I lost my father in law recently. He lives in Dubai and when trying to cross the road, he was hit by a mini van. How the accident happened is a story by itself. We have digested the fact that he is no more, but what we are not able to digest is the accident, for he was somebody who always abided by the law. He would never talk over the phone or to anybody while crossing the road and used to follow the road rules very religiously. Even in India, when everybody takes traffic rules for granted, he would religiously follow them. Accident should have never happened to such a man. But whatever happened, a wonderful man is no more.
A group of students who were in the van and who acted very responsible at the spot wrote an article about the accident and prayed so much. Unfortunately, my father in law didn’t make it, the strike was so severe that he passed away at that second. Was so touched by these youngsters acting so responsible at the spot and not stopping just there, but also spreading a message. Gave them this article as a reply and thought of posting it in my blog also. My blog just got better by writing about him and this is not an exaggeration. Just that the man who was reading my blogs has now become the source of inspiration for this write up and there will be no more visits from UAE that always made me smile thinking that my father in law was frequently visiting my blog.
My father in law was a very honest and straight forward man and sometimes, did get into trouble because of these traits. He was 56, but never looked like one. He was always full of life, the perfect companion for anybody of any age. He would talk philosophy to a 60 year old and also run around with a 4 year old. He was the best friend of many, from his 4 year old neighbour to 75 year olds. He was so traditional and yet so trendy. He would religiously perform all the duties and rites for God without the slightest compromise and also roam around with folks and friends and enjoy that so much. He had strong beliefs but a very broad mind to accomodate them appropriately. He was strict and yet the liveliest companion with whom anybody would be comfortable with. He would scold anybody who does a mistake, without any reluctance and yet shower so much affection more than one could imagine. He did so much to so many, he always believed in being a friend in need. He might not even be in the scene when you are fine, but when something is wrong, he would appear from nowhere and be there with you and do all that you might not even know you want. He would chat with his sons' friends so casually pulling their legs all the time that he was their best friend. What's surprising is that there are so many outside the family who grieve for the loss of their best companion. He rocked wherever he went, never sat idle for a second (remember, its our laziness most of the times thats the cause for not fulfilling our duties), was so CHEERFUL and YOUTHFUL (trust me, these are THE first adjectives for him), always had a fan following and still the most down to earth companion for anybody. He would talk away heartily, sit and pull everybody's legs and we all would laugh away heartily.
I have known him for a little over 2 years and have spent very less time with him, he being there and we in India, but I know that he is the best father in law one can ever imagine. All that we could think of now, is him. We have so many people in our lives and we know the people who have created an impact. Its just that we like them or love them deep inside and we carry on with the feeling lying within. But how often do we stop to think exclusively about the people in our lives. In the first few hours, the more I thought about him, the more I missed him. I cant write as his son or wife, for, the feelings are natural and can't be explained. But as a daughter in law, I believe that my feelings are more general, not just the family ties. It was then that I realised, that even if we spend a few hours thinking about just one person in our life, we will realise the true worth of all the people in our lives who mean so much to us, within a few days, be it our own parents too. Just that during such an event, the realisation is more like an enlightenment, something that cannot be obtained by going around with just the subconscious love for the people in our lives. People say that a person's worth is not felt as long as he is with us, but I believe that we do know the worth, just that we don’t know it completely. And when we know it, trust me, we can do so much more for them. For, a later realisation is horrible. We love some people so much that we would do just anything for them. But believe me, when they are no more, we always realise so much more and regret for the things we failed to do. What use?
Everybody is unique, but to many of us, ' M R Mohanamuraly' is the definition for the word 'unique'. He has always brought so much cheer into the lives of all the people that he met. He has done so much to so many without expecting anything in return that each and everybody today, feel that they haven’t paid him back for all the goodness he has brought into their lives. He was such an active man, so active that his every day had at least a couple of things done for others besides his job, be it even staying awake with his sons, setting question papers and helping them prepare for their exams. How many of us can go for work, come back, assist the spouse with household work and stay awake and help the children prepare for their exam. This is probably the simplest thing he has done. He was sincere, dedicated, meticulous and tireless when it came to taking care of all the people around him, from his family to his relatives to his friends to even his sons’ friends. I am not able to express completely the things he has done, but believe me, it’s hard to find somebody who has never compromised on anything for his own tiredness or laziness. Staying active is also a state of mind. But when it comes to the physical aspect, he took such good care of his health and ensured that he remained active and healthy. He was fit and trim and never looked like a 56 year old.
Most importantly, he was such a contented man, loved his life, his family, his friends and we are sure he would regret his own death so much. Just that the strike was so severe that he had died even before he could have realised what was happening. I have written so much in my blog about how reckless people are on the roads, that one needs to be very careful even when one is following the rules, but now, there is such an irrepairable experience. All that we need to do is be sincere in whatever we do, for we have so many people behind us and others. Am not talking about just this accident or the driver or my father in law. Negligence is the reason behind every evil happening today and if that can be removed, if we become more sincere and honest about whatever we do, we can definitely prevent mishaps atleast from our side, and what goes around comes around. :)
It's just one life we have and let's live it. Let us be sincere about every simple thing we do. Live your moment, for the loss of alertness for just a moment could lead to a very big tragedy. Always be the friend in need. And coming back, let us spend some time thinking about the people in our lives. Let us be cheerful and happy about our own lives and let us bring cheer into the lives of everybody else. After all, everybody has just one life. And when we are no more, they are only the memories that we can leave as a solace to the bereaved ones. This is the message my father in law has conveyed, while he was there and when no more too. He has set an example for us. We thank the wonderful youngsters for all their prayers.
