Tags:
Journalism of Courage
It was the summer of 8217;69. My newly-wed parents were on a train, having shifted from Punjab to Delhi. On the opposite berth sat a family of four: a couple and their two kids 8212; a sweet little girl of six and a teenage son who kept staring at mother with a weird smile. When his stare got uncomfortable, mother decided to confront the boy with an interrogative hand gesture signifying, 8220;What8217;s so funny?8221; To her dismay, the boy8217;s stare only got more intense.
However, mother8217;s gesture didn8217;t go unnoticed. The boy8217;s sister alerted her mother to it. The mother explained, 8220;He8217;s not looking at you. You see he has a vision defect.8221; The boy suddenly tilted his head on hearing his mother8217;s words and lowered his eyes.
His parents looked uncomfortable. While the boy continued to look down, expressionless, his mother glared at the man on the upper berth and remarked to mother, 8220;If he had been blind, these people would have been compassionate. But thanks to his 8216;funny disability8217;, he will only be ridiculed. And he has dreams of doing something big, 8216;reaching for the stars8217;8221;. Mother8217;s face was ashen with guilt.
The atmosphere in the compartment had turned quite leaden now. Suddenly the boy spoke up, 8220;Please don8217;t feel bad about what mom said. I find myself having an advantage. If I want, I can look at the answer sheet of the fellow next to me and no one would know!8221; He added cheerfully, 8220;Haven8217;t felt the need to do that though.8221; His father butted in, 8220;He is an exemplary student.8221;
By then the atmosphere had lightened up. 8220;And just to explain why I was smiling earlier,8221; the boy went on, pointing to the unfinished crossword on father8217;s lap, 8220;The eight-letter noun for 8216;a situation with lack of variety8217; would be 8216;monotony8217;, not 8216;marriage8217;!8221; Everyone, including father, burst into laughter. Mother turned misty-eyed at the spirit of the boy. She told his mother, 8220;You know something, your son should not even try to reach for the stars. He is one!8221;
