A Mom without a Baby...

“What is Motherhood ?” , if you ask someone; the possible answers you may get are “Feelings of a lady for her child is known as motherhood”, or in social aspect we can say, “ The responsibility towards small kids for their bring up with love and care though they are biologically yours or not it doesn’t matter.” , etc. But does Motherhood really have something to do with kids only…? What if I say that a 10 year old girl is a mother of 34-year-old man. You my say I am crazy but I have seen such a small mother. 
It’s been two years for this incident. I had gone to my Grandma’s house for holidays. I used to go there in every summer. After dinner we used to go out for a walk. That day also we had a tasty dinner together and started a walk towards Lord Ganesha’s Temple which was around 10-15 min. away from her house. Comforting breeze was flowing around and we both were enjoying our talk and walk. She was in the efforts of enriching my personality by telling her life experiences and I was enjoying to listen to them like a story. We reached to the temple, climbed those 15 steps and finally entered in temple premise. It was late at night; so hardly 6 -7 people were there. I noticed a small girl seated at the corner of the temple and was tying hibiscus flowers with a string. She was wearing a green colored frock which was torn from many sides. Her hair was covered with dust and hence was faded in color. She was so small that she could barely understand this highly practical society but still her little hands were doing their job so neatly. 
I pointed at her and said to grandma, “ Poor girl !!!” Grandma smiled for a moment and said, “Don’t judge her by her looks, she is the strongest girl I have ever met. !” I was about to reply but she continued saying, “She doesn’t have shelter. She lives here only in the temple. She sells flowers to make some money for taking care of her child… “; now I broke her sentence and asked…. “What…!! Child!!!!” Grandma smiled and said,” Let me show you, come with me.” We went in a hut at the back of the temple. When I peeped inside the hut I was shocked. I saw a middle aged man, half paralyzed; lying down on a bed. I asked grandma, “who is he?”. Grandma started saying, “This is Suresh. Its been 3 years back, Suresh was a priest of this temple. He was living happily with his wife Meena and daughter Kusum. One day they were returning from their hometown and suddenly they met with an accident. Unfortunately that day Kusum lost her mother and her father got half paralyzed. At that time Kusum was just 10 years old. She did not even know how to handle the situation. Some NGOs and orphanages came to take her with them but she refused to go. She was worried that if she wont be there, who will take care of her father. Because her father was not even able to move from either side. She stood strong in such deadly situation, she left her school and started selling flowers in the temple. From that day onwards she became mother of suresh. She earns for him. She Cooks food for him. She feeds him, she takes all care of him just like a mother does for her child. “
 I was stunned. ”Oh my god what a brave girl she is. In the age when she herself needs a shelter from mother; she is doing all this for her father. May God give her strength in her difficult times!!”, I prayed. That day I realized that motherhood is just about love and affection. It has nothing to do with the age. That day I saw a mom without a baby, in form of Kusum.    

A Story by Utkarsha Nikam
( A real life Story )