Care, as if the world is your extended family

The curses filled screams of the parrot held in the cage filled the neighbourhood. What joy do they get capturing a beautiful bird in a tiny cage? Is it the envious instinct of human beings? Is it a superior feeling of being the crown of the god’s creations? Torturing the animals in the name of love? What joy in getting fed day and night in the golden cage? Their joy lies in flying high in the skies and choosing everything according to their wishes. Though it is the food, place, height, nesting place or mates!

On asking this, My mind was directed towards the people in the society in which a strata of the human beings are treated as lesser humans! There are cases in which people do get caged for years with a partner who can never be good to them no matter how much you try to fix up with them. In such cases all one could think of is, plan on how to run!

The lady screamed her throat out! She cried begged not to be so cruel, tried to take all the pain and somehow tried to hold back her screams! But she didn’t step out of her home. On the early days of their marriage, the story was no different. Only difference being, she would run out of her home. Her relative advised the girl as never to step out of the home under such situations. The others should never know what happens between the two she said. The poor girl promptly followed her words as though it came from the God himself.

People in the neighbourhood kept whining about the cries and the disturbance. They knocked at their door and on opening it, she sat there in the corner, hurriedly wiping her tears and acting as if nothing happened!  A belt laid aside which had designed her arms which was visible from her torn red blouse. Her two daughters at her side were screaming in agony. She quickly tries to recollect herself and her kids and try to stop their horrified expressions. "What happened?" No answer but a forceful smile. "You are crying. What happened?" No answer.  “I am ok." she meekly says and shuts the door.

It is not a very recent thing. It has always being there. Society seems to accept the cruelty as though we try to shut our eyes to the scene of a snake swallowing the rat. We name it as the food chain, law of nature. The bigger animal feeds on the smaller one.

The next day, she limps and enters in. she starts with the household chores. What happened yesterday? No answer. How long will you keep mum? No answer. Her arm is swollen. She notices the lady noticing her; she quickly covers it with the pallu and starts working as though nothing happened.

Look at me! The lady exclaims! "Where is tanu? Is she alright? What did the doctors say?" Her eyes brighten and she says ,"Yes I am going to Bangalore". She will be alright the doctor said. The hole in her heart will be shut. She meant that she would be fine. It’s a free treatment in a famous heart specialized hospital which promises free treatment in Bangalore.

Nothing is for free these days. Not even water. She makes three trips to Bangalore carrying her sick daughter who turns bluish when she cries witnessing the cruelty taking place on her mother. Only thing she loves is a smile on her mother’s face. 

On their first visit to the hospital, she was sent back with the assurance of giving her the free treatment. They were asked to fill out a heap of forms. Being uneducated it was a very hectic job for them in an unknown city.

On their second visit, she was sent back saying the forms aren’t ok. The girl turned blue in the cold arms of her disheartened mother. The to and fro journey had exhausted them physically. The child’s health was deteriorating. But the mother’s hopes were high as always!  The others knew that she was simply being fooled and looted in the name of the free treatment.

One more night, the similar screams and this time she stepped out. Her sari is torn. She tries to assemble it and struggles to cover herself! The demon steps out with the leather belt in his hand. The men in the neighbourhood try to stop him, while their wives tug them saying, “It’s none of our business”. It’s a marital matter. The couple will solve it. Get in”. Every door gets shut. She lays there in the moon lit night and the gentle moon hides behind the clouds to escape the scene of cruelty.

The same people who shut their eyes to the cruelty that took place on her with no hesitation loves to gossip about her love affairs with the other man only because they assume that the act of humanity as an extra marital affair!

Haven’t we all heard of such a thing and probably even witnessed such a thing in our society? The matter gets chucked out until it is our own person in that cage. All we do is, try to get blind to the scene, shut the doors or get deaf to the screams because it is not me or you trapped in the cage. It is somebody else’s matter.

We assume that all the bad will happen to the others and not us. Just like the chain smokers give excuses saying “My uncle was a chain smoker throughout his life and he lived up to 85”. He wouldn't believe until he himself suffers from some illness!

We stay in a society in which we don’t bother to dump our waste in front of somebody else’s property but the same us take the action when a little child plucks a flower which simply hangs out of the compound wall because it is our plant and hence our flower!

It’s high time we start thinking about others as if they are an extended family of us. World would be a much better place to live.