You made my day

It was one of those days when I was attending the training for the GDPI stage of the IIM selection process. It was one of those days when I was in a particularly crappy mood after a bad day at the office (read a botched up mock interview.) It was one of those days when the sun was unrelentingly harsh and the mercury levels soared to irritating levels. It was one of those days which stick in your mind despite not imparting any learning.

Against this setting, I entered a crowded restaurant reputed not so much for its food as for its plush interiors. But it was the nearest I could find and I reconciled to dent my pocket and indulge myself in some luxury, promising to myself that I would work hard to redeem the lavish lunch I was about to have. I found, fortuitously I may add, an empty table for two at a secluded corner and quickly occupied it. The waiters were all bumping into each other, trying in vain to cater to the many customers at the peak hour. I summoned one of them as he was passing by me, but was politely told to wait. I cussed him silently and waited for an annoying five minutes. I was contemplating leaving the restaurant when one of the waiters finally approached me to take my order. I looked at the menu and ordered my favorite dish- A Potato-Cauliflower preparation. Much to my chagrin, I was told that it was not available. Now, my cup of patience had overrun and I was about to stand up and leave, when I saw her.

There are girls who are rather pretty and girls who are all right; there are girls who are not too bad, and girls who have a certain something. But seldom does one encounter a girl who is really spectacular and takes the breath away. Into that limited category, she belonged, with an hour-glass figure that immediately brought a whistle to the lips. Her hair was not black, it wasn’t blonde, it was a color which had a certain posh style about it. Her eyes were too far to notice, but I had an idea they were going to be just the right color which would mesmerize young men like me. Her skin had a healthy glow and she had facial features which made the best of the TV models look positively squeamish. I distinctly remembered seeing her in the GD sessions and saw now that she was searching in vain for a table. She caught my eye and came to my table and asked if she could join me. I readily agreed, my mood now decidedly a lot better than it was five minutes ago. I ordered a full meal for me and looked at her inquiringly.

“I am starved, I am ravenous.” she said. She ordered a salad and juice.

“Salad and juice!!! When you are starving? Come on, you got to eat more.” I protested. She couldn’t eat more as she had to watch her figure, she said.

“Golly, a lot of others are watching it (her figure) too”, I thought, looking at the number of craned necks itching to get a glance of her. Well, for the next half hour, I completely forgot about my petulance earlier in the day, I was at my entertaining best. Finally, we had to leave and she flashed me a brilliant smile, revealing a set of sparkling teeth that were either a dentist’s delight or despair, depending on whether he had aesthetic or financial considerations foremost in his mind.

You made my day, I told her.

Hours later, I was walking the roads near my house when something tugged at my leg. I looked down to see a bony hand with crushed nails that belonged to an old beggar. Pulling my feet away, I looked at his being, shocked by his appearance. Granted that Indian beggars, (or beggars in any country for that matter), are not much to look at, but this was a particularly ugly old man. His belly bulged unhealthily, clearly not due to overeating but because of malnutrition. His emaciated face housed a snub-nose and protruding ears that had a repulsive out-growth from them. Between the nose and a prognathous chin, a crack made for the mouth, which resembled a sewn up end of a gunny bag. His eyes were an unclear greenish-yellow, undoubtedly the result of an untreated cataract. But there was a strange sparkle in those eyes.

“I am hungry”, he said. Nothing else. No pathetic pleas, no drama whatsoever that you come to associate normally with those who want something from you. I remembered that these were the same words uttered a few hours ago by the charming dame in the restaurant. Now, I was in a generous mood that day and I remembered seeing a hotel nearby which offered meals at Rs.8 per plate. So, I gave the man a tenner, showed him the place and walked away. While returning a couple of minutes later, I was shocked to see the old man being shoved away by the manager. On intervening, the manager told me that he could not allow beggars into his hotel as he would lose out on customers. So, I took a parcel for the old man and placed it before him. I was disappointed, though, that there was not a hint of gratitude in him as he proceeded to spread his meal on the ground. He ate ravenously, licking his lips with gusto. In a matter of five minutes, he finished a full meal and looked at me. Then he smiled. The smile reflected a contented soul, and a contented stomach which did not know when its next meal would be.

You made my day, the smile told me.