I just came back from a hospital visit. My 86 year old grandfather from Kewzing
is serious and admitted in the male surgical ward. Both he and my paternal
grandfather married sisters which makes him my grandfather by relation.
Over
the years, one of the most important tasks between the father-daughter duo has
been to make occasional visits around the village, visiting friends and family.
Out of all the visits, the one I most looked forward to was the stop at our Chulung-phakha (next to the spring) Ajo’s
home. He has been a favourite somehow. When my own grandfather was alive, Chulung Ajo would come by with milk,
eggs and fresh vegetables for us. I used to find him so strong and agile. There
was a time I had my new Sony digicam with me so, equipped with the same, I had
gone over to his place with Dad and taken few pictures of Ajo and Ana in their traditional best. I still
have this particular picture with me. Ana passed away some years ago. During her final
days in the hospital, she had Ajo sitting behind her, giving her weak back a
support so that she didn’t face any discomfort. Today, Ajo is in the same
condition but he doesn’t have her to guide him through the pain. Heart, lungs,
low pressure – all faculties seem to have decided to start a simultaneous strike against
him. Even in his pain, he recognized me and made a request for a car so that he
could be driven back to Kewzing where
he would like to breathe his last. On my part, I was shocked to find him so
weak and old suddenly. I hadn’t seen him in many years so my image of him had
remained static. It was a difficult moment, trying to fight back tears in the
presence of his family. Who was I to just show up out of nowhere and feel the
gravity of the situation?? If it weren’t for Tseten I would have given up. Life can be unpredictable most times
but in Ajo’s case he has lived a good life right uptil this point. Now I just
pray that the pain goes away so that he doesn’t have to suffer much.
Ajo deserves a happy ending.
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