costs and institutions which would grant monetary help. (All of this would be readily available at a quick search on Google today, but in those days she wanted the information to be available to as many people as possible.) She was trying her best to help others while trying to forget the death of her only child. Big salute to such a mother and salute to her thoughts ...... I bowed to her out of Respect.
