An Idealistic Legacy to Follow

A Tribute to My Father, Mohammad Alam, Superannuated Chief Manager (Power Grid). 

On 26th April, one of the most precious persons, my father, passed away because of Covid-19 related complications. We did not realize when Papa first got the fever on the 16th that he would never pull through and the next 10 days would be so tormenting for our family.

My Papa was born and brought up in Hasanpur (UP), India. His interest in further studies took him to Moradabad and after Engineering he went to join his first job in J&K. After that he was transferred to various places: Uttarakhand, W.B, Rajasthan, UP, and his last post was in A.P. 

In his professional career, he was recognized for his honest work and excellent service several times. A testimony of the same was that even after retirement, he was called back to resolve some issues. He wrote safety guidelines for his staff, over and above his responsibilities, and several articles and poems for his department magazine - The Grid news. 

During his various postings, we all family members too moved with him and explored different places and cultures. He taught us how to live in harmony with those different cultures by accepting the language, food, and clothes in our lives, and yet to never forget our own roots. During our vacations, Papa used to take us to his native place and catch up with all our relatives and friends.

We always observed him as a punctual and honest man at his work and very active in social life as well. When he was at home, he was a simple person helping mom with the daily chores and giving us time too by helping with our studies and playing with us all sorts of games. I remember while playing chess or cricket he always set a tough target for us to win and when we expressed our disappointment for the same he used to tell us to work hard and focus more to achieve, as nothing comes easily. He was not only a teacher, or playing friend for us, he was super hands-on for fixing anything in the house, whether it was electrical or plumbing issues or fixing toys, telephone, bicycle, and bat to anything which belonged to us.

In his youth he loved painting and enjoyed writing poetry, and after retirement, he started writing his blog. I remember when I wrote my first poem I showed that to him with a lot of apprehension, but to my surprise he appreciated it and fixed errors and also gave me a diary to write in with the advice not to touch topics like religion and politics because of the lack of knowledge. This is how I was encouraged to start my writing journey. My paintbrush also started with his encouragement, and none of my pieces of art were ever completed without his finishing touches. I remember when I learned to drive from him, in the first two days just kept explaining about the functioning of the car engine and other brake systems, etc., and after that, he trained me to change the Stepney, only after that, I was allowed to hold the steering. It irritated me then, but now I understand the value of his meticulousness. He not only wanted me to learn to drive systematically, but also to be ready for emergencies.

I remember one incident when he went to Bangalore on his official tour and stayed in an average hotel, although he was entitled to luxury hotels. When I asked the reason, he said that he wanted to save the government’s money, as it could be used somewhere else where it was needed more. At that time I didn’t understand his principle, but now I realize the value of those ideals in my own life.

We are five siblings and he became an institution for all of us, teaching us all that was important in every social and religious aspect. We all got an excellent education and moved abroad following our dreams. He remained here in India and was just happy with the success of his children, just as a gardener is ecstatic looking at his grown-up and blooming trees. 

Even after his retirement, he never gave up his disciplined routine. An ‘Early to bed, early to rise’ man who hardly missed his prayers, morning walks, and yoga and always tried to be on a balanced diet to keep himself fit and to set an example for all. He always pushed us to maintain a healthy lifestyle. This was the reason that even though we were far away from him, we hardly felt worried about him. He was so fit that he was always ready with a shovel to maintain his kitchen garden and shared pictures of fruits, vegetables, and flowers in the family group that always filled us with new life energy. 

He was a person who never sat idle. He devoted himself to social work and always stood by with the people who needed him. In lockdown time too he started teaching his NRI grandson on Skype and made entertaining short videos for his grandchildren. A quiet presence - always working, always thinking about helping others, always desirous to earn good deeds for his afterlife. He would always greet everyone with his gentle smile and humble nature, because of which he left a deep imprint on all whom he met.

 Our mother was his loving world. His poetry surrounded her to please. He took care of her health, monitored her blood pressure and blood sugar levels and gave sweet surprises to her by making bedtime tea to special dishes as well. Yes, he loved to cook food also and was always filled with joy, with little compliments on his skill. 

It was 13 April when he felt feverish. Our youngest brother from Taiwan was with him and took him to the hospital on 16 April when he noticed some respiratory problem. A dedicated team of doctors attended, who were Angels for us. He received medical attention from day one with a hospital bed, medicines, injections, oxygen cylinders, and plasma all arranged, but his condition kept on deteriorating. 

Our hyper-cautious Papa always took precautions and asked others too to practice social distancing, wear masks, and wash hands, but we lost him in the battle against the pandemic. Worst of all is, four out of five siblings could not even be there in his last moments because of traveling being not allowed. The youngest brother, who had reached a few weeks ago, had to manage all alone from hospitalization to burial. 

The Trauma that my brother went through for 9 days in hospital witnessing my father in immense pain and watching so many infected people and dead bodies being taken away by their relatives screaming in despair is something that we can only empathize with and pray that he comes out of such a situation soon.

Although our youngest brother was physically there, we all siblings stood with him emotionally and worked as a unit to provide him local help through our contacts. We too were struggling emotionally thinking that when will we finally be able to reach him, whether we will ever be able to see or meet him again. However, we are the proud children of such an honest and hard-working father whose life is an example to us and his values would be a guideline throughout our life. He set an idealistic legacy for us to follow.

I would like to thank all those who helped us - friends, family, and even strangers to whom I missed saying thank you. In that trying time, a simple ‘call me anytime, I am here’ or ‘you are not alone, we are with you’ meant a lot. I like to dedicate this write-up to all corona victims and warriors. May these departed souls rest in peace. Our prayers are for the strength of the family members, who lost their loved ones.