DEVOTED

THE DEVOTED

JOHN swayed and tossed in the bus as it weaved its way through the hilly terrain with occasional ‘U’ turns ,the lights in the far away houses losing its sheen. The air was smoky with the arid smell of rain. The bus turned an intersection and stopped. The conductor called out the stop and woke up John who seemed to linger and stoop to snooze. He hurriedly alighted with his bag and baggage. He saw the hospital’s name at a distance and trudged along . It was 7 pm and pitch dark ,the occasional semblance of the street light leading the way, with traffic grudgingly passing by.

On announcing his name to the old security man, John was led to the Medical Superintendent’s (MS)room. The senior doctor who was pleased to see him, scooped a file from the large mahogany table, and after reading it, dialled a number and mentioned his name. A tall fair nun sister ,tiptoed in and sat near the senior doctor. “Please take your seat” she said in a soft voice with a big smile. She grossed through the file ,reading it loud and smiled again , the sincerity lost in it. John handed over the appointment letter , the sister passed it to the senior doctor. “well,well !! Are you joining forthwith. John looked at his bag and nodded. “Fine, but we do not have a room for you at present”. John was taken aback. A three hundred bedded hospital with four specialties did not have an RMO’s quarters. “Funny , he said almost aloud.. The Sister lead him to the window and through it pointed out to a dilapidated quarters ,almost a kilometer from the back entrance of the hospital in 10 acres of thick vegetation. “ Will you stay there”? John nodded as it was also practically difficult to find an alternate place to stay in an unknown faraway place.. The Sister seems to be in a hurry to accommodate him in the quarters, as she called the security and gave the instruction to dust and clean it ,to the RMO’s satisfaction.

The security grudgingly led John shinning a torch to the quarters through a small lane with thick vegetation on either side. “Don’t you worry , it will be cleared tomorrow”. The door was chain locked and rusty. It was opened and the first room was dusted and cleaned. The quarters was fairly big with 5 separate bath attached rooms, a kitchen and a dinning room .John was weary and hungry, having traveled for nearly 8 hours. He handed over a hundred rupee note to the security for buying his dinner. “I will try in the canteen” he said and trudged back swaying to the strong cold wind blowing across with an eerie swishing sound. John had a shower and felt better for a good night’s sleep. The knock sounded rather very loud in the silence. John opened the door to see a thin young sister holding a tray laden with food and a mug full of milk. She announced that it was courtesy of the Mother superior who interviewed him. John accepted the tray with all smiles .”Please leave the tray outside after you finish” .John nodded. The sister tiptoed along. John slept like a log and woke up once to the sound of the clatter of the windows and the occasional fall of the coconuts on the roof. The bright stream of light woke him up and it was 7 am. John hurried as he had to report at 8 am. The knock sounded again and he opened to see the same sister say “Can I come in” John nodded. She laid the breakfast on the table neatly and informed that it was from the hospital canteen and left. She hardly spoke except what was required.

After breakfast which he literally swallowed , John hurried to report to the Medical Superintendent. He had a hero’s welcome ,the whole hospital rumour mill churning his arrival and staying in the quarters. The senior doctor and the Mother superior were present . He thanked the Sister for the dinner last night and she promised to send all the special items time and again. John was allotted to work in the department of Medicine for six months. He went to the OP and found the sisters unduly courteous , but the other medical officers were staring at him as though he was a freak. Some of the sisters were whispering and laughing at him .

By 2pm John returned to the quarters. The surrounding was breathtakingly beautiful with lot of vegetation, the sun streaming in ,yellow and gold through the trees. The whole quarters was spic and span, the menials crowding over to clean it. The same sister was waiting for him with a big tiffin box, a plate and bowls in a tray. He opened the door to let her in and she, neatly laid it on the table and left .Through the window , he could see her tiptoeing through the narrow lane leading behind and she walked with a distinct limp which he had not noticed before. John learnt from the security that food was usually served before at the canteen ,but the mother had instructed that it should be sent to his room . “I am happy that the sister has taken the responsibility to serve it in your room as I can’t trudge three times everyday”

The next day was routine ,but by 6 pm ,all the medical officers surrounded John in his room and traded charges against him showing a letter from the M.S. They all were asked to stay in the renovated quarters . They were till now staying with their family . “Now you will have to do the duty for all of us, as we can’t vacate and come here all of a sudden” John agreed to their terms as their grouse was genuine. John wanted to know why the quarters was kept looked for years ,to which everyone was evasive .

After a week ,John wanted to wash his clothes and requested help from the sister who used to serve his food regularly. She said she would find out a washer man nearby and wanted him to leave his room key behind .John after his usual hectic OP and In-patient rounds ,returned to find that all his clothes were washed and hung ,the key was left with the security by the sister. The next day all of them were ironed. John met her during lunch and expressed the desire to pay her monthly for the services rendered. She refused. John made it clear that her sevices were no longer required if she refused to be paid. She relented and accepted Rs 2000 every month. John also noticed that she was partaking the food left over by him , but he ignored it

After one year of hectic glorious service ,it was time to leave ,as he was selected for his Postgraduate studies at Chennai. John had earned the goodwill of all ,as he worked in all the specialties. He made it a point to inform everyone. John was to leave by the evening 7 pm bus. After the lunch which the sister had brought with special dishes ,John remembered to ask her name. She smiled and said it was ‘Sylvia’. She would just smile when he had asked her earlier .Then she left limping, tears flowing in her eyes by the lane through the back door of the compound. John would certainly miss her as she taken the trouble of even packing his bag. She had at least relented and allowed the security to take a photograph with him.

John then went to meet the Mother Superior .He thanked her for her sisterly affection and specifically wanted to inform the services rendered by “Sylvia’. The mother was surprised as there is no sister named ‘Sylvia” . “ She had a distinct limp” prompted John. “I am afraid there was no sister working in the hospital who has a limp. The mother could not recognise from the photo of Sylvia as it was very blurred . John left to pay his canteen dues and enquired there. John was informed that the food was delivered only to the security as per the instruction of the Mother. The security confirmed that the sister would come and take the food from his shed. John then enquired with the security at the back gate. He was informed that she would leave everyday by 8pm. John then left through the back door and enquired at the ramshackle houses and no one was able to recall ‘Sylvia’ As he returned ,he saw a cemetery near the back gate. John then left the hospital wondering about Sylvia and could not make head or tail out of it.

After his arrival in Chennai while unpacking he saw two envelopes ,one small and another big one. He opened the small one and found a letter crumbled and not very legible. It read

Dear doctor

I am Sylvia. I lost my husband in a tragic accident in this hospital where he was admitted in the ICU , one month after my marriage .It was a love marriage. I did not want to live after that. You have a resemblance like my husband. I was able to serve you for one year .Now ,my soul will certainly rest in peace..

Note: you will find Rs 24,000 in the other big cover. It is your money which you gave me for my services..I don’t have the need for it. Thank you

John was aghast. He now understood why the quarters was decrepit and the medical officers were not staying there .It must have being haunted by the girl’s ghost. The MS and mother superior were keen on renovating the quarters and used John for the purpose. He took the money, and hid the letter. To his surprise , the letter got lost, when he searched for it a month later. Till this day John had been unable to explain about the strange experience of how a ghost could tend to him like a sister and leave behind a letter, or is it a gimmick played by a real astute and intelligent sister ,to which the Mother superior had no answer.