16 May 2006

An unforgettable accident

I was riding back home from a relative’s house; my mom was the pillion rider then.
I came straight, avoiding the sickening Bangalore traffic on a smaller road…
Had to take right and was exactly 300 mts away from home.
Then came a cyclist to extreme right of the road. I had no option but to apply breaks and stop. It was a crossroad at which I had to take a right. This made the matter even worse. I prayed in God for the cyclist and applied breaks. Phew… vehicle stopped, and the cyclist escaped unhurt!! But a big thing was awaiting me…my mother fell down from the vehicle, L backwards, her head touching the ground. Thank God!! There was no stone on that road, but it was a corner and some sand was piled over there!! She fell on a bit harder side only, but escaped without any visible injury.

People gathered there, scolded that cyclist, he was already run-away. My mom was given some water… people are good hearted in these circumstances, you know. They help a lot, unless it’s a police case;). My mom visibly recovered and started walking. I asked her to sit on the vehicle. She refused. But I managed to make her sit on the bike, again.
We reached home, where sister was waiting for us to have the evening coffee.

That day was my mother’s birthday.

By the time I parked the vehicle, mom went in and sat on a chair. She looked a bit nervous and tired. I made some sorry face and narrated my sis the story of my mom falling off the vehicle, and me losing the balance of bikeL. She started criticizing me for making mom fall on her birthday.

Mom asked..”Hey tell me from where are we coming here”!!!!!
That was the first question I had to face that evening.
Later she asked “Why are we here!!!!!”
And added, “Where is your father????”!!!
(At that time we three stayed in a rented house in Bangalore, Father living in native itself, as he had some more years of service to offer there.)
Listening to these questions, we were afraid. And I felt guilty of making her say all these!

I asked her: “Do you know who I am?!!”
She said: “I know you. Where is your father?”
Sis asked her: “Mom.. Why are you talking like this? Father is in native.”
Mom replied..“Tell me where are we coming from now..”

We were afraid of the moment… We couldn’t get what was going on around us. Sis started crying and blaming me for all these things. Mom asked for water. We ran, both got her water. She drank and asked for one more glass. We got her again, this time in a bigger tumbler. We both had no clue what to do next.

I dared to speak first in that minute of horror.
I asked mom to go with us to a doctor. She refused profoundly, seeming normal this time with speech. Asked for one more cup of water. We kept supplying glasses of water and then we stopped, because of fear of what would happen.

My sis was just a graduation student and I, just a starter at some small software firm. We both were horrified and tried contacting father. We couldn’t reach him over the phone. We also didn’t want to call the neighbors; we had no hint of what was going to happen next.

It was 6 in the evening. We both took some courage and asked mom to sleep for a moment to come out of the shock. She went inside and tried to get some sleep. I guess she caught sleep pretty soon. My sis started firing at me and I expressed my help-less ness at the moment of the fall.

Since it was her birthday, we had planned so many things for it. I had bought a silk saree (my sis selected it, of course) for my mother for the occasion, which coincided with her 25th wedding anniversary (a few days ago) and my first salaryJ(previous month). We wanted her to wear that saree; we also wanted to take her to a temple. But this incident was a set back to us.

We were deeply shocked at the turn of events. With father away and relatives far off, there was no one we could ask for help at the moment. We took to God then. I lighted the deepa in-front of God and sat there un-knowing how to ask him and what to ask for. Sis also joined. I started chanting “Lalitha Sahasranama”. Sister also recited with me. After sometime, we shifted our prayer place to the room where mom was asleep.

We continued with the sahasranama. After sometime mom got up from sleep. We didn’t stop the recital of the stotra. Mom washed her face and joined us in reciting it. We were almost nearing the thousandth name in the stotra. After completion of the stotra, we all went, bowed before the deity at home, and came back. Mother looked pretty normal. She started to behave normally and there was no indication of the horror she went through 30 mins ago!!

We sighed relieving. But were not sure of her being recovered completely. So, wanted to visit a doctor immediately. But we put it on a hold, as she seemed good, and thought of cheering her up, a bit. We demanded her to wear the new saree. She reluctantly wore it.

As we were starting for the temple, a phone call came from an old friend of mother. She talked to her in a casual and usual way. There was no hint of the incident that happened some time back that day. And then we visited the temple, had Bajji at the Iyer’s corner and were back home by 8. I told everyone that we were going out for dinner. But Mom said she wanted to cook herself. At that moment uncle, mom’s brother, and aunt, his wife, came home. We gave them no indication about what was going on in that house an hour back and treated them in normal way. We five dinned together, trying to forget all that happened. It was a happy moment, that one, a real middle class mom’s birthday celebration. After that we told uncle and aunt about whatever happened and they asked us to visit a doctor the first thing in the morning, and we agreed.

Then came father’s phone call, he was taken aback by the narration of the story, too. But then, we added, not to bother him much, that everything was normal and she was doing well. He was a bit relieved.

This happened sometime back and even today, we happen to remember this incident whenever we all are together. We try to remember the horror and shock experienced that evening. Mom laughs every time we talk about it. She, it seems, still doesn’t exactly remember where we were coming from that day!!!!

I really thank God for letting that day pass without much of harm, it all happened, but a minimal damage happened. But it has been an experience of straightening the hair, horrifying the conscience. I’m still guilty of losing the balance and making my mom experience this horror on her birthday.

Whenever I pass through that place now with mom, I show her that, and say, “Here, it is here you fell down that day.” She pats me with pseudo-anger and smiles genuinely.

Please Note : Here me = My friend, My mom = friend's mother.
I thought its better to implement it in a direct speach than a rohnd about speach of my friend...;) Sorry for it, anyways.

3 comments:

Shruthi said...

What a horrifying incident!! I can just not imagine your feelings at that point!
I am glad everything is ok now.

Srik said...

Thanks Shruti,
It happened some three years back.
Now everything is fine. She's doing fine now. It really straightens the nerves if i think about that moment, even today.

Anonymous said...

kapi tara bardideera? I just met your mom last month when we went to ranganatittu. so when you were narrating the incident, I was just remembering her face & you (haven't seen your sis)..
Amele nodidre My friend & my friend mother anthe..
heegella baribedri. nimage kannada baralva ? illa andre sumne ee line na first haaki! nimagen gottagatte intavella, nimgu maduve aagi makLaagli..;-) peddambaTTA!