The tumultuous Journey

Train journey from Bangalore to Delhi ...Armed with books and MP3 Player,we boarded the A/C coach of the train,looking forward to rest & recreation.Our spirits diminished, when we found a fairly large group of muslim men inside the compartment.Except a couple of families like us, they seemed to have occupied the whole coach.Looking around discreetly, not staring, I surveyed the men around us.They must all be between 18 and 25, clad in traditional white dress, and intermittently chanting verses from the Quran. Later we came to know that they were in Bangalore to participate in some convention.

My husband was suspicious of them and we felt uneasy. Adding to our fear was a big ,black trunk ,placed under a seat opposite ours. Our imagination ran wild and we were very sure the box contained explosives.Amidst the din & noise, a few hours later, we noticed two of the men pointing towards the box and muttering to each other in urdu.Our fears worsened and we cursed our fate for boarding this train on this particular day!

It was soon dinnertime and we started having our food which we had carried with us. The men were all sitting quietly now and having nothing to do,were staring at us . I noticed they were signing to each other with their eyes,trying to convey some message, when one of them bent down and reached for the trunk. We froze!Hearts beating faster, we watched as he reached for a plastic bag, which was clinking as he brought it out. Something shining and gleaming - must be sharp weapons, we assumed! And then came out square packets, letting out strong aroma of biriyani !(or else we would have thought of bombs!)The packets were distributed and spoons from the plastic bag handed out..And apples and water bottles came out of the black box! They had brought a box full of food and here our monkey minds were working negatively!

By the next day,we were on smiling terms and they wished us "Assalamalaykum".My husband, feeling awkward replied "Wa alaykumsalam" and I couldn't control giggling..They were friendly and made small talk with my husband.It was so entertaining - they in Urdu and he in English and broken Hindi. The highlight of the journey was when we started taking  out our suitcases, since our destination was nearing. One of them asked -" kahan uthar rahe hain:"? My husband, who was still ill at ease in their company, was fidgetting with our suitcase and hurriedly jabbered "Mohammed Azaruddin" - instead of our destination "Hazrat Nizamuddin".A moment of silence, then laughter resonated in the coach!. Realizing the error, and highly embarrassed,we jumped out of our compartment.My husband loudly shouted "Khuda Haafiz",and waving to them, lost no time in moving towards the exit!He was at peace.

Give me strength

Two patients, one daytime attendant, two night attendants, husband, myself, enquiries, hospital visits, calls,calls and more calls!Three weeks of this situation and I am still sane & smiling! My mother in law (91 yrs) was in the ICU, and later hospitalized for a few days and discharged, and a week before that, my mother (77 yrs)was in the same hospital with a dislocated shoulder. Things went totally out of gear for a couple of days by this unexpected crisis,but soon normalcy returned.My friends sympathize with me while still skeptical about my sanity!

No doubt, our workload has doubled, but since there is no escape from it,we have accepted it.And accepted it with willingness and patience. Having paid help definitely makes it easier to manage, but they have to be constantly monitored. They have to be briefed about their work or else they tend to just idle away the time.And cooking and serving healthy nutritious meals is top priority with no compromise. In spite of all the chaos and frenzy, our household seems to be still running smoothly.

Strict routine enables us to have our own space and we have not given up our walks & exercises albeit altered timings.Reading, music,TV watching- nothing has stopped. Ofcourse both my husband & me can not venture out together.We take turns so that one always remains at home.This may continue for a few days and we hope everything will become normal soon.

Our stress levels have definitely increased but we are trying our best to be calm.Thinking positively and facing situations as they come has certainly helped.Life becomes easier when there is acceptance. It is a very difficult task to handle two demanding elders at the same time.In the present scenario ,no one is willing to help physically, all the more if the person is old with failing health.This is the bitter truth! And we ourselves are moving towards that end.