Usha Didi

There are inspiring stories around us. Do we even notice? The learnings from these, if we bother to understand, are quite profound. I think we are basically lazy as we want these stories to come to us. The person has to be famous for us to believe the story & get inspired.

Look around for an inspiration you will have one. I did recently. I must admit though that I was also lazy all these past 25 years.

My great learning got revisited when I met “Usha Didi” few days back at my parents place. My earliest memories of Usha Didi is when I was just 12-13 year old in Meerut, a small, sleepy (then) town in Western UP. I was too young to understand then. Later I left the city when I was 20 and hence was not privy to developments in her family & life.

Usha Didi is an illiterate lady, who had to fend for her 4 kids and a disinterested husband. The kids were all less than 5-6 years age. In the last 25-30 years, she has raised them, educated them, married them off and now lives independently a retired life with her two sons who live next door to her.

You must be wondering what is so unique in this. Let me share.

Usha Didi lived and survived by being a domestic help in houses in the vicinity including mine. She used to mop floors and clean utensils for a living. She ran her household on the meager amount. She has raised her two sons who have now grown to be business person working together. Both her daughters are educated, married , working and doing very well.

I met her few days back. Rather she came to meet me when she heard I am there. Smiling. I noticed now in that old face were two eyes “twinkling”. No worries look & fit as ever. Amazing self esteem. Pride in her children’s progress when she shared all what is happening in her children’s life.

I as ked her on how does it feel after all these years of hard, manual work. She only said I only wanted my children to have a better life than me. I have been able to do that. That makes it worth-while.

Who was her source of inspiration? Did she read books on positive thinking? Who told her about responsible parenting? How did she guide her children? She could not afford TV.
Being illiterate no reading of books, magazines and self help articles.

So I reflected on my way back from Meerut to Hyderabad – a good 6 hours of road and air travel. I recalled some incidents & carefully analysed various random incidents she shared and have to come to some conclusions. That is when I decided to write this blog.

She had aspirations. Aspirations were the motivation for her. Better Life.
She was realistic. Influenced her son to marry a working girl.
She was also good to spot talent. Got great Grooms for both her daughters.
She knew importance of networking. She is still in touch with families where she worked.
She read the environment. Knew importance of education.
She encouraged her kids to feel equal to anybody. The kids have grown up with lot of self esteem and confidence.
There are millions of stories and people around us which we tend to overlook. Because of what? Our learning disability.
Usha Didi is still smiling without knowing that her life has inspired this blog.
Usha Didi still cannot read.
She will never read this article. Perhaps one day when I meet her next I will explain to her what I wrote and why I wrote it.
Do you think she will understand. You guessed it right.