The Wordless Smile
November 17, 2016
Yesterday, I visited Jagdish Dada. Both Guri and I have a lot of gratitude for him, from our pilgrimage days, when we had randomly walked into his ashram.
In particular, Jagdish Dada has always been moved to tears by Guri. Every time someone mentions her or talks about her, he starts crying. Even on our walk, he would hold her face like a loving grandfather and convince her to not walk in the mad summer heat of Gujarat. She would smile and say, "But didn't you do it when you were young?" That was a good defense, and he would later say, "Consider me your green card. Just go to any of these ashrams and mention my name and they'll take care of you." Of course, he had that green card because he had walked tens of thousands of miles, with Vinoba, uplifting the grassroots and serving tirelessly.
Today, when I met Jagdish Dada, he was bedridden and couldn't utter any words. We spent some beautiful moments in silence. As I was about to leave, he raised his right hand. At one point, I joked, "Dada, I know, I know -- you are happy I'm here, but really you want me to send your hellos to Guri, don't you?" With a magical twinkle in his eyes that is hard to describe in words, he lit up. We all laughed heartily.
Then, he waved his hand slightly, as if to say goodbye for the final time. Both his sons and wife (and nephew) were in the room as well, as we all teared up for a moment, holding gratitude for all the values he has championed for his whole life.
← All writing
In particular, Jagdish Dada has always been moved to tears by Guri. Every time someone mentions her or talks about her, he starts crying. Even on our walk, he would hold her face like a loving grandfather and convince her to not walk in the mad summer heat of Gujarat. She would smile and say, "But didn't you do it when you were young?" That was a good defense, and he would later say, "Consider me your green card. Just go to any of these ashrams and mention my name and they'll take care of you." Of course, he had that green card because he had walked tens of thousands of miles, with Vinoba, uplifting the grassroots and serving tirelessly.
Today, when I met Jagdish Dada, he was bedridden and couldn't utter any words. We spent some beautiful moments in silence. As I was about to leave, he raised his right hand. At one point, I joked, "Dada, I know, I know -- you are happy I'm here, but really you want me to send your hellos to Guri, don't you?" With a magical twinkle in his eyes that is hard to describe in words, he lit up. We all laughed heartily.
Then, he waved his hand slightly, as if to say goodbye for the final time. Both his sons and wife (and nephew) were in the room as well, as we all teared up for a moment, holding gratitude for all the values he has championed for his whole life.