P.S – I Love You

‘I love you’, three words we all would have said to someone at some point of time in our lives. These three words we would have heard or would be still waiting for someone to whisper into our ears.

I felt love, when I was 19 but I never realised that it is such an indispensable feeling without which there is no life, even if you are alive. I met her and she changed my definition of love. She made me understand that love is much above the bond between parent to a child, husband to a wife, man to a woman or brother to a sister. It is a colour that can add millions of shades to someone’s life, someone who has lost all hopes to live or maybe that someone who is just living on a hope.

May 2011 at Apollo Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad, India, where I met her and there was something she took my attention. I was still in my 30s and she was many years ahead of me. I was limping with my bandaged foot when I reached my doctor’s room for post operative examination. Like always, there was a long queue of patients before me.

What interests me while waiting is to look around and watch people? It was no different on that day as well. I was waiting and searching for place to sit when I saw her, a 75 year old person indeed so old that she could not make it out that I have asked her to make some room for me to sit. He was very feeble and you could actually count her veins and arteries.

Gradually, I realised that she was hard of hearing so I chose to stand and wait. The waiting lounge at Apollo is always packed as if we have all sick people at one place under one roof or there are no other hospitals left in the city. Somehow she could make out my discomfort while standing with my bandaged foot and she offered me place to sit. She acted to explain to me that I am so thin that I can adjust into A small frame of space as she moved towards her right. I just smiled and my eyes could convey my gesture of thanks.

Finally, I was called by my doctor after an hour’s wait. I took my bag and medical report to make a quick move. The moment I got up, the old woman held my bag and pasted a tag on it. The tag read – ‘P.S – I Love You’.

Even before I could ask her, she gave me a printout that has the following text printed on it.

“Please convey my message to people you meet in life that you love them as they are the most wonderful creation of God. God created man to spread love and there are still many who are left untouched with the feeling of being loved. The word ‘love’ gives ‘hope’ to ‘live’ and ‘peace’ to ‘die’. In my 70s, I am doing this for every person, I meet in a day and who can carry my message to others and today you took my attention. So you are one of my messengers for the day to spread the message of love to everyone around. Just say – ‘P.S – I Love You’”.

I felt so touched that I could not control my tears. Using my poor sign language, I tried to convey to her – ‘I love you too,

On my way back to home, I gave the same tag to my wife. The old woman helped me to understand the basic aspect of love beyond expectations and relationships. She made me learn that love is not a need but it is a medicine for all ailments. Unconditional love and selfless expression of love is something that is missing in today’s world. We have forgotten humanity and it is taken over by hatred crossing borders and countries. All we need is someone like an old woman/man who can just come for few hours and tag us with a small note saying – ‘P.S – I love you’. Life is too short to love someone so why to find time to hate.

I will end this story with a small message – ‘P.S – I LOVE YOU’.