dew drops

 Preparations for a cultural program were underway at the school. Dance practice was taken every afternoon in the office. Practice was going well. But for the last two days, Sangeeta was missing again and again. I made her angry. Sangeeta came near and said, "Madam, grandma has come to pick us up. There is a fair in Grandma's village."

"The program came in four days. Now it is not possible to produce another girl at the same time, and you don't want to go to the village at all. What was there at that fair? The fair comes every year," I said angrily. The face of Sangita came down. Madam refused permission; she was saddened by the thought that she would not be allowed to go. As a result, more mistakes were made in the dance.As I sat thinking one day, a fellow teacher approached and said, "Ma'am, these children have very few moments of joy in their lives. They wait for the fair all year. So let Sangeet go to the fair. I called the Sangita and asked, "Would you like to go to the fair?"? "Yes, ma'am," she exclaimed hopefully. "But what about the dance?" To my question, she quickly exclaimed, "Ma'am, Manisha is ready; she likes it little by little. And I will teach her at home."

 

Then we prepared Manisha. The day before the program, Sangeeta returned from the village and enthusiastically participated in the program with us. I still remember the joy on her face. The deaf-mute Divya always came near me. Midday, she bent over and slowly kissed me on the cheek as the rice grew. It was impossible to forget the happiness on her face and the expression in her eyes at that time. No need for words to express feelings. Sometimes when I went to her house to call the children to school, she would run from a distance and hug me around the waist. Again, hold my hand and come to school. The class was saying that drinking tea is bad; drink milk." The answer was that we drink milk. Then Poonam said, "Ma'am, we drink plain tea (without milk)."

"Why? " I asked, "Ma'am, we don't have money to buy milk. So we all drink black tea," but I was puzzled by her reply. And there are children who insist on not drinking milk. 

"Ma'am, we built toilets at our house too," Sapna was happily saying.

"Oh wow! Now you don't have to go up in the open."

"No, ma'am; my mother made it mori. (Bathroom for bathing) Now we bathe in the pore with the door closed," she said. Heartbroken. Where there is no closed bathroom for bathing, how useful is the expectation of having a toilet?.

Arjun was very happy. "What the hell happened?" He seemed to be waiting for my questions.

"Madam, tomorrow is our Diwali. We will kill the buck tomorrow. And eat the mutton and rice," he started excitedly. I stared at his happy face for a moment.

Anil was giving me the money he had brought for food. "Madam, I want to gift my aunt's son a cricket bat. Keep this money with you." Anil said. After collecting one and a half hundred rupees, he went to the market with Sir and bought the bat. 

"What did your aunt say when she saw the bat?"

'Madam, Aunty held me close, lovingly moved her hand over my head, and patted my cheek." Anil was happily saying. Although he was from a poor family, he saved money and gifted it to his brother. 

While working, I always realize that the needs of these poor tribal peoples are very few, and their happiness depends on very small things. And these dew drops of happiness are very rare in their lives. Although there is no break in the enthusiasm and stubbornness with which they live,.