"Victims of Horror"

ayyan · Nov 15, 2009

“Victims of Horror”

Please don’t be confused by reading the heading. It is not a horror story, but my small worries about the horrors exist in our minds.
One of the incident happened today reminded me another incident happened a few years back. Both are in different situations and no similarities, but the base of the reactions are same and if I analyze that, I have to believe in the fact that we all are the victims of horror created by somebody else.
A few years back I received an urgent call from labor camp that one of our workers had some accident and he had been taken to hospital. I rushed to the hospital to see him. When I reached there, he was in ICU or somewhere inside, then I could manage to meet him after many hours. His condition was serious but not critical. Doctors said he won’t be able to walk for at least six months due to the fractures on backbone and lugs. I know he is also an ordinary worker from a poor family. Before leaving he gave me a closed cover and told me that, a draft and some letters are in that cover, a little big paper cover. His friend was going on vacation that morning and he was on the way to his house to handover the cover. So that he could have posted it next day in India. That was a normal practice at those times because there was no facilities of express money transfer and telex transfer were not available like now. But now his friend had already left with out knowing his accident and he is asking me to post it somehow today, because there will be some function in his home after three or four days. What to do? He is in a pathetic situation, so it is my duty to help him some how. Okay , there is only one possibility is there. I rushed to airport immediately.
Last flight to Cochin leaves after mid night, my intention was to hand over the cover to any of the passenger and if he can post it tomorrow morning, things will work out. But after reaching the entrance and asked a few people I came to know that the task is not so simple. Nobody was ready to accept my cover, I didn’t know why?
After asking many passengers I become desperate. Then an old but proud looking lady was observing my efforts for a long time. She called me and said, this is not your fault, this is the fault of the world, we all are the victims of horror created by somebody else. You may be a gentle man but, they can expect anything in your cover which is dangerous to travel, any fake currency or illegal narcotics what ever they can expect. I explained her about the situation and then she agreed to take it with a condition to open it up and check. I didn’t hesitate to do that, because finally I got only a hope on her. I opened up the cover and shown her all the letters and draft was there inside. She kept it in her bag and went inside. Thank god. So I realized that, I have become a victim of that horror.

And here is the second incident that I told you at the beginning. This was happened just today morning and that triggered me to write this now. I moved to my new flat yesterday only, so obviously I am a stranger here for a few days. Today morning I went out for purchasing something and came back to my new building. I parked my car and then stood there for a few minutes to make some phone calls in mobile. I didn’t notice a small girl of around seven or eight years age was standing near to me waiting for her school bus, looks like a north Indian girl. I heard she is calling me “uncle, uncle”. I just turned and looked her and found her skirt stuck in the nails of the car shed while rushing here and there with out looking. I went near to her and tried to plug the cloth out. After a few moments try I did it with out damaging her skirt. She said thanks and smiled and I also asked a few questions for the sake of the situation. Suddenly somebody came near the lift with a small baby in hand and called her. She ran to her. I overheard a few words of her mother. She was angry to her for speaking to a stranger, “Why are you talking to strangers, I warned you many times no? kaisa kaisa log hai, kisko maalum hai?”
I become a little depressed by hearing that, but then realized it is not her fault.
But before entering into the lift, that girl turned to me and gave me a beautiful thanks giving smile. That was enough to console my small depression.
I have become the victim of horror again, but not only me, they are also living with that horror and they are also victims.
I used to remember about my childhood days in my mother’s house in a small village. They trusted everybody. My mother used to send my sisters to school with the first person coming on the road, he may be a coconut tree climber or a high school boy or even a stranger but she didn’t fear, because there was a trust on all human beings. So painful to think, but that is lost now.
Incidents happen around us create an unknown horror in our minds. So our mind alerts us always even if there is nothing to be horrified. So we expect some illegal things inside the cover if somebody brings to us in airport and we fear to chat with somebody with real names and making online friendships in fake names only and expect some danger to our kids always when they are alone with strangers even if nothing exists really and what not? We fear everybody even though if we love.
I can’t blame anybody because, being as a responsible and careful father I will also tell my kids the same words, because I know I am also a victim…. you too. I don’t want to be my kids or myself a real victim, so in reality…
We fear the world.

With Lots of love,:wave
Ayyan

knot2share · Nov 15, 2009

It is unfortunate but that is the truth these days. I would do the same thing too for the fear of not knowing what might be in that bag or packet or anything that I did not pack myself. Prime idea is that I do not want to get into trouble and I do not want others to get into trouble at my cost too. Living here we have come to learn to distance ourselves from such instances. It becomes very hard for people like us to say NO sometimes, but we need to bite the bullet and say it for our own good. It is strange that now when things go smoothly, we begin to wonder that something might be wrong!

ayyan · Nov 15, 2009

Dear Shree,
Thanks for bringing up the very first opinion. Things are going smooth until it turns wrong, which needs to be expected in an unpredictable world, that’s what we are doing. I just wanted to mention the fact that we have drifted far but shouldn’t have. But life goes through a non return path, no way return, what lost is lost either it was good or bad. Nothing useful by counting the unrecoverable human values, I know that also but still some thoughts and wondering about wrongs in rights. Thanks again for reading and replying, with love, Ayyan

muzna · Nov 15, 2009

I can understand what you have written, coz this is what we are forced to follow in our lives for our own safety. We even stay away from some people due to their religion, region or some other background characteristics, coz some other person of similar background might have caused some damage.
Its a BAD and thus a SAD world.

varalotti · Nov 15, 2009

Dear Ayyan,

As usual you have delivered an interesting blog with an important message. We have all become victims of horror because we do not want to take any chances. To be very frank, Ayyan, even if you had given that package to me if I was travelling in that late night flight to Cochin I would not have accepted that. You know many people get caught by such packages. (There's a similar scene in the movie Ayan where Surya is trapped by the stranger giving a package to him, telling him that it contains life saving drugs for her mother who is going in the same flight. The package would have narcotics. And you know in Singapore one can incur death penalty even if carrying drugs is accidental)

Though I find it hard to accept your neighbour suspecting you for helping a little girl in need, yet, we can't blame here. The world is not full of Ayyans, for sure. And her fears are well founded.

We can't blame the passengers who refused to accept the package or the mother who is cross with the child for talking to a stranger. The blame is on all of us. For the mindless economic development and technological advancement without any grounding in values. In 60s when Nehru visited Madurai he and Kamaraj drove in an open car in the main road and we saw them at a distance of about 10 feet from them. They stopped the car frequently to chat up with the people. A few months back Rahul Gandhi came here. He was in a car which was moving at 100 kms per hour with half a dozen security cars going before and after it. And the traffic in the whole street was blocked for more than an hour.

Great blog, Ayyan. I loved reading it.
love,
sridhar

Shanvy · Nov 16, 2009

oh ayyan,

All of us are victims.

Even a abandoned toy is a instrument of terror today.

Have you seen the number of locks on a small piece of luggage that is checked in. people today are so scared that somebody will misuse the space if left unlocked for some activity of theirs.When i carry 50 kgs, and have 40kgs free, I am scared if a stranger wants to club their with mine, though basically i am a very helpful person.

It happens everyday. My DH is afraid to hold a small baby (neighbours) in the absence of somebody, he says whose mind works how is a very debatable issue. quite
true in today's world, where you have animals in the name of uncles. (and aunties too in some cases)

I know a person who was delivering water bottles in the flat complex.a south indian, married and respectable gentleman, a neighbor of mine one day complained, that the person who comes to give the bottle, just frisked her girl. i was so shocked, as he maintains a distance, and behaves with the children. even if you want to give a clean chit to this delivery person, the mother of the girl had already sowed the seeds of doubt. finally had to asked the management to change the person.

a small word, a small gesture, a small action causes a domino effect, when it comes to being victims of the horror directly or indirectly.

welcome to the world.of fear...only to remember fearlessness when we read the lines like this...

where the mind is without fear and the head is held high,
let my country awake..

amihere · Nov 16, 2009

You have rightly said Ayyan. We all are victims of this panic stricken world; no one can say who is going to cheat us the next moment. It can be a stranger or someone who was a dear to us till the moment. With all these news of Husband murdering wife, friends killing another over a simple fight, kidnapped and killed for ransom… all these happen in this same world and if something happens the first comment from most of the people will be “They were careless, they let in every people even if they didn’t know them”, “If only they were more careful with kids” and all those sorts. Before consoling we blame the victims for not being careful and conscious. The helping mentalities in our minds are dying slowly with all these apprehensions. No longer do we rush to carry a dying man to hospital fearing of the consequences after that. And what with media these days? They give such a sensitized version of stories throughout their papers and channels to attract more people towards them and create a panic within them knowingly or unknowingly. Most often they cross the line of 'making us conscious of the happenings around us' and 'making us panic stricken about the things happening around'.

Meenupanicker · Nov 16, 2009

Hi Ayyan

Thanks for another mind glowing blog.ya I am also having the same opinion.Even my husband gave me thisone and only advice during my first journey by flight .He has also someof those horrible stories to support him.Regarding that incident with small girl,In todays world we are reading a new story of child abuse every other day.Even we treat those associated with us with a mind of suspicion.Actually we are always alert of the situation.So we can't tell anything against that lady.She is one of those mothers living alerted just to protect her child from the darker side of the soceity.
with regards
Meenu

Lalitha Shivaguru · Nov 16, 2009

Dear Ayyan,

Once again you did it. You pulled me here with that nomination coming in otherwise the loss would have been entirely mine.

You said it right. I remember when I was young, my brother was 1.5 yrs older to me. During our summer vacations, we used to travel alone in the train to Chennai (only day train). Parents used to help us board the train and inform the co passengers to look after us. At Chennai my uncle used to come & pick us up without fail. This was the usual custom from the time I was around 7-8 yrs old. But now, I dread to send my dds alone like that. Even if they need to come home from school by a private auto I will be more worried if they are not at their usual time.

I am also a victim of horror Ayyan... It is so sad that we cannot trust anybody in this world...It has become a BIG BAD WORLD.

ayyan · Nov 16, 2009

Dear Muzna,
Great pleasure to see you again. Thanks for reading and writing a feed back.
Yes,as you said we are forced to follow…and need to tell our mind also to follow even if it doesn’t agree., BAD world.
Thanks again Muzna, with love, ayyan