Everyone
has a deep, dark fear lurking in the corner of their mind. Although
subconsciously they are aware of their phobia, they wouldn’t want to face their
fear. I have one such fear. The fear of losing people who are close to me; my
family and my friends. I am an introvert by nature, so I have very few friends, but I treasure them the most. That
is why I could relate to the author, Vasundhara Ramanujan and her poignant
story in her book, “Shades of Life-Sublime Joy is in Living”.
When
Mrs. Vasundhara’s fifteen year old son Aditya complained of a persistent
headache that wouldn’t go away even after 3 days, she visited her family
physician. They were shocked beyond belief when they learnt that a common
ailment like headache could be caused by a life-threatening condition called
kidney failure. What followed is the heart wrenching story of how Vasundhara
and her family helped Aditya to fight his disease and keep his hopes up.
When
medicines failed to save Aditya’s kidney, his family decided to go for a kidney
transplant. Vasundhara came forward to donate her kidney to her son, but
unfortunately she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her sheer determination and
grit to help her son and gift him a new lease of life helped her to fight her
cancer. After she completely recovered, her kidney was transplanted and Aditya was
free again. Free from the worries of dialysis, free to live his life the way he
wants, free to pursue the career of his choice. And he made the best of his
life. But after a decade of his first transplant, his kidney failed again.
Vasundhara floundered a second time to help her son survive this dreaded
disease. Aditya’s life was saved by his elder brother, Dhananjay who decided to
donate his kidney to his kid brother. But as a mother, can Vasundhara allow
this to happen. Can she ask her elder son to make a sacrifice that may affect
his future life? Vasundhara is at a crossroad. She wishes with all her heart
that her younger son be saved but her wish may cost her elder son’s happiness
and his brilliant future.
At
the very beginning of the book, Vasundhara states that the intention of writing
this book is not to entertain but to educate. To spread awareness of this
disease and she succeeds in her endeavor. She enlightens the reader about the
importance of kidney, the functions it performs in our body, what are the early
signs that can be used to detect kidney failure and how to take care of patients
once the transplant has been performed. And the best thing is, she explains
everything in layman’s terms which makes it easier for a person with a
non-medical background to understand renal failure.
At
160 pages, this book is a short read but gives abundant information about
kidney failure and shows how in adversity a family needs to stand together and focus
in sailing through difficult times. Truly inspiring!
P.S:
Did you know that after the heart and brain, the kidneys are probably the third
most important organ, on whose function a person’s survival rests? I dint but
after reading I book, I do.
On
a lighter note though, I would like to add that, just because you have two
kidneys in your body and you know that only one is sufficient to perform the
required function, you can’t abuse them.:) Have a healthy life.
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