The Spirit to Serve in 2009

Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile – Albert Einstein

Spice Jet is not exactly our favorite airline. But lack of options forced us to take their flight from Vizag to Hyderabad on November 11, 2008.

We had seats in the front row. And as soon as we entered the plane, across the aisle, in the front row again, was a man, may be in his 60s, looking sick and scruffy__unkempt hair, a salt and pepper stubble, old-fashioned black shell frame for his glasses, bare-footed and, most shocking of all, wearing a lungi (not a dhoti). The first reaction was to silently blame low-cost air-travel for such ‘poor quality’ of fellow travelers. Sitting next to this man in the middle seat was a younger man, about 30, who, we soon surmised, was his son. The son was wearing trousers and a shirt__dressed appropriately, we concluded with relief.

But as we settled down and flight safety announcements began, it became clear that the older man in the lungi across the aisle was not normal. His son helped him on with his seat belt. He even patiently translated the announcements in the local language (Telugu) for his father__who, it was evident, was taking his first flight and was curious as only children would be. At one point, when the son physically lifted his father’s right leg and hand, one by one, and laid them in more comfortable positions, it dawned on us that the older man’s right side was completely paralyzed.

The feeling of guilt in having branded the man as an unworthy travel companion was beginning to gnaw from within.

We were airborne shortly and when the seat belt sign went off, the younger man, jumped up and went to confer with the flight attendants. A nod of approval soon followed from the senior steward. The younger man, returned to his seat and brought down a carry bag from the overhead bin. He pulled out a white plastic container that looked like the sort they use in hospitals to help immobile patients relieve themselves without having to visit the toilet. Without any embarrassment, completely non-plussed and calm, the son lifted his father’s lungi, shoved the container inside, held it there for what seemed like several minutes, and helped his father to relieve himself. Drawing the container out, he headed to the toilet, washed it all up and returned. He must have been aware of curious eyes following his every action. But he was too immersed in what he was doing to even worry about what people thought. He then fed his father some wafers, literally held a bottle of water to his mouth, helping him wash it down, and wiped his face with a paper towel. The father was cared for and served like a baby (perhaps, in the same way he may have cared for the son, when he was an infant!).

At the end of this very rare, but touching display of genuine, undiluted affection and pristine service, the learning did not escape us. Forget caring for humanity, how often do we care for people we know? Just people at home__parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents….How many of us would have been able to do what the son did for his father? Serve, with equanimity, with grace. In a selfless, non-complaining manner.

The Learning:

We spend a lot of our life wanting to amass, accumulate and acquire for ourselves. Service, even to our own, if at all, seems to form part of our life, only when we are compelled by circumstance.

This season, we can make an effort to change all that. May this simple-yet-moving story of this glorious son and his extremely lucky parent, awaken and rekindle your spirit to serve__just as it did to ours. Let us realize and appreciate that the purpose of our creation is to be of service. As you embrace 2009, ask yourself: Who are you serving this New Year?