The Joy of Not Being Able to Help

This is my experience of the week. This is how I found joy when I was NOT able to help a CoVid patient. The real joy is in seeing someone helped. If we are totally focussed on us being the one to help, then its our ego talking and is really not the purest form of help

• May 9 –   Lady in Trichy is diagnosed CoVid Positive and admitted. Remdivisir injection was needed.
• May 10-  Lady’s son in US messages to a group of  friends. 
• May 10 – One of the members of the group shares in another group that includes a Chap in Gurgaon. 
• May 10 – Chap in Gurgaon contacts his friend in Coimbatore. Coimbatore guy does not know anyone in Trichy. But says he will try.
• May 10 – Coimbatore guy sends message in the local WhatsApp group. Next door neighbour can help.
• May 11 – Neighbour shares contact in Trichy. However, it has to be procured from Chennai, extra day would be needed. There is some concern on genuineness. Day goes by. Patient is critical.
• May 12 – Son in US is assured that the source is genuine and can be relied upon.
• May 13 – Lady is able to get the injection procured from another source locally and matter is closed.
• May 13- Son in US sends a warm thanks note to guy in Coimbatore.

Guy in Coimbatore, is not disappointed, but overjoyed. Overjoyed that regardless of where the solution was finally procured from, the patient got what she needed.

Son in the US had a memorable experience of how a total stranger went out of his way to ‘Try’ to help.

These days, with shortage of everything, patients fighting hard and support people running around everywhere, joy on just getting the medicine in time, is unparalleled.

Many times, when someone sends a message to us, either in a group or 1:1, we react immediately in the negative, as prima-facie, we may not have the information or the connect needed to address the need.

For a transaction or exchange to be completed, it’s not always that the giver and receiver have a role to play. There are many other cogs or transaction points in between, whose role is also critical and without whom, the chain would not be complete. Try and be the ‘cog’ if you cannot be the giver. Do not ever undermine the importance of the ‘cog’, because without it, chain is not complete.

Success is not always the only reason for happiness, even making an attempt to help has a lot of value.