Those We See Yet See Not

Life Guard Vinod Parmar - Standing tall on the pillar of family.

A life guard is someone employed at a beach or pool to protect swimmers from drowning. Vinod is employed with us, at Otters club, as one since 12/13 years. Vinod and his younger sister needed one when they were growing up, having lost their mother when he was five and father soon after; his two elder sisters became their life guards. They put him through school by taking up jobs, but to see his younger sister through school and graduation he had to drop out of college and take up a job to become one more support for their tiny family of four. They each became a pillar for the other, a life guard for each other, a family that stands tall today, living life with the dignity of a regular and respectful livelihood thanks to each other. Today their youngest sister is employed with Google.

Originally from Hyderabad, his parents had migrated to Malad, Mumbai before they were born only to live amongst relatives as they had none in Hyderabad. This move was to pay Vinod a huge dividend two decades later: Siya.

Being childless for too long, Vinod and his wife decided to seek Ganpati ji’s help; they told Ganpati ji to bless them with a girl child and for that they will follow in the tradition of millions who bring him home annually, carrying him on their shoulders and in their hearts.

The immediate next dawn, after they made this pledge together, his wife woke him up from deep sleep and said, “… their relative who stays close by has delivered two girls and wants to offer one to them for adoption…” Irritated, that his wife is playing a moronic prank at him at dawn he told her not to disturb him and went back to sleep.

However, it was the truth. They had asked Ganpati ji to bless them with a ‘girl’ child and he, according to both, made their prayer come true in less than 8 hours. They named her Siya when they brought her home.

Why girl child, I asked him. “I have seen, from what little I have read and heard, daughters care far more for their parents that boys and have always wanted a girl child in our life.” He said.

Vinod’s wife is a homemaker, and the reason she chose to be one, and not take up a job to complement the family’s income, is to secure their ‘girl’ child daily; They feel until she is in her late teens they do not wish to leave her unattended at any moment of the day or night. For that, they are willing to sacrifice the additional income that a spouse can bring to a family that is already reached a stage where their child’s finance related education needs are growing at a pace little faster than her age. After all, we are aware that our incomes do not overtake inflation every single year.

Most of us have reached where we are today by taking steps forward and upward. Vinod has the same dream. He is praying and hoping he can be ‘promoted’, that he can transition from life guard to COACH. Yes, coach.

Not only will being a COACH perhaps provide him the additional salary for his family to progress forward and upward, moreover, having earned the certification of being a coach at OTTERS CLUB, yes, I wrote that in Caps because that is the immense prestige and brand equity of our club today, its amongst the finest ya , he says being a coach at Otters is considered gold standard.

If I may add, we should compliment all past and present members for building this brand equity gradually over the decades along with the immense honorary work done by the various MC’s that have run our affairs. I decided to pitch on his behalf, that we should consider also promoting our life guards to COACH status and designation as and when/if they have a proven track record & skill to rise higher, along with hiring a coach from the ‘outside’ too to meet the diverse needs of our swimming-pool aims and associated activities.

Who is the best student?, I asked him, you informally coach a few at Otters. “My best students are the disciplined ones. Whose parents are as disciplined as them, because I am sure if they are so punctual and regular their upbrining has a big hand in it. These few who are punctual and regular, consistent in their swimming classes, they will rise in life for sure, as these are habits that travel with us all our lives.

My favorite time of the day is the time I spend with these children and the very senior citizens. Because the MC is very considerate towards me, thank you, and have given me fixed duty hours, mornings only, they did it to help me complement my monthly income by taking up other coaching jobs in the later part of the day. I just have one more prayer to them, if they can please officially certify me as a Coach too, since I do coach some children here, and in the other jobs, a certification by OTTERS CLUB will add gold standard to my humble resume of being a life guard. Being a life guard here and elsewhere has given me a regular livelihood, but for my family to rise too being a Coach at Otters will help me immensely.”

What is common to coaching or attending to children and the very senior citizens?

He replied. “Both, the very young and very old, both need to be treated with the respect and affection that children deserve.”

My final conversation bit was, “What is your dream, your ambition and your goal for yourself, your wife and your daughter?”

Life guard Vinod Parmar pondered and said, “There are so many things, so many dreams I had, that did not materialise and may never. I want every dream of mine for me and every dream of her’s for herself to come true. God give Siya all that and far more than what I receive.”

It was at this moment, during our nearly 30 minutes chat, that I saw in his eyes dew drops of a parent’s love grow larger and larger; and the same dew appeared in mine. We both, man to man, knew then we are different just by status. We both have the same heart.

(Vinod Parmar is our life guard at Otters Club)