To many, it may be a question as to why I named my article so. Let me tell you a story.
There was a family of four members that lived in a small town. Ajoy, his wife Alo, their son Joy and Ajoy’s father Bijoy. They lived in a small two-BHK flat. Ajay worked at a chemist shop, his wife was a teacher, Bijoy had just retired from his work at a private farm and little Joy studied in standard four. Joy loved spending time with his grandfather. After retirement, Bijoy took up the duties of dropping Joy at school, bringing him back, giving him tuition at home, putting him to sleep, etc. But soon Bijoy grew older and started falling weak due to old age. He stayed at home now mostly and Joy was now older so he took tuition outside. Ajoy and Alo now considered Bijoy as more of a burden, like an extra mouth to feed. So they shifted him to an old age home saying, “Baba.. please understand. Joy is a big boy now he needs a room of his own.” Bijoy said just one thing, “Babu, I was thinking of telling you for a very long time, my spectacles broke last week will you send them for repairing?” That was the last time Ajoy ever spoke to his father. Joy missed his grandfather terribly and protested but when chided he knew he was too young to go against his parents. A few years later Bijoy passed away and Ajoy received some money from the old age home that he had earned by giving tuition to little boys and girls and had left it for his grandson Joy. Along with that was an envelope that he had left for Joy. Joy went home and with tears in his eyes, he opened the envelope. He found inside it his grandfather’s old and broken spectacles along with a letter. The letter was short, “My dearest Joy, don’t do to your parents what they did to me. Love them. Love them with all your heart and do remember to mend their broken spectacles. With Love Grandpa.”

It is very important to have aged people at home. Home is one’s first school. In the course of being the support stick of an old Grandma or Grandpa, your child actually learns to be caring and loving. Single children get partners and learn to share with their grandparents. Experience of old age comes in handy at all times.

But again there are some people in this society who don’t have a family. They have worked perhaps as a maid or rickshaw pullers or garbage cleaners or maybe something else throughout their lives but now have become too old and weak to work any longer. As members of society, it is our responsibility to take care of these helpless people so that their last days are spent in happiness and peace. It is important that we teach the next generation to show their love and care to these helpless people. As a Petal I myself have gone with our team and taken up the responsibility of many such old and helpless people. We make our children serve them food and hold their hands to take them to doctors. Give them medicines and most importantly talk to them laugh with them and make them feel wanted. It’s a beautiful feeling when with tears in their eyes they tell you tales of their longing to have a family which they see in you.
So I say,
“When their hair grows to silver
Turn their days into golden”
I dedicate this blog to Mrs. Manjusree Banerjee, my Dida(Grandma) also a senior member of Petals. Love you Dida.

Sriya Pan Moitra

Best Regards
Sriya Pan Moitra