Compromise
The doctor had a look of surprise on his face when he asked Khadak Singh, “How have you broken 3 teeth simultaneously?” Khadak Singh explained the reason behind this to the doctor and said, “Today my wife prepared Halwa for me, but somehow that halwa became so hard that my 3 teeth broke while eating it.” The doctor again asked Khadak Singh, “If the Halwa had become so hard, then why did you not refuse to eat it in the first place?” Khadak Singh again answered in a muffled voice, “Doctor, had I refused to eat the Halwa, my wife would have definitely broken my entire set of 32, at that very moment.”
Hearing the reply of Khadak Singh, the doctor had a look of astonishment on his face as he said, “Although I have heard about newlywed couples failing to understand each other for a number of years in Canada and England, but it is quite surprising to hear such a scenario in India.” Looking at the doctor, Khadak Singh took a deep breath and said, “Sir, not only does this happen with foreigners, but it also happens with Indian people as well. I think you are still not married, because every married person is well aware of the fact that Marriage is basically a big compromise in Life. Even against your wishes, there are many things married people are forced to do because their partner likes them. Every married person has to make compromises to keep their married life running smoothly without any troubles. A famous poet has even composed a few lines on it that say…
“You don’t get everything in Life. Some are missing out on their piece of land, while some are deprived of their chunk of sky.” And not only in marriage, compromise is that reality which prepares us for the short-falls that we keep facing in our everyday life. Right from daily needs to indulgence in taste to facing difficult circumstances, men serving in armed forces have to make big compromises to face extremely difficult situations posed during their services to the country.”
Khadak Singh, who valiantly fought for his country in the Kargil War, had now taken voluntary retirement from the Army and had returned to his house. During his service in the Army, he was given the task of training the dogs. Doing his work with full involvement, Khadak Singh had slowly grown very fond of dogs. After coming back from the Army, Khadak Singh thought of bringing a dog at home to kill his boredom. So next day he headed towards a pet-shop owned by a veterinary doctor in his town. After reaching the shop, Khadak Singh had a close look at all the dogs available for sale, but the moment he saw their price tags, he was extremely disappointed and thought, “How can I afford these dogs?” Thinking of the price, he decided to go back empty handed from the shop. But just when he was at the main door of the shop, he saw a very lazy dog lying helplessly in the corner. When he asked about the price of that dog from the shopkeeper, the shopkeeper said, “Why are you so interested in that dog? That dog is not only sick, but it also has a limp due to a broken leg.”
Hearing the shopkeeper, Khadak Singh said to him quite firmly, “Just leave aside everything else and tell me the price of that dog.” The shopkeeper was surprised and said, “If you have liked that dog so much, then you pay me anything as per your wish, because I am not very keen on spending a big amount for the dog’s treatment. But I am again reminding you that this dog will neither play nor run with you because it’s one leg is totally useless, and it is barely able to walk with a limp.”
After hearing the shopkeeper, Khadak Singh was lost in his thoughts for a few moments. Looking at the worried look on Khadak Singh’s face, the shopkeeper said, “I was telling you, who would buy a limping dog for his house?” Khadak Singh finally spoke after a big pause, “No sir, this is not the reason. In fact, I actually require this type of a dog for my home, but I do not have sufficient money to pay you at this moment.” Hearing Khadak Singh’s reply, the shopkeeper said, “Sir I have no issues, you take the dog with you now, and pay me the remaining amount afterwards. But before you take this dog, I want to know the reason behind your choice of a limping dog, when you have the choice of choosing so many other healthy and beautiful dogs at my shop?”
Hearing the word limp again and again was cutting through the heart of Khadak Singh like a dagger, and he lifted a leg of his trouser to show the shopkeeper his artificial leg and said, “See, even I am impaired, and I lost this leg while fighting the enemy in Kargil, where a bullet went piercing through my leg. This leg that I have here is an artificial one, made of wood.” Addressing the shopkeeper, he again said, “But how would you know the pain of losing something when you have never really experienced it.” Khadak Singh again spoke in a thoughtful manner, “As long as we are not subjected to pain, we never really understand the pain of other people. I had been looking for this kind of Dog because it could compromise life just like me and also walk slowly at my pace. If I take this dog along with me, we both will be able to comprehend each other’s pain and problems and would succeed in living a fulfilling life together.”
When Khadak Singh finally started leaving the shop with the dog, the shop owner could hear his inner voice echoing in the back of his mind saying, “There could not be a more selfless act than understanding the troubles and pain of others. And these deeds were not only noticed by people, but also by the almighty God himself. The biggest truth about life is that every moment of it is controlled by the almighty God. That’s why it was better if we handed over the reins of our life in the omnipotent hands of God. If we try to understand the preaching of enlightened souls, we realize that those who put their heart and soul into serving others completely forget the pain and worries in their own lives.
As a matter of fact, any person who understood his shortcomings will never find faults in others even in his dreams. In this world, fortunate people are those who change themselves according to the need of a relationship, and not those who try changing others on their own terms. Great people have always said that true love has nothing to do with the physical state of a person.
Speaking from his experience, Jolly Uncle also agrees to the fact that anyone who knows the real art of adjusting according to the situation happens to live life in totality, because the ability to adjust to difficult situations in life is indeed a rare trait that is only found in a handful among millions.
Motto of the Story
“If your behaviour towards others is friendly, then others will also reciprocate in the same way.”
