This fabulous story has been shared by Mr. Subodhkumar Phadke, a dear eFriend. A rather long story, but I couldn't stop myself by sharing it with all.
School took out notice "From this year onwards, school will be paying fees of that student who is poor. All teachers are requested to select an appropriate & correct student so that, student gets the benefit".
Now it was difficult task to identify the poor student from the school. These small boys ware neat & clean school dress code. May be they are having only 1 Khaki pant & white shirt. But they do wash everyday. They keep it so well that it looks like they have iron the school dress everyday.
Now how to identify poor student? The biggest tension was how to ask school boys, who is the poorest student amongst them?
Very difficult task in hand. 3/4 days just left in thinking on this subject. Identifying poor in adult gang is far easy. But finding it in school? God please help & rescue me, I said to myself.
Finally, I decided to talk to all those students who used to come in school in their parent's car.
One day in school's big break, I visited the class and I found few boys (who used come in cars) were eating apples. I approached them and requested "Hey dear students? I need a small help? Can You do that for me? I was about to say "Who is the poorest student? Before I could complete my sentence, those boys said "Sir, in our class, Mayur Jadhav is one of the poor students. Those boys solved my problem within no time.
But I asked them, on what basis?
Sir, he always ware torn shirt. He has stitched that shirt but still he wares that shirt only. He doesn't have pair of new additional shirts. Sir, look at his Khaki pant? His pant got 2 big holes & these holes are also stitched. Sir, he doesn't have "Chappals" too. He comes with bare foot. Sir, in big breaks, we eat homely made food from Tiffin/fruits. He brings "Bhakari (local Maharashtrian healthy food) & Bhaji (Vegetables)" and that too he brings in plastic bag. By the way that "Bhakari" is also not fresh cooked, he eats "Bhakari" which is cooked 1 day earlier. Many times, he even eats "Bhakari" with small piece of jiggery. Sir, we confirm to You, he is the poorest student from our school. And then they were talking too many things about him but I was not in mood to listen & then understand.
I was not able to believe that Mayur is so poor? Mayur was very smart. His hand writing was one of the best, neat & clean across the school. His writing style & approach was confirming that he had very open, transparent heart & mind. Once I also shown his note book to my wife and I told her that look at the writing of that boy who is in 7th standard. In fact, I always had a dream of writing like Mayur. While writing, he used to always leave space on the left hand side while starting the paragraph. He used to always leave ½ inch space while writing first line of the paragraph. He used to follow all the rules of professional writing. Over & above, his enthusiasm of listening to me and doing everything in the first instance was amazing.
I used to always wonder & used to give thanks to his parents (in my mind) for giving birth to a wonderful mankind.
Now such a talented, smart, neat, clean & decent boy is poor in our school & that too in my class?
I couldn't digest this news. I also felt bad that student could understand this so quickly and as a teacher, I could not notice it at all. I felt very bad about my thinking & my observation. First time I felt that I failed as a good teacher.
Last year, Mayur did not come with us for picnic. He could not afford Rs. 25/- contribution for the picnic. His name was not there in the list.
I completely forgot about him. I even did not ask him why he is not joining us for the picnic.
He missed the visit to "National Park". He missed one of the great experiences.
At that moment, I blamed myself. I should have asked him or at least I should have met his parents. I should have helped him from my own pocket.
I realised that I made a blunder. I am not good guy, etc. I was talking to myself & blaming myself. As a teacher, I said to myself that I am useless teacher.
Really, Mayur is the right candidate. He must get all the help from school. Students also recommended him. There was no need to go home & check whether Mayur is really poor or not?
I made up my mind and I informed Principal sir that Mayur Jadhav is poor student. He is from 7th Standard, Class A and his role number is 42. I requested Principal Sir that he should get all the financial help from our school. I also empowered Principal Sir about what I heard from students & how Mayur did not come for picnic, why & so on.
Our Principal Sir looked at me and asked me once again "Sir, are You sure? Remember, it is not a very small amount that we will be investing on Mayur. Apart from school fees, school will also give him all other things like school dress, shoes, books, notebooks, school bag, etc. across the academic year.
With lot of confidence, I told Principal Sir "Sir You just don't worry about it. He is the right candidate. I left the Principal's office with lot of satisfaction in my mind.
I told myself "You did a good job".
Across the day, I was thinking about Mayur & dreaming about Mayur.
Next day early in the morning when I arrived in school? Principal Sir wrote on notice board informing everyone that "Mayur Jadhav is one of the most neat, clean, decent, good in studies, good in sport, good in other activities, will get financial help from the school across the year. He is the most desired & suited student.
School started as usual. I was sitting in teachers cubic. Suddenly I saw Mayur. His face was very odd. His body language was not pleasant.
He said "Sir, please wipe out my name from the notice board immediately. Sir, please don't be upset & angry on me.
I said "What are You saying Mayur? Are You gone crazy?
He said "Sir, if I am making any mistake? You can punish me. But please, I beg You. Please wipe out my name from the notice board. He also had tears in his eyes.
I was not able to understand him at all. I was keen to congratulate him and but right now I was taking different experience & watching something unheard.
He said "Sir why school is helping me? Because I am poor? No sir, I am not poor. I am rich.
While he was saying this to me, I could see very clearly his shirt collar had too many stitches. I could that he was bare foot and he was not warring "Chhapal" and/or "School Shoes". In my teaching experience of 14 years, I was so embraced with this experience.
I said "But Mayur"
Mayur cut my sentence in half and said "Sir trust me. I am not poor. I am rich. May be I am the richest amongst all students. He asked me "Who took the decision & concluded that I am poor?" I also know I am making big mistake by saying this. But sir, if I see my name like this on school's notice board? I will become sick forever. He came nearer to me and he fall on my feet.
I said "Fine Mayur. Don't worry about it. Fine if You are not keen to take any financial help from the school? No issue at all. I will request Principal Sir to wipe out Your name from the notice board. But before that just tell me, how You are rich? He said "Sir look at all my homework notebooks? Are they incomplete? No, they are complete. He said "Sir I am using second hand books. That's fine with me. But sir, matter in the book remains whether I use brand new books and/or second hand used books? Am I right? Sir is it not important what I write in my notebooks & papers than how I write it? Whether I use brand new books or second hand books. How does it matter? Over & above, Sir look at all the marks in all the tests. From 5th standard till today, I am always achieving highest rank in first three numbers. In addition, I am also winning awards + rewards in sports, debate competition, writing competition, essay writing, letter writing, etc.
I could see in his eyes great dreams. I could also see tears just vanished while he was talking. I could see great confidence along with humbleness in his body language & words.
I said "Mayur I understand You & Your emotions. But You will get help only with these funds.
Mayur said "Sir this is not help. This help will kill my ability & passion to work hard. The moment this funding will be available to me? I will not be able to go with my father to do painting job that my father does.
I said "What?"
Mayur said "Sir my father is a small time painter. He paint houses whenever contractor calls him? He get the job & then only he earns. My father also asks me to accompany him most of the times. When I work him? Contractor also gives me few rupees. I save them. Sir You can check my saving's account that I have opened in our school. You can cross check my passbook. I can pay entire fees for this year as well as for next year. I have sufficient savings. I suppose my schoolmates must have given You wrong information about me. May be because of that, school must have selected me as poor student. Mayur said "Not only me Sir. But all our family members are rich. Each & every member in our house, they work & they earn. Working hard is nothing but putting best efforts. Am I right? We all put efforts. Whenever my father does not gets any painting task? He works as a collie on railway station. My mother cleans vessels in 6 houses. My elder sister takes training classes. Sir, we don't have time to think how to spend 24 hours available with us. We don't have TV & Radio. I also read books available in our school library. As You told me after reading the book, I write to the writers of that book & I thank him/her. Sir You please visit my home. By the way Sir I do have a letter signed by Great Marathi writer "P L Deshpande".
Mayur said "Now You tell me Sir. Am I poor? By the way, I also learned "Harmonium" from the lady who is staying next to our home. She visits the temple in the night for "Bhajan & Kirtan (Another very popular & powerful folk from Maharashtra)". Sometimes I also go with her & play harmonium. She sings perfectly. Her orator skills are wonderful. Her command on Marathi & Sanskrit is superb. There is so much of learning.
I asked Mayur "Do You also visit physical exercise room in our school?"
Mayur said "Sir where is the time available. I do 24 Surya Namaskar in home as soon as I get up early in the morning at 5 AM. In addition to this, I also wash bathroom everyday. Toilet everyday. I wash my cloths (and every family member) everyday evening. I wash my eating plate. I also bring 5 buckets of water early in the morning from street tap since we don't have corporation water tap in our house. I asked many times to my father about this. But he says, since corporation people wants bribe for giving tap connection? He says we will not pay them bride for our basic needs and I fully agree with his thinking. Now by doing all these activities, I get many exercises automatically.
I said "Mayur. I am very proud, You are my student. You are not poor. Your are the richest student in our school and not only in class.
We made a mistake by selecting You as poor student. You do not fit in to that category at all. But just think about this. We will request our principal to convert this funding in to scholarship and we can give You this funding as all rounder student.
Mayur said "Sir let's wait for few more years".
I have already finished reading about Indian freedom war.
I also read Veer Savarkkar's biography, Dr. Ambedkar's biography, Lokmanya Tilak's biography, Sardar Patel's biography, Netaji Bose's biography, Mangal Pande's war against Britishers, Helen Keller's biography, Lincoln's biography, biography of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, biography of Dr. Anandi Gopal, biography of Maharshi Karve, biography of Vinoba Bhave, L B Shastri's biography, Gopal Ganesh Agarkar's biography, biography of Guru Rabindranath Tagore, biography of Swami Vivekanand, biography Ramkrishna Paramhans, biography of Dr. Sarojini Naidu, biography of Khan Abdul Gafar Khan, complete history of Shivaji Raje Bhosale, Complete history of Thorale Bajirao Peshwe, Complete history of Karna, Ramayan, Mahabharat, etc.
I also read books written by P. L. Deshpande, Y. G. Joshi, N. S. Phadke, Y. D. Phadke, Ranjit Desai, Babasaheb Purandare, Vishram Bedekar, Ram Ganesh Gadkari, Annasaheb Kirloskar, B. R. Bhagwat, G. N. Dandekar, Durga Bhagwat, Hari Narayan Apte, Narayan Hari Apte, Prahlad Keshav Atre, Shantabai Shelke, Bahinabai, Baba Kadam, Vasant Vaman Bapat, Purushottam Bhaskar Bhave, Purushottam Darvekar, Kriushnashastri Chiplunkar, Vishnushastri Kriushnashastri Chiplunkar, Dilip Purushottam Chitre, Jayawant Dalvi, Narayan Dharap, Ramchandra Chintamani Dhere, Narayan Ganesh Gore, Chintaman Vinayak Joshi, Laxmanshastri Vinayak Joshi, Mahadevshastri Joshi, Anant Kane, Shirish Kanekar, Vasant Kanetkar, V V Shirwadkar, Vinda Karandikar, Iravati Karve, Shripad Krushna Kolhatkar, G D Madgulkar, Venkatesh Madgulkar, G T Madkholkar, Setu Madhavrao Pagadi, Moropant Ramaji Paradkar, Moropant Pingale, Y M Pathan, Shankar Damodar and Shripad Narayan Pendse, Datto Vaman Potdar, V K Rajwade, Indira Sant, Shivaji Savant, Vijay Tendulkar, Golvalkar Guruji, Balasheb Devras, Dr. Keshav Baliram Hegdewar & many more writers.
I am learning what is struggle is all about, what are hard efforts, what is freedom, need of freedom, why freedom is needed by all of us, importance of freedom, what has gone in 150 years of freedom war & so on.
At this age, I need more inspiration. I need more guidance from You & all other teachers. I need to read a lot. I need read about other countries.
Please also criticize me time & again + whenever I make mistakes so that I can quickly learn & change.
- Ultimate goal is to walk on free, proud & respectful road and live life like a good human being.
- I wanted to do something for my city, my state & my India where in we all live.
- I wanted to plant good number of trees all across city.
- I wanted to have water tap in my house and that too without paying bribe to corporation employee & local corporator.
- I wanted to get in to teaching profession and make my city 100% literate.
But please Sir. Don't give me money right now. This is the age when I am supposed to read, learn & study? If You or school gives me money? I may generate a feeling in my mind that all this what I am doing right now is for earning money.
Money will come sir.
Knowledge will bring money.
Please sir, don't give me money and make me handicap.
Let me struggle more & put the best of efforts.
This is the only thing that I can do without money in hand. Putting efforts + struggle is the only thing that is under my control.
As a teacher, I realised because of vast reading & work that Mayur was doing in home & in school? He became very knowledgeable, mature & humble person.
I also got tears in my eyes. I was watching one of the finest + richest student who was fighting, struggling & putting the best of efforts on his body, brain & mind. He was becoming a diamond. He was not hesitating to put the efforts.
Mayur, You are rich student from our school. One of the richest student that I ever met in my teaching career.
Epilogue
Following are the concluding lines by Mr. Phadke. Request you to give some time and adapt to it.
Namaste,
I am sure above story must have shaken You.
When I read this story for the first time? Within no time I went back to my own past and recollected all those golden days when I used to sell Daily News Papers on Laxmi Road (in Pune city), used to drop students for classes early in the morning, used to work in Hotel Darshan in the evening from 6 PM till 1 AM, used to remove stones from wheat & rice @ 1.50 paise per kg, use to sell sainted soaps, perfumes & agarbatti in Deepawali to earn money for crackers, used to cook {with helping hand from my mother & sister} & sell Idli Chatani, Bread Pattice, Puran Poli, , Samosa & Sabudana Wada on Laxmi Road, Pune just to make sure that there is no stoppage of education + survival of our family.
Now can we create similar (artificial) situation in Year 2010 for young generation and help them to become strong pillar of the society where in we all live & nation at large than giving them money in their hands and making them weak?
This is the quest for today from my end to all the parents, to all the newly married couples & to all young ones who are studying in schools/colleges/universities and/or who just finished their education & now searching for jobs and/or wants to start their own business.
Above story was shared by Shri. Dinesh Bharadwaj via e-mail. Original script was in Marathi. Since I felt that there is a great message within the story line, I did free English translation so that all those who can not read, write, speak & think in Marathi? Can read it in English and enjoy the story & message between the lines. Shri. Bharadwaj offers his paid services to Thermax Limited.
Thermax was my dear customer from Year 2004 till Year 2009.
It was Thermax only who gave me the first opportunity in engineering & design business. Because of Thermax, I got visibility, brand & respect in manufacturing sector when I had no knowledge of Maharashtra + manufacturing sector, when I had no identity in Maharashtra; I had no knowledge of manufacturing & so on.
Thermax trusted me first (because of various processes, discipline, passion, attitude, home work ability, etc. that I learned from Dr. Cooper - CMD of Modular) and then followed by Forbes Marshall group of companies, Endurance group, Varroc group, Bagla group via Aurangabad Electricals, True Thread, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Premier Ltd., Walchand Industries, Elephant Design, Praj, Eagle Burgmann, TEMA India, Electromag.
Trust level of customers in us + in our services is increasing month after month & with that, list of customers is also increasing month after month.
What else I could ask from this country & fellow citizens?
Sincerely I remain,
Phadke Subodhkumar Narayan
