Kindness with honesty

It was a day like any other. I got down from the train. Longing for the warmth and aroma of a cup of tea to wash away the tiredness,took the subway with fast paced steps.Like on the other days,I ignored the aged couple begging in the middle of the subway. Then as I climbed up the stairs leading the way out from the station, I saw a lady sitting with a child. The child was lying prostrate on the ground, with a bandage on his forehead. The white bandage was soaked in red..a red which was too red to be blood! Yet, people were dropping coins at the feet of the lady,lending her a 'helping' hand. I gave a glance filled with disgust at the two fine actors and walked past.
The following day I did not find the aged couple begging.However the blockbuster actors were still there and their box office raking in the moolah from people's 'kindness'.
With the people rushing to get their train,running to get their bus and struggling to get home the constant clanging of money at the lady's feet was like 'mesto'.I felt a sudden irritation at the entire scene. I stood there in the middle of the stairs realizing that no one really cared. People were acting like robots. They were attuned to believe that they were helping the poor lady who was suffering with an injured child.They were stocking up their good 'karma'. However, not a single soul gave a thought as to why a seriously injured child is lying here and not in the hospital. Not one good Samaritan turned up to offer help and take the child to the nearest hospital!
It was a moment of epiphany. These people were doing the same thing as I do on the social media.Somebody is suffering in a war torn country I share it along with a very profound statement. Somebody is stricken with poverty or stuck in calamity I promptly complete my duty by hitting a 'share' or a 'like'. Most of us comfortably carry out our moral obligations thus, without disturbing the normal routine of our lives.However, we are there to extol the efforts of some one who does.
I approached the lady and sat in front of her and asked "What happened to your child? Why is he lying here since yesterday?Why is he not in the hospital?" The lady did not move. Her face was covered with her saree. I looked at the child.The bandage was clearly not soaked in blood as by now the blood should have dried and formed clot. What hit me was the tears glistening at the corners of his eyes. Were the tears fake or was it caused by the pain of lying prostrate on the ground for hours.I couldn't tell but here he was, a small child of barely 3-4 years,acting sick instead of running about carefree,playing or studying. Getting no response from the lady, I got up to go. Onlookers enquired about the problem.I remarked that it was nothing but a new begging tactic.However, the kindness kept shining and money kept ringing!
I walked towards the comfort of my home with a tug of discomfort in my heart. The tear at the corner of the child's eye had moistened the earth beneath my feet. I could not take a step forward without feeling helpless and guilty. I dialled Child helpline on 1098. A representative picked up and I explained the situation to her and gave her the address. Moments later a member from the rescue team contacted me for the specific details and location.He asked whether I could join them once they reach.I excused myself citing weariness.
After about an hour and half I couldn't help myself thinking whether the call had any impact.I dialled the rescue team member.A lady replied. She introduced herself as Seema and informed me that they found the lady in question.She tried to run away when they confronted her.The child was fine but a bit traumatized. The lady claimed that the child was her own.The commotion resulted in a mob.The rescue team wanted to handover the lady to the police,however, the crowd insisted that she be pardoned. So at the end they threatened the lady of dire consequences if she repeats and left. Seema remarked that she was sure that the woman would be found begging again in some other location using some other tactic.She added that the helpline team offered her a job but she declined. Seema remarked that they prefer begging to a job for making a living as the former involves less hardship. I could not help but feel admiration for Seema and her team members and equally ashamed at myself.It was almost 10:00 pm at night and she was returning home after attending to a rescue call made by me and here I was at the epicentre of the problem and could not spare 5 minutes to walk down!Life and its way of teaching lessons!
After talking to Seema, I grew thoughtful! How did these people have so much faith in begging as a job? It was because of 'us'.As long as we try to build up our short cut to heaven, they will thrive, wasting not only their god gifted strength and abilities but also by snatching the joys of childhood from many. Seema's words were true. After few days of 'actor' free subway, one afternoon I spotted another lady with a few months' old baby.I tried taking a snap of them which did not come out well.However my action had the expected result. They realized that somebody was watching and have not returned till now.
I am sharing this incident as I realized that the real power to stop this evil lies in our hands and it really does not take much effort. We need to be aware and raise the alarm at the least.Complaining about situations lying snug in our comfortable sofas will not help. It is a good thing to be kind hearted but it should be shown to people who really need it and not wasted on those who fake it. We are empowered in many ways to make someone else's lives better if we sincerely want to. If we are not honest in our kindness and just want to earn some fast blessings,its better to keep our hands inside our pockets and not mete out easy money to beggars. If we really care then we must dare to question and understand the situation and help in a constructive way.
We may argue that some of the NGOs,rehabilitation centres,orphanages etcetera are equally corrupt. Agreed. However, if we do not turn on the ignition, our journey will never start and if we do not hit the road we shall never know of the hurdles to be removed.It is a choice you have to make.Happy journey!