UNE FILLE TRES EXTRAORDINAIRE!

From Barefoot College Tilonia, Rajasthan my next stop was in Gujarat to explore the amazing 80-year-old Shri Premji Bhai Patel from Upleta (the man responsible to change the ground water table of the region from salty to sweet), the Mitti Cool Man Shri Manshukh Bhai Prajapati from Wankaner village and interaction with some farmers from villages in Rajkot (to understand the progress and agriculture related problems)... and I owe my humble gratefulness to one friend for making my stay in Gujarat worthwhile, memorable and simply blissful...

We became friends on Facebook and initially used to interact with comments on status, reading poems and once in a while through messages... how she became part of my destiny is truly mystifying to even me as I often wonder... she is an amazing writer-poet and has been actively supporting the movement from an early date, even when we hardly knew each other... Amrita Vardarajan works for Raman Development Consultants Pvt. Ltd in Ahmedabad... she was there at the station to receive me with her infectious smile...

Amrita enjoying the birthday cake...

She was very helpful during my trip and it is because of her that I got to meet the Mitti Cool Man from Rajkot... always ready to help her needy friends Amrita got the phone number from her contacts to help me out... her selfless act has surely impressed me many times during our interaction over phone since last couple of months... she was there when depression took a toll on me and I was all alone... her pep talk, reasoning and teachings about life surely made me wonder how she has grown in life at such a young age... she was always there with her phone calls whenever she read my status which reflected my depressing state during my journey... friends like Amrita is really rare to find and I feel so-so blessed for her presence in my destiny.

She has been very encouraging and supportive ever since I have known her... and meeting her for the very first time, I felt as if we knew each other since long... no hang ups, no strangeness and we connected as long lost friends... she even told her boss Shri Rajendra Jani about my visit, who expressed his desire to meet me... so I was invited at her office... well, words are truly not enough to describe the small beautiful world Shri Rajendra Jani had created over the years... I was amazed to see how beautiful an organization can be when everyone is treated as family members... the lunch at Raman’s office was an experience of a lifetime... blissful, full of fun and the joy of sharing with everyone... I had a lengthy session with the boss and we were both happy to know about each other...

The birthday party...

I also interacted with most of the staff at Amrita’s office and it was a pleasure to share information about each other and then I was invited to join in the surprise birthday party of one of the staff Kishore Bhai... oh the enjoyment we all had during our trip and party surely will remain with me for many-many years... to be accepted by the whole staff with so much love was indeed an awesome feeling! Everybody treated me as if I was one among the staff and for this I wish to thank each one at Raman Development Consultants Pvt. Ltd. And a special big thank you to Amrita for making my trip so-so memorable and worth...

Some souls are truly extraordinary and I am lucky to be in touch and blessed by beautiful souls like Amrita Vardarajan, Shri Rajendra Jani and all the staff of Raman Development Consultants Pvt. Ltd... Apart from meeting few farmers, Shri Premji Bhai Patel & Shri Manshukh Bhai Prajapati, my Gujarat trip exploration was so-so special because I met the rare friend Amrita... Sai Baba bless you always Amrita and keep up the good work always!

Thank you Facebook for giving me such a rare precious friend!