-Brian Mendonça
Sometimes
life can give you a raw deal. These are stories of women who serve the
community to support themselves and their families.
The first is in her thirties. She came from a large
family. Her parents died when she was still very young. Eager to be relieved of her, her relatives got
her married to a widower with two children.
After having one child with her, her husband walked out to marry a third
person. She now takes care of the three children while doing shifts taking care
of those people who need her.
Another lady, a senior person, is well-known in the
hospital. During one of her stints in the hospital she shared the
responsibility of caring for a foreigner, with a colleague. When the time came
to be paid, her colleague denied that she had taken care of the patient and
pocketed the entire amount. She was
dispossessed of her family property by her own sister who, along with her
brother-in-law, made her sign away her property without knowing what she was
doing – since she was illiterate.
The third lady is waiting to go to the Middle East.
She was on the verge of leaving when the plans fell through and the agent
balked out of the agreement. Though one
can earn better abroad it is important to be assigned to a good family, she
says. Only lately the local papers had reported that a maid was thrown down
from the 2nd floor by her employer abroad. She was now appealing to NGOs to take her
back to India.
One lady was travelling with her husband on a train.
In high spirits he moved out towards the door of a running train to spit out.
He lost his balance, fell down and died. His wife now earns by being a day-care
attendant, and brings up her two children along with doing an eight-hour job
elsewhere.
These maids give up spending time with their own
families and their own children to be with those who need them. With the little
money they earn they bring up their families. Most are single parents,
playing the role of a mother and a father to their children.
What is really inspiring is the commitment of these
women. They are ever-willing to accommodate to the needs of the patient and the
household. They eat what is given to them without any fuss and maintain vigil
through the night, attentive to the patient’s call.
Many of the maids know each other. If one cannot
make it the other will fill in for her.
Most of them are uneducated but they would like to see a better life for
their children. They are seldom bitter with their lot and go about their duties
with dignity. Some are fluent in no less than four languages. They adjust to
the energy level of each member of the household, and when a child demands that
she plays with him/her, they oblige without ignoring the patient.
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Published in Gomantak Times Weekender, St. Inez, Goa on Sunday, 26 March 2017. Pix courtesy blogs.reuters.com 'Health Start-ups tap India's Growing Home care Sector'
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