The borrowed money

"Wow, I am finally here" were her words , when her father dropped her to the hostel with her necessary belongings and she turned back to go to her room. It was a mixed feeling .. happiness because she was in the city of her dreams . Mumbai.. sadness because now Papa Mamma would not be there..

But she was willing to take up the challenge.. the challenge of staying in a hostel and managing in a new city, all on her own. 

"What fun is life, if there are no challenges!" She asked to herself.

It was her first job. She used to leave the hostel by 5:30 am, board the bus, get down at her stop, take a rickshaw and reach the hospital. The bus conductor and the rickshaw driver had become pretty common faces and were the same everyday.

She met new faces everyday at the bus-stop. Gradually they started exchanging smiles, she really liked a lady with a pleasant face, because her smile was very energetic! Since they stayed in the same locality, they met at the vegetable & fruit market also. 

This story dates back to 2005.. when cards were not very frequently used. One night, she counted the money left with her and kept the wallet in the cupboard. Next morning she left in a hurry to catch the bus.

She and the Lady boarded the bus together. The moment she exchanged a smile with her, she muttered to herself in sheer disappointment "Oh my God, I forgot the wallet in the cupboard and now I don't have any cash with me, what will I do now..?"

She, in a very embarrassing tone informed this to the lady who rplied promptly "Main deti na ticket ke paise {5 Rs}, kal tum de dena.. koi baat nahi"

She said to herself "Thankgod! but how could I be so stupid"

She got down at her stop, and the rickshaw-wala who used to take her daily to the hospital started his rickshaw. She slowly went towards the rickshaw and in a very low volume told him "Bhaiya, aaj mere paas paise nahi hai, main purse laana bhul gai"

In Mumbai people normally don't look at you and talk, they keep doing their work and talk to you. He said "Arrey madam, koi baat nahi, roz toh aate ko, kal de dena, 10Rs hi toh hai!"

This gave her a big sigh of relief! "Papa mamma were right.. there are good people and God sends them to you when you need them the most!" She got down from the rickshaw and before she could thank him, the rickshaw-wala was gone.

She reached the hospital, started the work, when her friends came, she also borrowed money from them for the day and told her how she reached the hospital. 

Something strange happened that day, she had applied since many days, to get her shifted to the other hospital of the same hospitality company. She got a letter to join the other hospital which was just in the opposite direction than the current one - the very next day. She thought .."How would I return their money" 

But there was no option. Next morning she left for some other hospital from some other stop, at a different time, with duty hours being approximately 12 hours! Now her route was different.. but everyday when she gave the money to the bus-conductor, she did think about the Lady and the rickshaw-wala

"They must be thinking, I just vanished"

Then after 1 month, due to some reasons, she shifted back to her hometown. But the 15 Rs borrowed that day are still a 'udhaar'  and she knows.. she will never be able to meet them or pay it back to them.

Its just 15 Rs, but the baggage of not returning the amount to the people who helped her at the time of need, is much more heavier than that!