A Social Virus

"Waa… Waa…!"

Titli was crying…. sobbing…

Italy's crying… America's crying… France's crying… Germany's crying… Britain's crying… India also cries just like the small seven year old child Titli, who cries standing on a street of Entally, Kolkata.

"Please don't throw my toys! Please don't scold my Mom!"

"We don't want to go away! Waa… Waa…!" Saying this Titli suddenly sat down misty-eyed.

She was very hurt at the words their neighbor had said to her mother who was the only person she loved, she depended on.

Titli, the daughter of Titir, a nurse whose husband had died of a car accident three years ago was a very quiet child. She was mostly brought up by a maid who lived with them in their house.

During the Corona Virus crisis, when nurses and doctors were most important, she was treated as an outcast in their neighborhood.

"See! She is that nurse who works in the Hospital. She'll bring Corona to our area." A plump terrible looking mid-aged woman said. A young man with very untidy hair supported, "Yes yes, aunty you are absolutely right."

"If we don't do something now, then our lovely community will be ruined." said a bald old man, who was also listening to the others creating a chaos from the balcony of his house.

"But, will it be okay to do what you intend to? Don't you think the police might come and arrest us?" said Pappu, the shopkeeper said craning his long head out of the shop's counter.

"Yes! Pappu is right. Troubling a health worker is not fair"; added an old in-fecundman.

"Stop stop! You won't understand our trouble. You are a childless person." shouted out a young lady who had come to take water from the corporation tap. 

"No no, we cannot tolerate this anymore. We must not let her come here." chorused the community.

After an hour or so, Titli and her mother were on a police Tata Sumo car heading towards the bus stop. Titir called Sohini, the sister in-charge of SNCU in the Hospital in which Titir worked.

"Sis….Sissster…! H-e-llo…" whined Titir and broke into tears.

"What happened to you, Titir? Why are you crying? "

Titir whined, "They! My neighbors! They are sending me back. They are not letting me get into my house!"

"Okkkay-okkay, cool down cool down… Don't cry! I am informing the police…."

"I already called them. They came and asked my neighbors and let me in but instead the security guard kicked out my luggage. Laxmidi, a neighbor handed me Titli and said that the maid had gone away yesterday on her cycle and she had kept Titli in her house."

Sohini interrupted, "And then…?"

"And then, there was a 'shower' of glasses, garbage, water, water bottles and many more things which were being thrown from the balcony. So, the police got frightened and said that they could do nothing and asked me whether I could stay somewhere else. I asked them to take me to the bus stop…."

"Ok, come over to my place." assured Sohini.

"What are you saying?" exclaimed Titir, "No no Sister, I don't want to put you in danger.

 If I will go there; will your husband and your family...?"

"No no, I am confident that my family will help you in this crisis."

"What about your neighbors?"

"Our neighbors are very supportive and so much aware regarding this issue."

"S-i-s-t-e-r ! I can't believe it…!" she cried in a voice of relief. She again started crying just like Titli.

There are some tears that are more than joy.

Hats off my mom (Sohini) who stood beside a helpless mom.