THE MAN WHO CAME BACK WITH A GIFT

THE MAN WHO CAME BACK WITH A GIFT OF BANANAS
It was a hot humid day in the small hospital at the edge of a forest. I had finished seeing the last of my patients. I longed to go home, have a refreshing bath and put my tiered legs up and rest. Just then I heard a lot of commotion in outside my corridor. I rushed out of my room to see what it was, two of my nurses and a male attendant were rushing in with a man thrashing about on a stretcher pouring blood from a neck wound.
I reached the side of the stretcher in a flash and saw blood spurting from the wound in his neck; I rammed my thumb and my hand to cover the wound and press it to stop bleeding with all my might while my mind raced to decide on my next step. There was no time to lose, I yelled for the nurses to run and open the operation theatre and get the nurse who can give some aesthetic to quieten him.
I got one of the heavy bodied nursed to put her hand where my hand had been pressing for dear life to stench the flow of blood and quickly scrubbed and changed into the operating gown.
I asked the nurse wait till the patient was put to sleep and then gingerly release her pressure. I quickly stuffed a mop into the wound while I gently probed the wound to clearly see where the bleeding was from. I saw that the cut was very deep and had cut a large blood vessel and gone deep into his throat.
I patiently with stitched the torn blood vessel as well as the muscles covering his throat. The injury looked so bad I was almost sure that he will not be able to speak even if he is lucky to survive this severe injury.
It had taken almost 4 hours and then he was shifted to a special care area. I was dead tiered but wanted to speak to the family.
I went and called out; there was only a lone young women standing silently weeping. I told her that I had done the best I could but wasn’t sure how things would turn out. She sobbed when she heard this, and then I asked her how this had happened. She then recounted the story between sobs.
She and her father had come to attend the wedding of a relative, traveling from a faraway town. There were much drinking and dancing and jostling at the wedding. Her father did not drink as they had to return home soon after the wedding was over. As they were getting ready to leave a group of drunk young men grabbed her had refusing to let her leave and started teasing her, this angered her father and he pushed one of them away. Before anyone could defuse the situation another drunk man grabbed a sickle and slashed the father’s throat. Soon a big crowed overpowered the young men and then carried the father to the hospital.
The next two days were critical while Maji the father hovered between consciousness and unconsciousness. He slowly started to recognize his surroundings and was able to recognize his daughter. He tried to speak but was only a hoarse whisper hardly audible.
The villagers had thrashed the drunken young men black and blue and brought them to Maji to beg for his forgiveness. The village headman also brought the local policeman to file a case against the four youth who misbehaved.
Maji refused to file a case saying that the young men have learned a lesson and he forgives them. Maji grew stronger as he began to eat food and was well enough to go home in about two weeks. His voice was still barely audible. I told his daughter that they could go home, Maji and his daughter came and quietly waited outside my examining room. I called them in; they fell at my feet to thank me profusely for saving his life. With tears streaming down his face confessed that he had already spent the little money they had on food for himself and his daughter so had no money left to pay the hospital bill. But he promised he would come back and settle all the expenses and pleaded with me to trust him.
I was touched by his quiet dignity and forgiving nature and so sent them away with my good wishes. They waved good bye to all the hospital staff as they left.
I had got back to my busy routine at the hospital and forgot about Maji I was busy one morning about 4 months later when a respectable looking middle-aged man and a young girl and an equally dignified middle-aged lady walked in. I recognised the young lady as some one familiar but could not place her. At this point the middle-aged man said dear Doctor I am Maji whose life you saved. I have also brought my wife to meet you. His voice was almost normal and was looking very healthy. He handed me a paper packet saying this is the money I owed the hospital, there is some extra money which I want you to use for some poor person who encounters a misfortune like me. His daughter then carried in a large cardboard box and opened it was full of banana’s. she said it was the first crop of bananas from our garden for all the staff of the hospital,
I sat there stunned at the goodness and generosity of this dignified man who in spite of the misfortune and suffering he had undergone, was so gracious and forgiving. All I could do was to give him a big hug and it was my turn to say thank you to him being such a remarkable human being. All the hospital staff who were watching this interaction clapped with Joy and appreciation.