I believe that God has bestowed talent and ability in all of us. When you develop that ability and faith in yourself , then you believe that you're a person of influence and purpose. I believe that this kind of a person can rise out of any situation and shine like a star.
On a fine day in 2016 December, scrolling down the fb page ,listening to the Shabad of Gurbani, my eyes fell upon a familiar face. A chin that I cannot forget. You may just laugh at me to hear, I saw my childhood friend. I still remember she was my first friend to give me a phone call. At the age of seven, it was a precious thing and it remains a precious memory.
It was SOUMITA BASU, a clever classmate and a good friend of mine. I poked her profile and there I saw that my class topper of 1998 was touching heights in her profile too. My gray matter thought at that time that god is giving some indications of some kind. Soon we became fb friends and months passed on, and we never contacted each other. No calls or messages, only fb likes .
Years passed by and in 2018 once again I heard about my Bengali friend on fb, but not in good health . Curiosity is one of the forms of feminine bravery and I gave her a call from messenger. I was so glad to hear her voice and I greeted her in Bengali "Kemon acho" (how are you?) and we both laughed out our hearts. Years flashed before our eyes .... then I asked about her health ?
A long silence interrupted our smiles as she revealed, she was suffering from Psoriatic arthritis and
Rheumatoid arthritis.
I just asked WHAT IS THAT ? And she explained her ailment. That she was on a wheelchair with very limited mobility of her hands and legs. I was speechless and could only remember the shabad of Guru Nanak Dev ji "Nanak Dukhiya Sab Sansar". I didn't want to give her sympathy like others , but my heart wanted to shower her with a light of hope. Hope that might enlighten her path. A year passed, and we remained in contact with each other. Fiends, family and, of course, doctors sprinkled a ray of hope in her. Hope, positive attitude towards life and support of good doctors can help anyone win over any ailment . It is rightly said " Dawa Aur Dua Ek Sath mil jaaye to Jyada Asar Hota Hai."
Dates and months on the calendar passed and one day I got a WhatsApp video from my daring friend SOUMITA . When I played the video I was so glad to see her walking once again.
Yes! Soumita was once again in good health , Yes, she has pushed herself out, and standing back on her feet.
She still needs a lot of physical support. She is dependent on her caregiver, mainly her mother, for many of her daily functions. Her hands and fingers are still deformed and whole body continues to be in chronic pain.
But she is getting better. And much to the surprise of doctors who find her story a miracle.
SHE DREAMT, SHE WISHED, AND SHE DID IT.
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At present, she is the founder and owner of ADAPTIVE CLOTHING a firm which designs clothes for people with physical challenges.
Hats off to the sheer courage, creativity, and grit of my friend Soumita Basu who, after losing a substantial part of her mobility to an autoimmune disease, has started a line of easy to wear, aesthetic garments for people with physical challenges - Zyenika Adaptive Wear.
