Having been ill, the boy had come quietly to receive medicines from the Sisters who travel through the forest villages with their mobile medical team. I accompanied them that day. I noticed the boy sitting silently, waiting. He spoke no word. Neither did I. I sat beside him, weighed down by my own shyness, my inner resistance, my fear of crossing an invisible boundary. Later I learnt that he spoke only Hindi. Gathering courage, I tried to speak just a couple of broken sentences. That was enough. His face lit up. The silence dissolved. Slowly, a simple dialogue began, and before I knew it, we had become friends.
Login to read more
