Some events in life leave you with a impression on your mind which you cannot erase. Such is the story about a woman who is so insignificant, poor, may be dead or alive, I have no idea but has a lasting  memory and a clear imprint on my heart. The story is almost a decade old….

I was studying in St. Xavier’s college, Ahmedabad, doing my Bachelors; life was filled with friends, fun and excitement. One day, before going to my classes, a friend of mine and I were eating sandwich on the roadside. This was a routine for us to relish food from the vendors on the road. The guy who was making the sandwich would throw the brown edges of the bread away in the trash and then make those sandwiches. Just then, came one old woman. She was very old with lots of wrinkles on her face, as if they were the number of days she has lived. She was frail and weak, drooping down from the waist. She reached out her hand into that trash, took a few brown edges and went on her way eating it.

I stood still watching this. I was shocked that someone can eat those brown dry edges of a bread. I could not stop the tears rolling down my cheeks. In  that moment I felt so much injustice.  Today also, that image is right before me. That feeling is still fresh. I thought I will come over this in some time but could never do it. Years have gone by, but at times I feel, I am still standing by the roadside……watching that woman………and it is hard to erase it from my mind.

Hunger is a real problem in the world, even today.  I have carried this burden in my heart for a long time now.  The old woman might not be around but that moment and the lesson she taught me is still living in me.

Glory Christian

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