INSPIRING: A Memory from My Younger Days That Shaped Me
Service does not just transform the life of the one who receives it.
There are some memories that slip away with time, and then there are others that grow deeper, richer, and more meaningful as the years pass. One such memory from my teenage years continues to shape the person I am today—a simple act of service that unexpectedly illuminated the purpose of my life.
As a student, I went through a phase in which I visited a blind school every single day. There was nothing extraordinary about it then; it was just something I felt drawn towards. I would spend my afternoons helping the elderly write letters to their families, reading the newspaper aloud to them, and recording English lessons for the children.
I read small stories, explained grammar concepts, and guided them through their exercises with patience. Their curiosity, their hunger to learn, and their unbroken spirit filled me with a sense of joy I did not yet fully understand.
To me, these moments were gentle acts of companionship. But to them, those hours of reading and teaching were doors opening toward a world they longed to reach. I would walk home each day without realising that, in those quiet classrooms, an invisible exchange was taking place—they were learning English, and I was learning life.
Years went by. School ended, life moved forward, responsibilities changed. That little blind school became a tender memory tucked away in a corner of my heart.
Then one afternoon, long after I had stopped expecting anything to come from those visits, the past found its way back to my doorstep. A young man stood outside, waiting politely. At first, I did not recognise him. With folded hands and a gentle humility in his voice, he introduced himself: “Madam, I am Vinod Tiwari. You used to teach me English at the blind school.”
What he said next took me completely by surprise. Vinod explained that the English language lessons I had recorded and read aloud all those years ago had helped him excel in his examinations. Those foundational skills gave him confidence to step into the world and compete for opportunities he once thought were out of reach. He secured a job as a telephone operator and worked his way up.
Today, he serves as a Manager at Pawan Hans. He travels in a chauffeur-driven car, is happily married, and is the proud father of two healthy children. And then, in a deeply emotional gesture, he bent down and touched my feet.
“I will always be grateful to you,” he said, his voice trembling.
In that moment, tears came to my eyes. I was overwhelmed not because he had come so far, but because I had never realised that the small, ordinary acts of my teenage years had created such an extraordinary ripple in his life. For the first time, I truly understood the depth of what it means to make a difference.
As I reflected later, I realised that service is never a one-way street. We often imagine that we are the givers and others are the receivers. But sometimes, unknowingly, they give us far more—purpose, direction, and a sense of fulfilment that no achievement or award can match.
Service does not just transform the life of the one who receives it. It transforms the heart of the one who gives it.
That day, as Vinod walked away with a smile, I felt a quiet completeness settle within me. A teenage girl who once read English stories in a small blind school had helped build a future she couldn’t have imagined. And in doing so, she had also discovered her own calling.
Disclaimer: Views expressed by writers in this section are their own and do not reflect Milli Chronicle’s point-of-view.
