A few years ago, my wife and I had an amazingly inspirational experience. It was a cold and a clear night in the month of February, my wife and I were coming from a friend`s place at around 10 pm. I was driving, as I took the turn on a road that would take us home, I could see from the corner of my eye, a couple standing at the corner, waiting to cross the road. When I looked at them, I immediately could see that they were both holding the red and white broadly stripped cane with which the blind walk.
I slowed down, parked my car on the other side of the road and crossed over to help them cross the road. The gentleman readily agreed, he was accompanied by his wife. As we were crossing, I asked him where he was going at this time of the night. He smiled and answered that he and his wife were going to the Hazarat Nizamuddin Railway station. I was startled by his response, as the Nizamuddin railway station was around 3 km from the crossing. Since it was cold and late, I felt that it would be a hazard for them to walk all the way to the station, so I offered to drop them to the station. He smiled brightly and readily agreed.
I lead him and his wife towards the rear of my car and helped them to sit comfortably. My wife was happy that we were dropping them to the station. As I started towards the station, I asked him where they were coming from, he answered that they were coming from Sai Babaji`s temple. I asked him why they coming back so late. He answered that his wife likes to visit the temple on Thursdays, and today they were delayed because their customer who was supposed to take the delivery of the chairs they had made for him got delayed. The customer was supposed to come at 2pm, came at 7pm, thus the delay. I then asked him, were he and his wife living outside Delhi, as they were going to the station. To which he answered that they stayed in a place called Madangeer, which was not too far from where I lived, but tonight he and his wife were going to Faridabad by a train to be with his wife`s sister.
My wife and I were impressed by their zeal. I asked him how he and his wife could manage to do all what they were doing so independently. He fell silent for a few seconds, and then explained it beautifully. He asked me to imagine that I was holding a flute, and to put my thumb on the mouth piece and to attach a pipe on the other end and to let the water pass through the pipe. As the thumb would prevent the water to pass through, the water will gush out of the holes at the top of the flute as a fountain. If one or more of the holes were to be blocked with fingers, then given the same amount of water passing through the flute, the quantum of water gushing out of the remaining holes will automatically increase. Similarly he explained, God has given him and his wife four senses, so they have learnt to use them more to make up for the fifth that is missing.
I wish all of us Indians will learn from this great blind couple, not only are they having their own business of making and selling chairs so they can be independent, they are living their lives to the fullest. If each and every one of us can pledge to be independent and focus on doing more with what we have.