A girl with bright eyes!

She was born in gruesome poverty in the family of eight people. Three older brothers,three sisters and her parents lived in a house of three small rooms. Her parents struggled  to make the ends meet. There was scarcity of everything you can think of – space,food, clothing, amenities and the list goes on.

But there was this little girl with beaming, bright eyes and full of hopes, who in stark contrast to the circumstances, was happy! She was the apple of her mother’s eye. She was sought after in the school, always leading in dance,singing and sports from playing chess to flying kites.

She had no regrets. Her life was too busy to complain. A girl who walked barefoot to school because her parents couldn’t  afford a ‘chappal’ was booming with confidence. Her positivity was infectious.

Sports made a deep mark on her young impressionable mind. She found her natural feet in the sport volleyball. Because of her proficiency in sports, the school provided her with amenities that her parents couldn’t provide. She got a pair of shoes! She showed it off to her friends who  didn’t understand why they were so special. 

She grew up to be a fine woman. A woman who defied what others may have thought will be her  destiny. She excelled in volleyball and played at national level championships captaining her team, earning many medals for herself as well as her team. She travelled all over India. A girl who walked miles as there was no money for bus travel, travelled all over India!

Life was never too kind to her. It kept throwing challenges at her. Death of her loved ones, looking after her ailing sister whose family gave up on her, the harsh reality of looking after her kids all by herself after the untimely demise of her husband. The ordeals kept coming. She fought relentlessly with an exceptional courage. Life couldn’t defeat her.

Instead of surrendering to the circumstances she chose to live  her life with vigour. Her positivity is still infectious. Her outlook towards life is very inspiring. She independently runs a magazine for women.She is a passionate social worker and has been on the forefront of many key campaigns. 

She taught me one thing, time is precious, you are precious and most importantly you are in this world for a purpose. You must not loose the ambition no matter how old you are! I still see that spark in her eyes when she tries to learn something new. Her life story told me that we always have two options – sit there, complain and feel pity for yourself or  live your life to the full with pride and dignity.

I am indebted to her for many things and I know that whatever I do for her will just not be enough to return back that debt. But if I can acheive even a fraction of what she has acheived in her life then I will think that I have led a succesful life. 

That woman is my Mother – Maya Kulkarni and I am one proud daughter!