An act of kindness

We know not when, how or where we encounter such an incident which just seeps deep into our minds. Something that affects you so intensely, be it emotionally or psychologically that you tend to keep on thinking about it. And the strange part is, maybe the other person associated with it does not even remember or pay heed to it because its jus

t something normal and not unusual for them. Just a small gesture of kindness, a little help or a sweetened act can be a forever memory for someone. You might not even notice but that hidden respect you earned can go a long way.

A couple of years ago one such incident happened with me, which is enduring. Something that not only touched my heart but could be felt by my soul. I am forever indebted to that benevolent selfless human who is usually misinterpreted by our society.

It was around 2 in the afternoon and after dropping my daughter home from school I had to make a quick visit to the market which was a little far off from my place.

On my usual way, falls a signal wherein this lady is mostly there taking turns from car to car showering blessings irrelevant of whether she got something or not. I had been noticing her since past 7-8 years and there was this strange smiling relation that we had developed. Everytime she came to my window, I would hand her some decent amount and with a very sweet smile she used to say some kinds words and move on. An occasional ‘how are you’ had become common.

That day when I was at the signal waiting for it to turn green, I did not see her anywhere. I assumed she might not have come as it was an extremely hot summer afternoon. As the signal turned yellow, she appeared out of nowhere right in front of my car signalling me to stop.

At first, I was baffled as there was continuous honking behind me and I was blocking the traffic. But the other thought that came to my mind was maybe she was in trouble and wanted my help. So, somehow I squeezed my way out and parked my car at one side of the road. She came rushing towards me and was indicating me to come out of the car. Now I had second thoughts about it because delhi as everyone knows is not a very safe place to get off your car when some stranger tells you to. But, as I said, I had a good feeling about her and so I did get off.

To my bewilderment, I saw there was incessant smoke gushing out of the left tyre of my car. I was aghast to see that. She told me that this was the reason why she stopped me and is amazed how come none of the other cars around noticed this or warn me about it.

It was dangerous, could be anything…. I was nervous and scared….. especially because I was 8 months pregnant then.

She already knew my condition as i was crossing her way since the last couple of months. I immediately called my husband and to my good luck he picked up his phone within a couple of rings. One might guess that’s mandatory especially when your pregnant wife is calling you!!! I described everything to him and he helped me calm down and not to panic. It was just some fault in the tyre which can be fixed. God knows how relieved I was to hear that.

He was obviously already out of office and on his way to where I was. But it was a 20 minute drive and that heat in my condition was not helping. By the time I could think of anything, that kind lady managed to get a chair for me along with some bottled water. I did not understand from where did she manage that but she did. So, I sat down as I really needed to catch my breath and water felt like heaven. I did not dare to go near my car to get my bottle. After 5 minutes when I was feeling fine I thanked her and told her to carry on with her work as I could see the signal turning red again and again.

Her graciousness made her stand there asking me repeatedly if I was feeling well and I needed something. To my amazement, two other people came who were her associates to ask if they could do anything or call a mechanic or just get me something. By then, to my relief my husband arrived. He clearly saw I was stressed and handed me his car keys telling me to go home.

We turned towards Rajkumari….. yes, her name is Rajkumari and she is a transgender. We could not thank her enough for her vigilance, her selflessness, her help, her concern. It is true, respect can never be demanded it is always earned. The level of respect I have for that lady and her entire community is beyond measures.

I still cross that signal every few days, we still exchange smiles and blessings, just a ‘’theek ho’’ is good enough. Days pass by but she still stands there doing the same routine every single day. People might look down upon her, treat her differently, some might not even care to lower their window. But, no one knows what her story is. No one can ever imagine what she goes through every single day. People might call her with different names but for me she is a lady with a pure heart, a genuine smile and a kind soul.

She might not even remember that day but it is deep embedded in my heart. She did not just help a girl in need, she indeed earned respect.