Like a Flower in the Desert
January 1, 2021
by Mark Judy
Sometimes, the most Extraordinary lives begin in the humblest and most obscure of places....Like a rare flower, growing undisturbed and tucked away in a most unassuming location....Roopa's was such a Life, a little life that began in a village in Punjab called Amritsar. Family life revolved around farming, cattle and crops, and Roopa learning to make mud pancakes out of dirt and chicken eggs.....eggs that the family needed for Breakfast, but oh well, ya gotta learn pancake making Somehow. But, Roopa was the baby of the family, so it was mostly overlooked, since farm life was busy occupying everyone with higher priorities than Roopa's raids on the chicken coop.
Now, these little chicken egg heists were part of a much happier time in young Roopa's life, but just a few short years earlier, her precious world was thrust into pain and darkness, the likes of which no child should ever have to suffer....Roopa was only about 2 years old, as one of the worst polio outbreaks was sweeping India...
Her mom had gone to a wedding for a few weeks, so Roopa was left in the care of her sisters, who had no idea why their baby sister was screaming in pain, with a fever so high that ice baths did nothing. By the time polio was done, her right leg would be twisted and unusable, so her days were spent being carried around. What would become a Hallmark of Roopa's will & determination became apparent when her father hand-made a pair of crutches for her when she was about 9 years old; she was virtually Unstoppable, going everywhere as fast as she could, and staying outside playing until well past dark. She still remembered her mom going around the village at night calling for her to come home.
When Roopa was of age to go to school, her mom's friends all chided that she should be kept at home and made to do chores, "because she's only a cripple". Her Mom fought them off and declared that no such thing would ever happen; Her daughter was going to have an education! Roopa remembers really taking to her new world with excitement and high energy, and that set the tone for the rest of her life; she was fiercely determined that polio was never going to get in her way! After her family immigrated to Canada, she would go on to learn to drive her own car, equipped with hand controls, and worked as a legal secretary in downtown Edmonton. She even made time to volunteer at a women's shelter called The Edmonton Women's Dream Center. But before all of those accomplishments, she had to bravely face several major corrective surgeries to her leg and back during her adolescence, one of which nearly cost her life. {To Be Continued......}
Now, these little chicken egg heists were part of a much happier time in young Roopa's life, but just a few short years earlier, her precious world was thrust into pain and darkness, the likes of which no child should ever have to suffer....Roopa was only about 2 years old, as one of the worst polio outbreaks was sweeping India...
Her mom had gone to a wedding for a few weeks, so Roopa was left in the care of her sisters, who had no idea why their baby sister was screaming in pain, with a fever so high that ice baths did nothing. By the time polio was done, her right leg would be twisted and unusable, so her days were spent being carried around. What would become a Hallmark of Roopa's will & determination became apparent when her father hand-made a pair of crutches for her when she was about 9 years old; she was virtually Unstoppable, going everywhere as fast as she could, and staying outside playing until well past dark. She still remembered her mom going around the village at night calling for her to come home.
When Roopa was of age to go to school, her mom's friends all chided that she should be kept at home and made to do chores, "because she's only a cripple". Her Mom fought them off and declared that no such thing would ever happen; Her daughter was going to have an education! Roopa remembers really taking to her new world with excitement and high energy, and that set the tone for the rest of her life; she was fiercely determined that polio was never going to get in her way! After her family immigrated to Canada, she would go on to learn to drive her own car, equipped with hand controls, and worked as a legal secretary in downtown Edmonton. She even made time to volunteer at a women's shelter called The Edmonton Women's Dream Center. But before all of those accomplishments, she had to bravely face several major corrective surgeries to her leg and back during her adolescence, one of which nearly cost her life. {To Be Continued......}
