“Krishna, she is getting married. We will need you for whole
days here.” My mother was speaking to our house-maid, “Don’t take any leave in
December.”
“What! You will not be here.” She stared at me with a little distress first. Soon
after she realized it was actually a good news she congratulated me.
“Where will you be going after marriage?” She asked me out of curiosity.
“Very far from here Krishna. It will be outside India, as they say to a land
that is across the seven seas.”
She is not much educated and hence she cannot comprehend much about Geography.
Krishna is a hard working woman in her mid-forties. Born to the poor class of
India, she earns her bread from cleaning homes of the people. While working,
her mind is dedicated and her hands move hurriedly. On her single handed earning
(which is approximately Rs. 100 per two hours of her time she spends in cleaning
every home) she pays her dues and feeds her children. Along with this she has to look after her
husband suffering from lung infarction, admitted in a government hospital from
many months now. Even after her hardships there is no sign of despair and
fatigue on her face.
“Krishna how is your husband now? Is your daughter happy back at home?”, were
the regular questions from us. Sometimes while changing the television channel
we used to laugh together on some specific movie scenes, or sometimes she used
to share her views on the current news that was being aired on television.
From last few years we became too dependent on her with our household chores.
Her nature suited us the most. She never took a day off without informing us in
advance.
After my relocation, I received a call from a close friend.
“How are you doing miss? Enjoying Amrika?
He said exuberantly.
“Ah! People say life is better here. But we have to do everything on our own. I
miss my maid Krishna here.” I said frivolously. We both laughed at that moment.
But when I thought about it later, I felt bad about myself. How easily I talked
about my own comfort, especially when we are provided with the machines for
everything. There is no daily cleaning and mopping the floors either. I didn’t realize
at that point of time I enjoyed such luxury because someone was so underprivileged
in my own land that she had to clean the floors and wash dishes to survive
daily. Probably life is much better here that more people are self-sufficient
and no Krishna has to live such a marginalized life.
P.S. Some people contempt their house-maids and speak with them
in very condescending tone. For those, they always should remember, there is a
never-ending story of tough times and hardships about them. They
have been beaten mercilessly by their fathers or their husbands or both. They were deprived of the equal rights in their childhood. Some of them starts working at an early age of eight years. After working throughout their lives they are not able to save enough for their old age and are sometimes abandoned by their children in times of need. Life never gets easy for many of them. They should be treated humanely at least!
Image Credits: The Hindu, Google
This is so touching! I loved the way you ended the post... Yes, many of us do tend to take the maids for granted. Sometimes even giving them extra money also does not solve their problems due to various reasons, so at the least we should try to be good to them...
ReplyDeleteWonderful post :)
Cheers,
Srivi - AtoZChallenge
K for Kite | Twitter
Thankyou Srivi :)
DeleteOh, we had a Krishna too and she was an amazing woman too. Very hardworking and efficient. We have moved to a different place and I miss her still.
ReplyDeletePeople need to realize that our maids are individuals with human needs and desires, so they need to be respected and treated well and appreciate for being our support system.
Absolutely Shilpa!
DeleteVery good. Each and every word is true and attached with everybody's life.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you liked it! :)
DeleteKudos to Krishna.
ReplyDeleteKudos to her! :)
DeleteI read all your blogs in one go...all of them are inspiring nd touching...keep the gud work going Shesha...:-)
ReplyDeleteThankyou so much Anshul. This is a very motivating comment :)
DeleteThey work so hard. They struggle so much!! I never had a maid but I have seen where they lived ... it made me feel even sad. Beautifully penned!
ReplyDeleteA Whimsical Medley
Twinkle Eyed Traveller
True Raj. They don't get even a permanent shack sometimes to live for rest of their lives.
DeleteThis was truly a heart warming post Shesha! How often we take our help for granted and realize it when it gets late. I believe every human being should be treated with respect regardless of their age or caste and being nice to them is the least we can do!
ReplyDeleteCheers
Geets
Thanks a ton Geets. Yes every human being should be treated with respect irrespective of where they come from!
Deletecompassionate post shesha, you brought out very well the plight of domestic workers in our country. They face a lot more problems working in few houses to run their own families. Appreciate you for sharing !!
ReplyDeleteThankyou so much for appreciating. They live a very downtrodden lives back at home!
DeleteThe folks work so hard despite the fact that they earn less and always manage a smile. Glad you wrote about your maid.
ReplyDeleteThanks Vishal for the appreciation! :)
DeleteThank you very much for a very an instructive article! I totally agree with you, does not really matter who the person works, because it does not need to form an opinion of them. For example, I found the person to clean my house here https://youdo.com/india/ahmedabad-services/household-cleaning-services/ and with deep respect communicate with that person.
ReplyDeleteHi,
ReplyDeleteThanks for share this useful information. We are all give respect to them.....
House maids in chennai