A left jab from an intrepid fighter

You could have mistaken it for a wedding gathering. Celebration was in the air. The large shamiana, the welcoming smiles of our hosts and many of us ‘guests’ greeting one another through our masks. We had taken care to dress for the occasion. Kurtas with short sleeves, blouses which could move upwards with ease. As we were invited to take a seat in the pandal outside, the significance of this momentous day slowly crept in. We were all gathered to bless not the newlyweds but the newly created vaccines and all the negotiations that went before. We were here to get our jabs and rejoice!

As senior citizens, we are apt to ask questions and seek reassurance repeatedly. But the staff were equal to that. Courteous, patient and cheerful they saw to it that this process went smoothly and pleasantly. After a short wait, we were ushered in for the next phase and given a form to fill in. Some of us had carried pens and spectacles but for those who had not, pens and clipboards were available, neighbours offered their glasses and the sense of one big family continued. After the forms were done and submitted, the next job was to pay. Even that was handled with care. Only one of us went up to the counter to pay and to meet the smiling eyes of the cashier.

Finally the moment arrived, and one by one we were ushered in to the sanctum sanctorum. The warrior there was gentleness personified. I told her how much we appreciated the cheerful and almost joyous response we had got since we entered “We have been waiting for this moment for a year, Ma’am !” was her reply. It hit me then that for frontline workers like her who had taken care of Covid patients night in and day out, this was indeed a momentous breakthrough.

Next was the observation room. Here the air was one of socialising. People who had not met for long were enjoying the luxury of chat. So much so, that nurses would gently remind us that the mandatory half hour was over. We came out clutching our cards as proof of this miraculous event.

As we walked home we saw young nurses in freshly starched uniforms standing outside another hospital looking eager and excited to welcome their guests! It reminded me of the young girls who would line up with their trays of Attar and roses at every wedding. Was this an augury of those times happening again soon?

To the creators of the vaccine, to the people who participated in the trials to make this moment a reality, and to all the warriors we met, “for this relief, much thanks.”