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Riff-raffs!

I feel blessed to be a doctor in a rural set-up.
Just sitting in my clinic on a busy monday morning brings in a hundred and eighty colourful characters with stories of their own.Some of them endearing to say the least.
Gopal Chaurasia,a strapping 26 yrs old is brought in to my OPD.I know Gopal from a few years ago when he was diagnosed to have pleural effusion and was treated with DOTS.He responded well.
He had developed a bout of haemoptysis .
A repeat X-ray of the chest showed a fresh pneumonic patch.
My line of questioning went along a predictable route but you never know where it is going to lead when you have innocence personified on the receiving end.
Have you ever migrated for work elsewhere?
Gopal's mother-No never!-He is my good son who never goes out of my sight.His daily routine varies between going to the sweet shop where he sells them and coming back home.
Are you married?
Gopal's mother-How can he be married when he hasn't been getting any proposals.
How come? How old is he? Any ways in your society aren't you supposed to look for girls for your children?
Gopal's mother-No actually the offer has to come from the girl's side.He has been getting proposals but they are not big enough.
What is a big proposal?
Gopal's mother-Not rich enough.
Is that so?
Gopal's mother-Actually no,the proposals he's been getting are all from fat girls.
So what's wrong with that? .
Gopal's mother-Fat girls are angry girls( Now that was a strange logic!)-Gosh she would make my life hell.
They are also dark girls-I want a fair bride for my son.
No actually I just want a good girl for my son.God bless her!
Fatima Khatun had come from over two hundred kilometres away.She complained of breathlessnes .She was a spirited ,good natured old lady of around sixty-didn't in the least bit look sick.
As I examined her she started chatting.Her son apparently was one of my patients.He was away in his job .
He had written to her asking her to visit me,collect some medicines for the breathlessness and send it in a parcel to him.As a way of conversation I just asked her son's wherabouts she innocently blurted out -some place abroad called Kenya !!
Now that sure was a long distance medicine from Tumbagara to Kenya!!

Comments

Philip said…
Great stories! You could write a book of these kinds of stories.
March 31, 2009 at 10:33 AM
pixi said…
Thanks for your generous comment.
April 1, 2009 at 12:50 AM
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