Straight from heart

The idea about writing a blog was there for a long time. I wanted to write about people who had influenced me in many ways. Today it turned out to be a day of great inspiration. The person who inspired me today is not alive but the impact he had on me will remain for a lifetime.

A naughty boy who used to play around with his mom and disturbs her often while she cooks, a loving son who used to make calls to his mom whenever he finds a beautiful bird or touched by a gentle breeze , a normal youngster who fights with his father over a TV remote.Do the above words give any clue about the youngster that I am going to write about? Does it give any hint that I am going to write about a great Martyr the country has ever produced? He is none other than Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan.

Today I had the opportunity to meet the parents of the Martyr, travelled in Sandeep’s car, touched Sandeep’s Army uniform and belongings, walked through the place which carried his footprints, read few of the thousand letters written to his parents by patriotic countrymen, listened to the heroic acts of young Sandeep, touched by the great pain with which his parents move on with their life after his death.

Sandeep often used to tell his mother “Ma death is very normal in war, I might be precious to you, but it’s the same case with every mother, their son is special to them, I would sacrifice my life for my buddy , rather than allowing my buddy (Junior officer) to die, their family can't bear the loss”. This man stood by his words, led the NSG commando group to Taj (operation Tornado) laid down his life to save his buddy who received seven bullet injuries. While narrating this incident his mother broke down, I had no words to console her.Words become powerless before tears.

A letter written by the wife of the Manager of Taj, who was saved by Sandeep during the rescue operation goes like this “There are two kinds of people in this world, one who give all they have to others and the other who receive it, your son belongs to the first category”