Hope a Good year

Days have rolled by. Life looks like being on a roller coaster. One more year has been added to everything. Looking back, it is evident that many things have happened to us last year. New illnesses, new problems, new city, new life, new job everything happened. To end up, all of us in our family were severely down with flu. There was a ‘Coughing Chain’ going on in our house during Christmas and New Year holidays. Every minute either one of us were coughing or it was passing on. It was a terrible way to end a year. We all were waiting for December 31. Every one of us has such bad time. Sometimes we wave ‘bye’ sadly to a very good year and welcome the New Year happily. Sometimes we hurriedly wave ‘Good bye’ to the old year, looking forward for the New Year. All of us were hurrying up to say ‘Good bye’ to 2006. My family got influenced with the age old belief of Britain. Just few seconds before the arrival of New Year, people open their back door believing the bad luck of the previous year to go away, and close in time to open the front door to let the good luck of New Year to come in. We waited for those seconds. In fact we allowed extra time for the old year to get out of our house, and just in time opened the Front door to let good luck in. What a superstition! It was fun to do that.

New Year has come to stay with us. I am already seeing some good signs happening. Every New Year I think of this pure soul ‘Mr. Asokan’ whom I met many years before. I was very active in few voluntary organisations especially blood donation. One day, a friend of mine called me up and asked for few units of blood for an open heart surgery in a big hospital. I took few of my friends and donated without any clue about the recipient. I still remember everything that happened. Just before donating, our weight has to be measured and when I stood on the weighing machine the needle did not stop and was just going around and around. Even the serious looking mallu nurse, burst out of laughter. Later they said that the machine was under repair and asked me to use a new one. After completing the donations, we were introduced to a person who happened to be the father of the blood recipient. He conveyed that the patient wanted to see us personally. I went to his bed. Mr.Asokan was lying with so much of worries. His family were at his bed side. His parents, wife and relatives were so much worried. Mr.Asokan shook our hands and thanked us with a smile. He was about to be operated the next day and his family thanked us deep from their heart. Within few days, I heard that the surgery was successful. The following New Year I received a wonderful letter with greetings and Meenakshi temple kumkum prasadham. Mr.Asokan had written a personal letter and thanked me and my friends for donating blood. This became a routine. Every New Year I received a letter along with Meenakshi Amman temple kumkum prasadham. After change of my residence, I am not in touch with him. I do not receive letters any more from him. But every New Year I remember him. I am sure he must be alive hale and healthy. His way of thanking us has not faded away from our memory. I had donated blood to a lot of people, but he remains always special in our memory especially during New Year. I do have few more interesting incidents, related with blood donation which I shall post in the future.

Hope all of you have a wonderful year ahead and keep up your resolutions.

On a nice day, I took this picture of river Thames in London. Every picture taken is unique here.