Resilience and determination can help us overcome even the toughest challenges. All you need is a spark to ignite your spirit
I had a phobia of speaking in public. It is quite surprising given that I was good at debates during school and college. I was also a successful manager as I traversed my professional journey. I dealt with hundreds of staff since I joined the railways as a young officer.
I also interacted confidently with my peers and the seniors. However, I would break out in a sweat and lose my sleep each time I had to be on stage. I was envious of those who could spontaneously break into a joke or recite a poem. I decided to do something about it. I started preparing notes days in advance.
I would keep memorising the lines by rote till they were branded in my memory. I would even repeat them standing in front of the mirror watching intently my facial expressions. This was the best that I could do. I realised in later years that my handicap was nothing when compared to the challenges faced by many. Recently, I watched The King’s Speech, a movie on the life of King George VI, who found himself on the throne after his older brother, King Edward VIII abdicated. The film largely dealt with King George’s determination to overcome his stutter with the help of a speech therapist. I understood that the will to beat the odds comes from within.
No therapy can help an unwilling person.There are many instances of people overcoming their handicaps to pursue their dreams. We have all heard of Stephen Hawking. He was diagnosed with motor neuron disease at age 21 and was not expected to live more than a couple of years. He survived the odds but the disease paralysed him over decades. After he lost his speech, he communicated through a hand-held speech-generating device, and then through a cheek muscle.Helen Keller was an American author. Medical science was much less advanced than what we know today.
An unknown illness, when she was only 19 months old, left her permanently blind and deaf. She painstakingly learned to recognise words through hand movements. We, who are blessed, cannot even fathom the hard work that would have gone into her transformation to be the voice that she became.The famous Bharatnatyam danseuse Sudha Chandran underwent amputation of her right leg at the age of 18 due to a road accident.
Many would have lost hope and might have ended up wallowing in self-pity. The lady regained her mobility with the help of a prosthetic. She also pushed herself to accomplish the unthinkable. One need not look up to only the famous to witness these stories of human courage and conviction.
My maternal grandfather was comatose for a few months after a botched-up surgery. The doctors were not even certain about his coming out of the coma. He was paralyzed on his right side. He worked painstakingly to lead as normal a life as he could, he even developed writing skills with his left hand.Many in our country are differently abled but do not have the means to pursue their dreams.
On the other hand, we have big business houses that do not even bat an eyelid before spending more than the GDP of a small country on lavish events. We, many other individuals, and the business houses have the means to make a difference in the lives of others.Stephen Hawking said, “Concentrate on the abilities your disability doesn’t hinder and don’t dwell on the things it interferes with. Be disabled physically, not in spirit.” We need to be the spark that ignites the spirit.
(The author is an electrical engineer with the Indian Railways and conducts classes in creative writing; views are personal)
