The Daydreamer

Once an oil man was going to market with his pots of oil arranged on a flat basket, and he engaged a tribal for two rupees to carry the basket. And as he went along, the tribal thought: With one rupee I will buy food and with the other I will buy chickens, and the chickens will grow up and multiply, and then I will sell some of the fowls and eggs, and with the money I will buy goats.

And when the goats increase, I will sell some and buy cows, and then I will exchange some of the calves for she-buffaloes, and when the buffaloes breed, I will sell some and buy land and start cultivation, and then I will marry and have children, and I will hurry back from my work in the fields, and my wife will bring me water, and I will have a rest, and my children will say to me, "Father, be quick and wash your hands for dinner," but I will shake my head and say, 'No, no, not yet!"

And as he thought about it he really shook his head, and the basket fell to the ground, and all the pots of oil were smashed.

Then the oil man abused him and said that he must pay ten rupees for the oil and one rupee for the pots. But the tribal said that he had lost much more than that, and the oil man asked him how that could be, and the tribal explained how with his wages he was going to get fowls and then goats and then oxen and buffaloes and land, and how he came to spill the basket, and at that the oil man roared with laughter and said, "Well, I have made up the account, and I find that our losses are equal, so we will cry quits."

And so saying they went their ways laughing.

It pays to be modest and humble...

There once lived a proud driver in China. He was the driver of the Prime Minister. One day the Prime Minister happened to drive through the street where the driver lived with his wife. Some neighbour's saw him drive the Prime Minister and were excited.

One of the neighbours ran to the driver's home and said to driver's wife - "Quick! See who is driving the Prime Minister? Your husband."

The wife ran out to see her husband drive the chariot of the Prime Minister. She saw her husband drive past her with his head held high up in the air, arrogant and proud.

When the driver returned home that evening, his wife did not speak to him.

He asked her, "Why are you unhappy."

She said, "I want to divorce you."

The driver got the shock of his life. He asked," Why, why do you want to divorce me?"

She replied, "Look at the Prime Minister, he sat with great modesty in the chariot. You are but his driver, yet you are so arrogant, that is why I want to leave you."

The driver realized his mistake. He understood that the better a person gets, more humble should he be to gain respect. From that day onwards, he became more humble.

The Prime minister noticed the change in him.

He asked the driver, "Why have you changed your manner of behaviour?"

The driver replied, "My wife admonished me, and I think she is right."

The Prime Minister admired his change in attitude, took him to the king and said, "Your Honour, my driver is a man of virtue, he has the courage to correct his own mistakes."

Recognizing the merit in this, the king said, "Good! He should be given an official post."

The driver was made an officer. He discharged his duties with great modesty, and lived happily ever after.

Why Dogs Chase Cats

Once long ago, Dog was married to Cat. They were happy together, but every night when Dog came home from work, Cat said she was too sick to make him dinner. Dog was patient with this talk for a while, but he soon got mighty tired of fixing dinner for them both after a hard day's work. After all, Cat just stayed home all day long.

One day, Dog told Cat he was going to work, but instead he hid in the cupboard and watched Cat to see if she really was sick. As soon as Cat thought Dog had left, she started playing games with Kitten. They laughed and ran about. Cat wasn't the least bit sick.

Dog jumped out of the cupboard. When Cat saw him, she stuck a marble in her cheek and told Dog she had a toothache. Dog got so mad at her he started chasing her around and around the house.

Dogs have been chasing Cats ever since.

My wife has returned home this evening...

After 36 days in hospital (out of which 13 days were in ICU - the first 4 days of which were on life-support systems), Priti has returned home this evening (at 8 p.m.).

Priti is completely cured of septicemia and all her major organs, excepting for her kidneys, are functioning normally. By God's grace, her kidneys will also recover - until then she will be on twice a week dialysis.

Five weeks ago, this time, we had no assurance from the doctors whether Priti would leave the ICU alive. The marvels of modern medical science, coupled with prayers and good wishes from innumerable friends, relatives, office colleagues, SOS-India children and mothers and countless well wishers have brought Priti back to her family. My thanks to all of you.

My thanks also to the relatives and friends who have donated the innumerable pints of blood that were required during the early days of the crisis. Thanks also to all those who extended moral and physical help (including night stay duty) - and to the relatives and my Campus Law Centre friends for their direct and indirect financial support.

God bless you all!

Priti's Septicemia is almost cured...she has moved from bed to wheelchair...

Happiness...Priti's TLC count, this morning, has come down below the critical 11,000 mark - it is now 10,700. The blood poisoning seems to have been cured, though we will observe the count for a couple of days more for stability.

Priti is clear that her kidneys have started functioning a bit. The doctors have to confirm. A biopsy is planned.

Yesterday, after three and a half weeks of being in a horizontal position, Priti moved from bed to wheelchair.

Priti is making slow but steady progress...

Priti is making slow but steady progress. Her TLC count had come down to 14,800 three days ago - but then shot up to 16,200 the next day (after dialysis), giving us a bit of a scare. However, it came down to 13,300 the day after, and, this morning, after a very early morning dialysis, has come down further to 12,700. We are within reach of normalcy - which will be indicated by a TLC count of 11,000.

Doctors have discovered a thyroid problem - this could have been the reason for her sluggishness and lethargy and lack of appetite. It is being treated...in fact, this morning, Priti is extremely chirpy, God bless her! She is also eating well.

The prayers and wishes of all our friends, relatives and well wishers are working very well...I request you all to keep up the good work. I thank the children and mothers of SOS Children's Villages around the country and my co-workers for their regular prayers for my wife recovery.

Priti's kidneys are showing some movement towards recovery (in terms of urea and cretinine indicators). It is early days yet - but I am convinced that they will recover.

Priti's stay in hospital has been extended. She will not come home this week but, maybe, early next week. The antibiotic treatment will continue until the TLC count stabilises below 11,000. The alternate day dialysis will continue until the kidneys show stronger recovery.

Priti's BP, platelet count and HB count are stable and normal.

Thank you so much for your support. And those who gave blood - thanks again.

Priti's septicemia is almost cured...she is talking and eating normally...

Priti's TLC count is now down to 14,300 - just 3,300 points away from absolute normalcy. At this rate, she should be cured and out of the hospital by Tuesday/Wednesday. Her HB count is a normal 9.3. Her platelet count is 1,20,000...which is also high enough and good.

Priti's urea and cretinine counts are high - her kidneys are still not doing the job they are supposed to do. Therefore, alternate day dialysis continues - the next one being today.

We are hoping and praying that her kidneys resume functioning in a week or two.

Update on my wife's condition...

Priti is making steady progress, thanks to the wishes and prayers of innumerable friends and well wishers. Her TLC is down to 17,100 - down from 80,000 over two weeks ago. The requirement is 11,000 - this will show that the septicemia (blood poisoning) is out of her system. Hopefully, she will reach this figure in 3/4 days. Her BP is steady at 130. Her platelet count is maintained at an excellent 1,50,000. Her HB count is 9.8 - better than her normal count of just 7.4 earlier. She has stopped vomiting out bile - her liver seems to have recovered and she has started eating reasonably from yesterday.

Priti was slightly depressed for a couple of days - she was not talking, eating or opening her eyes. This has changed a bit yesterday - she is responding to family and friends. All that is now needed is for her kidneys to resume functioning. Until then she is on alternate day dialysis - to remove toxins from her system.

If the TLC count comes down to 11,000 in 3/4 days, she could be discharged from hospital and return home by middle/end of next week.

Family, friends and well wishers (including the vast SOS family worldwide - the organisation I work for) have rallied behind my daughters and me in our hour of crisis with prayers, blood donations and even financial support. I would like to place on record my thanks to my law college friends, some of who are now leading judges and lawyers of India, who organised a collection drive to help meet a part of Priti's hospitalisation costs. May God bless all my family members and friends for caring so much.

Priti is out of ICU...

Priti being transferred to her room...

Priti has been moved out of ICU after a 13 day stay and is now comfortably settled in her own private room in Apollo Hospital.

The prayers and wishes of friends, relatives, office colleagues, neighbours, acquaintances and well wishers (not to mention the large numbers of blood donations) have ensured that she is out of danger - she is no longer critical.

Priti's TLC is down to 24,000 (it was 80,000+ last week). This means that the septicemia is slowly but surely receding.

Her platelet count has gone up from under 20,000 to 1,77,000 (without the support of any plasma or platelet transfusion in the last 3 days). Her blood pressure is finally stable (it has gone up to 120+ from under 70).

Priti's HB is 8.9 - it was only 7.4 yesterday, but a blood transfusion in the evening has pushed it up.

We are now waiting for her kidneys to start functioning again. A MR scan two days ago indicated that the collapse has been "acute" - so the recovery may take a little longer. She needs dialysis every alternate day. Please pray for her complete recovery.

I thank all friends, relatives, office colleagues, neighbours, acquaintances and well wishers for their support and prayers.

Priti is critical...

On Saturday, January 19th, Priti - my beloved wife of 18 years - underwent a minor gynecological operation in a reputed hospital near our home. The operation was a success. Priti was scheduled to return home the next morning.

While Priti rested in her room with my mother-in-law sitting by her bedside, my two daughters and I went to a nearby restaurant for a celebratory lunch.

Our happiness was terribly premature. Destiny has not been kind to us. On Saturday evening, hours after the operation, Priti had to be rushed to the ICU in a critical state. Apparantly, a blood transfusion post-surgery caused a severe reaction in Priti's body - some of her organs (kidneys and lungs) had shut down and her blood had got badly infected - she had become a victim of blood poisoning (septicemia).

On Sunday morning, she was shifted to one of the best hospitals in Delhi (Apollo) - and she has been in the ICU there ever since, on life-support. She remains extremely critical. Please please pray for her.

She may have a surgery this morning.

Friends, relatives and office colleagues have overwhelmed us with their support. We have received innumerable pints of blood - more has been committed.

Priti's life hangs on a thread - my daughters Piya and Panvi and I need your prayers.