Lesson learned after the Accident

It was afternoon time and the day was Friday. Most of the staff had gathered near the main gate area waiting for others staffs to join them to ride in a bus so that they can leave office for home on that particular day.  But before the bus left with staff that day a horrible accident happened, which shook all the those who witness the scene.

Next day was the Saturday, the big front lawn is opened for us to play all day so when we went out there was big space covered by the blood stains nearby the gate. Of course not blood but may be people who was suppose to clean it was in too much shock to clean it completely. It was only brushed and then tried to cover it up, with some sand that was nearby. Sand or the dusty dry clay had absorbed the blood but not cleaned it entirely at the spot where accident had taken place.

Its not easy for me, today to remember the month or even the season, when that grave accident happened. Forget about that, I don't even know how old I was when this happened. But like it happens in life always, it  happens when one is least prepared.

During that time Bal Mandir had one big bus, which needless to tell you, it got as donation. It used to serve as a shuttle bus to all the staffs of the Nepal Children’s Organisation and may be also to the Social Welfare Council, although I am quite not sure about this part. If I was not mistaken this, it was the biggest bus at that time. Or maybe it was biggest bus because, I had no idea how big bus in time used to roll in the street of Kathmandu during that era. You know, I was kind of jail of Bal Mandir. We were never used to go out but the place was so big in itself that we hardly needed to go out to play with our friends and we had enough friends to spend time with also. However, please don't get me wrong, we not needing to go out was planned as there used to be a 24 hour gatekeeper stationed at the door, who used to sleep in the attached room, who was to make sure that we don't cross that main door.

I really don't know what exactly went wrong that day, was there bus helper missing on that particular day ? No idea. But, as the driver was taking a hard and long turn to steer its wheel heading towards the gate and a slight turn of a wheel, a lady staff came under its merciless powerful wheel, which killed her instantly.

As I am trying to remember the name of the driver and its really not striking in my head. See, I am not known for my good memory power.  It really stuns me to get it that we used to call him with his name thousands of time, when we were young yet I can't remember the very name. Maybe his name was Asta Dai. After that incident he had to face the police case and he was even jailed for the death.

Death of a woman or the jail for the driver of the bus was just the beginning of a story only. But, the story does not end there. Not all the death or the accidental kill by a driver is premeditated, which needs to be punished every time such death happens in ones life. As the lady whose name was Mira, was not married, there was no one who could mourn the death of her for whole year as they do here in Nepal. Anyone can identify those mourners by paying slight observation, because they wear white dress from top to bottom for a whole year. Therefore, Asta Dai did all needed rituals during the months that followed, all the ritual as her son would have done if she was married and have children. By caste they were way different, he was from newar community and she was from bahun community but that accident just eliminated that caste bar for him. He did served certain months maybe in jail; as I am not quite sure about the full term he served then but that accident did gave us a chance to see the other side of him the better side of him, as a good human being and not just as a good worker. And all this came in light because there was a sudden death, a life that was shorted without a warning, an accident which could not be averted.

When I look back and try to understand the lesson this particular incident  left in my mind is this teach me one lesson, distinctly. Accident happens when we least expect it and when we are least prepared. No one can predict it, control it and no one can avert it too, but how we face it define us who we are rather than who we were before the accident. We all used to see him from the different kind of respect even if his slightest mistake cut short a life.

Asta Dai was a good man and one of the best driver but he was a good human being deep in his heart was revealed, only when there was that horrible accident which took one woman's life.