Sriya was perplexed and didn’t know how to react. Her one-year-old was asleep in her lap, and she knew any reaction on her part was going to wake up her little munchkin. She tried to gather herself, but tears rolled down from her eyes.
She couldn’t speak to Amit as she knew the state he was in after getting an ultimatum from his company. For the last seven days, Amit was in utter distress due to his job, and Sriya didn’t feel like aggravating his worries by breaking the news of her Mom’s sudden COVID diagnosis.
“Why do you have to do this……..God? Mom is my only support, and she was the one I always looked up to no matter what. Now She is diagnosed with this dreaded virus; what do I do?” Sriya murmured.
Sriya was the only child of her parents, and post her marriage to Amit, she relocated to the US. Amit was supposed to work from the client site for a couple of years. Sriya’s dad had passed away a year back, and now, hearing about this unforeseen thing, it was becoming increasingly difficult for her to keep calm. She wiped her tears with her daughter’s napkin and immediately dialed her Mom, who stayed in Bhubaneswar.
“Hello, Maa……..” Said Sriya
“Hello, Beta… How are you all doing?” Sriya’s Mom said in one go.
Sriya’s Mom had a sore throat, and it took a second for Sriya to realize the same.
“Maa, You have developed a sore throat! Uncle told me your COVID reports have come positive. Please take medicines and call me whenever you feel like………..” Sriya was sobbing profusely.
“Don’t worry, Sriya, things will be better soon. “Sriya’s Mom sounded stern.
“You take rest, Maa….” Sriya disconnected the phone and, thereby taking baby steps, walked cautiously to put her toddler in the cot. Once she ensured her darling had settled comfortably, she rushed to the washroom, a place where she could cry her heart out. She wailed at the top of her voice. She looked at the mirror; her face was swollen, her eyes were red, and the Scar on her forehead looked pale.
The Scar was enough to take her down memory lane. When Sriya was in college, she had met with an accident, which left her incapacitated for a week. She had got eight stitches on her forehead as she suffered a severe head injury.
During that time, her Mom had stayed with her all through so that she could recover at the earliest. On top of it, she read aloud from books and class notes such that Sriya didn’t miss out on her studies.
“That’s how parents are!” thought Sriya.
Suddenly, Misha started crying, and Sriya rushed to check on her.
“What happened, Sriya? Is everything alright? “Asked Amit.
“Yeah! All seem to be fine!” exclaimed Sriya.
Sriya prayed to the Almighty with folded hands. She knew her Mom was alone, and it would be difficult for her to fetch groceries or prepare food during this challenging time. Immediately without wasting a second, she dialed the local grocer number at her native place. “Das General store” was close to Sriya’s home, and her family had been their regular customer
Sriya called them and ensured that they deliver the everyday grocery and food at their doorstep. Next, she dialed the medicine stop and asked them to adhere to her Mom’s prescription needs as and when required. Sriya knew it was a testing time for her, and she needs to face this with utmost courage.
Had she been in India, she would have left no stone unturned in caring for her beloved Mother. Now that she was far away and couldn’t go due to travel restrictions, the only thing she could do was to monitor stuff from the US and motivate her Mom in whatever little way possible.
For the next ten days, Sriya made sure to call her Mom thrice a day. She would video call and share tales of folks who had come out victorious after fighting this virus for days. She would show Misha’s face to her Mom and discuss her Motherly adventures with this little angel.
After every single sentence, she would ask her Mom to be positive and happy. She knew that this was the least she could do. While becoming a motivator to her ailing Mom, Sriya gradually realized the power of positivity. She evaded all the negative thinking from her mind and looked forward to a new dawn with hope and confidence. She thanked God for all that she had and, through her talks, boosted Amit’s morale too.
After twenty days, Sriya’s Mom recovered from this ailment, and the moment Sriya got the news, she jumped with joy. She couldn’t have been happier and thanked the almighty from the bottom of her heart.
Sriya is one amongst us, and her story indeed has given us an important life lesson,
“Life doesn’t fail to surprise us with curveballs, but instead of brooding over the same, we should face it with courage and valor. Then only we can bat like a STAR.”
Published in Urmi 2021
