The Brave Sacrifice

Ramu was a laborious farmer. All-day long he toiled in the fields from sunrise to sunset. Only during the peak afternoon when the sun was angry hot just above the head he took little time off and sat in the shade of the Mango tree. This is when his wife Uma would bring his lunch. Ramu waited eagerly for this lunch as he would be hungry and his wife would serve him his lunch with much diligence laced with huge dollops of love. Also, his wife would also get some time off from her household chores and then they would sit together and chat mindfully. This would be quality time spent together. Otherwise, they would rarely get time together with so much workaround.

Both Ramu and Uma had to work very hard. Ramu had to toil hard on the fields to ensure a good harvest. Uma on the other hand also worked hard to keep the kitchen hearth alight. They had to manage a big household. Due to the hard labour, they could squeeze in enough money to ensure square meals daily and money for the festivals.

But difficult times may strike anytime and Ramu knew that. As he never had any surplus money so any unbudgeted expense would throw the household out of gear. Unbudgeted expenses occurred regularly every month at least once. Then there would be a real challenge for Ramu and Uma. But they both braved it all stoically and with as much smiling face as possible.

Ramu was in the habit of buying a lottery ticket every week on which he spent a fixed amount dedicatedly. He never overspent due to greed and never spent less in disregard. He knew that someday lady luck would be kind enough to shower him with countless blessings. Although Ramu had been buying a lottery ticket for years he never lost the passion when he found that his ticket had not fetched any prize. This way his ticket-buying spree continued. Ramu knew that he would be lucky someday. He also ensured to maintain an account entry of his purchases which after a couple of years had crossed a few thousands of rupees. 

Then one-day lady luck really smiled on Ramu and he drew the first prize of Rupees one crore. Ramu and his wife Uma were overjoyed. His family was also very happy as this was the first time when all the family members would get the chance to see a huge amount of money. Everyone was making their own plans and making a long list of purchases to be given to Ramu. Uma was especially thrilled as now she could put her two children into good schools and no amount of fees would be a bother. Ramu went to the lottery dealer with the lucky ticket to claim the prize money. There Ramu found many people waiting for a glimpse of him. Even the local politician had come there. Most of the people who were gathered there had their own agenda. Some needed money for the treatment of someone with a terminal illness. Few had gathered to seek help in overcoming some short term borrowings. Others had gathered to get the hang of the feeling of winning a lottery. The local politician had come with a garland and expecting some funds for the local area development. There were some brokers who had come to launder the money instantly without routing the payments through the system and payoff Ramu although with a huge discount without going through the hassle of cumbersome tax formalities. The benefits of this would be the instant receipt of money rather than wait for months and route the payment through the proper channel. 

At the dealer, Ramu got a feel of the labyrinthine process of securing the payment and grisly and foggy layer of middlemen. Slowly Ramu got to have the feeling that he was fortunate enough to be ultimately unfortunate. The dream of laying hands on good easy money seemed like a mirage in a vast sandy desert. Ramu got to know of the formalities and was homeward bound immediately. On the way, he faced many people with various begging pleas. Finally, he even faced intimidation and even life threats. Facing so much distress Ramu went to the Police station to seek help and shelter. The Police then escorted Ramu safely home. Uma learnt all the hassles, begging and intimidation faced by her husband. She decided and with conviction told Ramu her husband that she had earlier evinced interest in acquiring the prize money but now she was realising that this money though not ill-got but still had no certification and stamp of their labour so they had no right to it. Whatever destiny had given them till now and whatever they would get in future that would be sufficient. They would cut their coat according to the cloth they had. So together Ramu and Uma decided to give away the prize money to the more deprived and needy without falling into the trap of middlemen and brokers. They would go through the process of receiving institutional payment with a proper declaration and undertaking compliance with all formalities. 

Then they made a list of beneficiaries and gave them the weightage according to their needs. After doing the calculations they found that whatever the balance remained was good enough for their family during the rainy days. Almost all the major beneficiaries were decided upon. Even their local area got funds for some incremental development work. The local politician was very grateful and made certain to felicitate Ramu and Uma at a town get together. Ramu was made an honorary symbolic mayor and allowed to inaugurate a public facility where he unveiled a plaque bearing his name. 

With the money, some terminally sick people were cured. These people became so much grateful to Ramu and their family that they jumped towards their familial needs when they arose. Ramu's children didn't have to bear their school fees for a couple of years. Ramu became a local hero like a victorious soldier returning home after a great win over unknown enemies. Uma was savouring the sweet feeling of success after so many years of living a life of a pariah. Many people of the locality became so inspired by the action taken by Ramu that they started a campaign for giving voluntarily to the needy. In a few years, the happiness index of the area rose exponentially and Ramu was the talk of a small town. Big writeups in the local press gave a high five for the changing psychology of the town. The state declared the town as a model for the rest to emulate. 

For Ramu, it was a matter of great pride and satisfaction. He felt that he had just done his duty. The others thought that Ramu had made a great sacrifice. So Ramu confided in Uma that he had been very fortunate in being unfortunate for himself by sacrificing his prize money because he could make so many citizens happy. Uma thought that Ramu had made a brave sacrifice and felt pride well up in her for her husband.