A New Friend

Asmita was just eight years old. That day, at school, she had learnt to spell the word ‘accident’. They had been taught about the traffic rules that good citizens should follow. They had been taught how accidents can take place, and that they should offer help to injured people in case of an accident.

On the playground that day, they had a good time playing the ‘accident’ game. Some children pretended to be cars running on the road, while other pretended to be pedestrians crossing the road. Many ‘cars’ bumped into ‘pedestrians’, and shouted ‘accident’, and many ‘cars’ and ‘pedestrians’ fell down. But thankfully, there were no injuries.

On the way home, Asmita saw old Mrs. Sinha limping down the road. She learnt that Mrs. Sinha had twisted her ankle and fallen into a puddle while hurrying down the bumpy road on that rainy day. Asmita offered help, when she saw that Mrs. Sinha was really in a state of shock! With a sprained ankle, dripping wet saree and dishevelled hair, Mrs. Sinha would not have proceeded on her scheduled shopping trip. Since she lived at the other end of the city, she could not even travel back home in a crowded train with her injury.

So Asmita took Mrs. Sinha to her own place nearby. Seeing how severe the sprain was, Asmita first called the doctor. She was too young to know about first aid. She helped Mrs. Sinha on the way to the washroom and gave her a clean towel and one of her mother’s loose dresses to wear.

By now it was raining heavily, and old Mrs. Sinha, who was gradually recovering from the shock of her little ‘accident’, was feeling cold. Asmita gave her a blanket and made her a cup of hot coffee. As Mrs. Sinha relaxed, she started telling Asmita about the new departmental stores in the city, and the traffic problems they caused. But she also seemed particularly pleased with the monsoon sales they offered!

Just then, the doctor came. He checked Mrs. Sinha’s ankle, and comforted her that there were no fractures or wounds. He prescribed some medicines, and taught Mrs. Sinha how to wear the dressing, to avoid further injury. He warned her against any major movements, for a day. He said that the next day she could try moving about the house. He advised her against travelling by public transport.

Heavy rains continued. Asmita’s parents suggested that Mrs. Sinha should stay at their place till the pain subsided and the rains decreased, since they knew that old Mrs. Sinha lived all alone, and there was no one to take care of her back home. The doctor had spoken to Asmita’s parents and explained to them that Mrs. Sinha’s ankle was vulnerable to fracture, since her bones had become brittle due to age.

Asmita informed Mrs. Sinha’s neighbours that Mrs. Sinha would not be home for a few days, and they willingly agreed to watch over the empty house and take care of the mail. This thought greatly comforted Mrs. Sinha. She was pleased that her neighbours cooperated, since they had never been the best of friends!

After a few days, Mrs. Sinha had recovered and could walk around the house with ease. Asmita’s mother arranged for a long-distance cab, and accompanied Mrs. Sinha back to her place and helped her to settle in.

When Asmita woke up the next day, she missed the loud “Good Morning” by Mrs. Sinha. Asmita realised how much she had got used to the old lady in a matter of a few days. It was like having a grandma at home! Asmita would miss spending time with Mrs. Sinha after coming home from school. She would miss chatting with Mrs. Sinha over dinner and telling her about all the fun she had throughout the day! She missed listening to the stories that Mrs. Sinha told her about her own childhood at bedtime, till Asmita fell asleep. Although Asmita’s parents would be busy the whole day, they too missed the motherly woman.

And today, when they received a card from Mrs. Sinha, with greetings and blessings for Diwali, they knew that they meant the same to her!