Even as we are bombarded with hundreds of social media posts, some of them stay with us for the sheer intensity of emotions they evoke. And this time it’s a heartwarming Facebook post of a Kerala man describing a selfie that he took with his wife in front of the Kochi International stadium that has moved us to tears.
Ramesh Kumar N, a resident of Kochi, took to Facebook to talk about ‘Achu’ as he refers to his wife and her desire to see Sachin Tendulkar. The moment of the fulfilment of his wife’s desire was worth noting for him because it was at time when her cancer had relapsed for the second time.
Calling it one of his “favourite photos”, Ramesh writes how ‘Achu’ bravely fought cancer by saying ‘You can only weaken my body. You cannot weaken my soul and my spirit even if you try 10,000 times’.
“During the ISL, from the moment she came to know that Sachin (Tendulkar) will be coming to watch the Kerala Blasters’ match, she wanted to go to see him. But around that time, her cancer relapsed for the second time and we began second line chemotherapy treatment. Unfortunately, it was about four days before Sachin’s arrival to see the match that we started the chemo,” Ramesh writes.
In the midst of her chemotherapy she asked him, “Will we not be able to go see Sachin now?” The awareness that she was in the last stage of cancer made the moment more poignant.
Despite her frail health and knowing that a trip to the stadium to watch the match might compromise her health further, Ramesh writes, “...at that point I felt that was the right thing to do”.
When his wife said,“We are all going to die one day, I am not afraid of death. Are you willing to take me?” that sealed the deal for him.
He went on to make arrangements. “...went to a friend’s place in Kochi, booked tickets for the match in the stadium, arranged four friends to stay with us during the match, made note of the emergency exits and the way to hospital,” Ramesh writes.
All arrangements made, they found themselves in the Kochi stadium with the police on standby for support and an emergency ambulance at their service.
And then the moment she had been waiting for arrived. “She looked the most beautiful that day. Amidst the chants of ‘Blasters’, ‘Sachin, Sachin’, we managed to forget our pain,” Ramesh notes.
“She set a great example to follow with her determination and grit while facing great difficulties and even death. She set off on her journey from the earth, but her strength definitely shook the power of death itself. There will be hurdles, but never give up. Fight till your last breath. Life is beautiful, stay happy every second. God bless you all,” Ramesh concludes.
(This article has been published in an arrangement with The News Minute)
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