Life’s Uncertainty: Visiting a Friend Who Got a Second Chance

Just a few days back, when I was at my office working, I was called by one of my friends who informed me that he was going to visit one of his friends at his home. That friend had actually gone through a fatal accident almost a month before in the Punjab state of India, where he had gone for business matters. While he was fixing the tire and replacing a flat tire of his car, he was hit by a moving vehicle. The impact was so severe that he immediately lost consciousness and was left with a broken leg, skull fractures, broken ribs, and some internal injuries to his organs.

I had no such idea before, and I felt that he might have gone through a minor accident. My friend was just going to see him and invited me to accompany him as he had also got one of our old friends with him. I was not going to deny and was quick to respond yes. Now it was time to leave the office for the same reason. Only after taking the consent of my boss, I left my office and went to a nearby town where I had kept my car parked, as I had to join my friends who were coming along with their car. Now it was time to spend some time together. As we have been childhood friends, we enjoy every moment together.

My friend, who had studied in a local engineering college throughout his engineering studies, had met this boy there, and since then they have been friends. Through my friend only, I came to know this boy from the Bandipora district of our division at my friend’s wedding. He was also there, and we had our meal together, which actually gave us a good opportunity to know each other. Since then, he has been more like a friend to me as well.

I was shocked to learn about the extent of what he had been through, and I couldn’t believe my ears at first because such incidents hardly make a place in one’s mind so quickly. Anyways, after covering a distance of about 40 km, we entered the Bandipora district and crossed the river Jhelum. We were unaware that we would need to cross very narrow and poorly maintained roads because of the construction of a Ring Road, a major project being executed in the valley right now. For that reason, the connecting roads have gone into a dilapidated condition.

We followed Google Maps and, as it usually happens, it again led us to a very narrow path where driving was never easy. Still, we somehow managed and were able to get back onto the main road. Only after contacting our friend was it possible for us to return properly to the main road that led towards his place. Our friend lives in the Hajin area of Bandipora district, which is not very deep into the district but rather a peripheral area sharing its boundaries with the Baramulla district.

Anyways, upon entering their house and seeing our friend for the first time, it was not easy at all. It was quite an emotional moment because seeing such a cheerful boy unable to move even an inch and not even able to talk properly was heartbreaking. All this had happened because of the negligence of a driver who might have been drunk or simply driving carelessly. This innocent boy had committed no mistake; he was just replacing the flat tire of his car on the roadside.

Thanks to the healthcare system in Punjab, which actually gave him another chance at life, as he himself told us. According to him, it was only because of the efforts of the doctors and medical staff in the hospital that he survived. Their dedication helped him live again, and only because of those doctors were we able to see our friend once more.

No doubt he talked very little, but he expressed deep gratitude to those doctors who helped him live again. I felt that being a doctor is truly a noble profession. Doctors earn not only money but also respect, honour, gratitude, and countless blessings from the people whose lives they save.

Life is so unpredictable that one cannot always think of the future with certainty. One must always keep such possibilities in mind when making plans in life because losses and hardships are also a part of life. Keeping this reality in mind keeps a person humble and grounded.

After spending some time with our friend, we decided to leave as it was getting late. Since we were fasting, we could not eat anything there. They insisted a lot that we stay until the time for breaking the fast, but we could not stay because the journey back home was about 60–70 km and would take us a couple of hours, which it eventually did.

Every human should remember that not everything will go according to one’s plans and wishes. Sometimes things happen against our will, and for that a person must always be prepared.