Life is a constant clash between your strengths and weakness, especially when you are diagnosed with a disease that even doctors seem flummoxed by. You lose confidence and your hopes for the future seems to ebb. However, something within keeps you moving forward. Leaving onlookers wondering what that secret force is. This is exactly what I felt, the other day when I met and spoke to Padmashree Nagaraj at the SHEROES Summit 2016, at Bangalore.
Padmashree said she was a regular girl who had no special dreams but wanted to continue her work. However, she was constantly battling with her disease. Her health did not support her, yet she wanted to work and earn for herself, and her family.
I met and interacted was with lot of women from the SHEROES community at the event, but meeting Padmashree was one of the most beautiful experiences. Never in my life, had I seen such inner strength, and willpower. She could barely walk, but she came for the event full of energy and hoped to inspire others. Not many would have noticed her, but I saw that special something in her.
She had beautiful eyes, and a brilliant attitude towards life. The hope in her eyes, and sadness on her face was enough for me to understand her life’s struggles. Yet, I was awestruck by her inner strength and her willingness to live every second of life, to its fullest.
She started sharing the story of her life and I was sat there frozento my chair, thinking what could I offer to a person who herself was an inspiration to others.
Padmashree continued, “I had lost my way back in 2011 when I was diagnosed with a disease which confused my doctors. It started when once on my way back home I had nausea and an upset stomach. My family panicked and admitted me in the hospital. I was there for a week but the disease just couldn’t be diagnosed. Gradually, it started progressed, it was so difficult for me to even stand on my feet. The doctors asked me to rest and stop doing any work.
“I was very career oriented and had lot of ambitions. I got an opportunity to work the day after I finished my college. I started my career as a counsellor and changed my field to HR post that. Eventually, I moved up the ladder in HR as an Asst. Manager. But my disease forced me to quit everything and I was bedridden.
However, I still wanted to go to office and pushed myself harder and harder. It was solely my decision to continue my work. But after few days, and I couldn’t do it anymore and I had to quit everything. A few months passed and I was feeling very incomplete without my work. I started searching for work from home options. Eventually, I got an opportunity through SHEROES to work as an HR Consultant, from home.
The job has targets, and I am paid when I achieve them. I took this up as a challenge, and now I enjoy my work thoroughly. I am busy the whole day and don’t have time to think about my health worries. This new opportunity has taught me to divert my mind and achieve whatever I want to.”
When she completed what she wanted to say, I could only salute her for her will power and passion for work. I wondered how our priorities in life change when we face difficult situations. For some, success is about big cars, big home, unlimited money, but for some it’s just about getting work so that they can achieve something in life. I must say that the little joys of life make it really special. So we must appreciate whatever god has given us.
As the SHEROES founder, Sairee Chahal says, ‘it is easy to collect things but hard to collect experiences’. So, spend your time to gain new experiences everyday, instead of focusing on materialistic things in life. It might sound like ‘gyan’ but it’s also true that our experiences help the most when the chips are down. Those and savings. It is indeed about, Work-Life-Bank-Balance. I hope to meet Padmashree, again someday. I am sure we will both have a lot to talk about.
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