In St. Xavier’s School Patna, Bihar, Fr. George Peter S.J. and Holy Cross Sister Christine were conducting an YCS meeting. The topic of the meeting was interesting. A village boy was studying in a hostel. One day his father visited him. He introduced his father to his friends in the hostel as his gardener because he was dark and he was in his village dress. He was ashamed to speak to him as his father.
Hearing this experience some participants laughed. Then a girl stood up and said “I am from a scheduled caste family and you all know it. YCS members treat me as equal, even though they know I am S.C. But my other classmates, if they know it, will keep me aloof. So usually I do not talk about my family”. She was almost in tears.
A boy spoke up “my parents are sweeping the streets of the village. So I also hesitate to speak about my parents”. Another student stood up to speak, “I am also reluctant to talk about my family background as my uncles are coolie workers in the paddy fields’.
Then two boys from West Bengal sang a poem of Rabindranath Tagore in Bengali which meant “An earthworm said to the soil, you are black and lowly”. Then God appeared and rebuked the worm saying, “it is in that soil you live and you eat only what the soil can give. How can you laugh at your background and ridicule your people?
Sr. Christine said “Dress of the people who work in the paddy fields is dirty. But if they do not work in the fields, we do not get food to eat. Those farmers are the real mothers who feed their countrymen. We only dirty the streets of our towns. But we usually look down at the workers who clean the towns and our homes. They are like angels of God who sash away our dirt”.
Fr. George Peter asked, what shall be our Plan of Action?
They all resolved to work to remove caste feelings and social inequality. The participants decided to appreciate the people who work in their homes and also in their villages who shed their sweat for the country. Since 80% of Indians live in villages, the students appreciate their labour, they love the nation.
Let us love our country.
Fr. M. C. Michael Menamparampil