The other day I had been to Bandra with my friend to eat out on Valentines' day. There I was celebrating Life and every moment that I was given on this planet.
While coming home I was stuck at traffic and I saw a man just like me on crutches. He was waiting on the other side of the road. Cars went zooming pass him and he went totally unnoticed. I thought 'this man needs to cross, stop your cars and let him go, he might be tired.'. I thought ' how is this society treating poor disabled ?' . He wanted to cross the road , well that is what I thought.
But as signal turned red and all vehicles stopped, he started walking. I couldnt see him , my vision was blocked by a truck. When I could see, I could'nt find him on that side of road. I thought he was fast. But one more glance on the road and I saw him BEGGING at the signal. He was waiting for signal to turn red and so he could earn something by begging. May be he earned Rs 100 a day.
I was disgusted at him. Why should he beg?
Well, meanwhile traffic on my side was moving and I just forgot all those when my friend started talking.
Another signal and another beggar. She was around 12-15 yrs old and she was also on crutches. I didn't like her. Her legs were fully functional and was not even limping .She was walking on her own legs but held those crutches for just namesake. May be she wanted sympathy(money).
This made me think, Does being one like me really earns you any sympathy?
The answer is NO...
After being discharged from hospital, I went to a mall for shopping. That was around after 10 days from being discharged. I was still not ready to be looked upon as an amputee. But I gathered some courage and went with my family. The mall was big and lifts were less, and people were lazy to climb stairs. I got a wheelchair and started my fun : Shopping. (I love to shop).
I was happy that I was doing something I like after a long long time. But I also could see people looking at me, staring at my missing leg and then again looking at me. I didn't like them ..I hated them at that time. One girl stopped my dad and asked about me and my accident. Others just kept staring.. C'mon, I am Ordinary just like you all. At this moment, I was earning sympathy. Poor me.
But the scenario was completely different when I was waiting for the lift to move from 1st floor to 2nd floor. My wheelchair almost occupied place for two people in the elevator. People now a days have no time. They just want to move and move really fast. So there I was waiting for lift. And people really didnt care for a girl on a wheelchair. They just wanted to go in the lift and didn't bother if I go first or not. Where is the courtesy people? Where are the manners? Indians are considered to be gentle and full of emotions compared to the rest of the world.
Well I ignored all of them and enjoyed my treat. That was the first time I had chole bhature, donuts and Chinese stuff (It was banned for me in the hospital). for me it was happiness packed on a plate.
After that mall incident I could gather courage to go out and eat in public without been looked upon or stared.
I just wanted to raise a few questions like
All these questions made me write about my experiences about my amputation and life after that.
I will write about how I am coping up with my new found ability. How am I treated at work, within friends , outside(like in bus, trains, etc..).
Thanks for your few minutes (in a virtual world atleast).
While coming home I was stuck at traffic and I saw a man just like me on crutches. He was waiting on the other side of the road. Cars went zooming pass him and he went totally unnoticed. I thought 'this man needs to cross, stop your cars and let him go, he might be tired.'. I thought ' how is this society treating poor disabled ?' . He wanted to cross the road , well that is what I thought.
But as signal turned red and all vehicles stopped, he started walking. I couldnt see him , my vision was blocked by a truck. When I could see, I could'nt find him on that side of road. I thought he was fast. But one more glance on the road and I saw him BEGGING at the signal. He was waiting for signal to turn red and so he could earn something by begging. May be he earned Rs 100 a day.
I was disgusted at him. Why should he beg?
Well, meanwhile traffic on my side was moving and I just forgot all those when my friend started talking.
Another signal and another beggar. She was around 12-15 yrs old and she was also on crutches. I didn't like her. Her legs were fully functional and was not even limping .She was walking on her own legs but held those crutches for just namesake. May be she wanted sympathy(money).
This made me think, Does being one like me really earns you any sympathy?
The answer is NO...
After being discharged from hospital, I went to a mall for shopping. That was around after 10 days from being discharged. I was still not ready to be looked upon as an amputee. But I gathered some courage and went with my family. The mall was big and lifts were less, and people were lazy to climb stairs. I got a wheelchair and started my fun : Shopping. (I love to shop).
I was happy that I was doing something I like after a long long time. But I also could see people looking at me, staring at my missing leg and then again looking at me. I didn't like them ..I hated them at that time. One girl stopped my dad and asked about me and my accident. Others just kept staring.. C'mon, I am Ordinary just like you all. At this moment, I was earning sympathy. Poor me.
But the scenario was completely different when I was waiting for the lift to move from 1st floor to 2nd floor. My wheelchair almost occupied place for two people in the elevator. People now a days have no time. They just want to move and move really fast. So there I was waiting for lift. And people really didnt care for a girl on a wheelchair. They just wanted to go in the lift and didn't bother if I go first or not. Where is the courtesy people? Where are the manners? Indians are considered to be gentle and full of emotions compared to the rest of the world.
Well I ignored all of them and enjoyed my treat. That was the first time I had chole bhature, donuts and Chinese stuff (It was banned for me in the hospital). for me it was happiness packed on a plate.
After that mall incident I could gather courage to go out and eat in public without been looked upon or stared.
I just wanted to raise a few questions like
- Is this how a disabled needs to earn his living? (begging)
- Do people really care about the disabled?
- Do we really have no time, even a minute?
All these questions made me write about my experiences about my amputation and life after that.
I will write about how I am coping up with my new found ability. How am I treated at work, within friends , outside(like in bus, trains, etc..).
Thanks for your few minutes (in a virtual world atleast).
