Later, our hosts served each of us
a hot meal of delicious pav bhaji.
Completely satiated, and renewed with
energy, we decided to attempt an exit.
Unfortunately, even though the rain had
tapered, the flooding remained.
We did not want to ask for further
favours, but the Bhosales had antici-
pated that we would have to spend the
night there and had made arrange-
ments. Despite our hesitation, they
brought in carpets and mats, spread
them out and asked us to make our-
selves comfortable. We were simply
overwhelmed by their love and care.
Exhausted, we turned in by 10 p.m.A
t about 4 a.m., when the flood
waters finally started to recede,
Mr Kularay, who had been waiting
on a chair all night, received a green
signal from his driver. Immensely
relieved at this, we started heading out.
Not wanting to disturb our sleeping
hosts, we quietly slipped a thank-you
note under their door and left. On
our way, we marvelled at the Bhosale
family’s generosity—not everyone has
the heart to rescue almost 20 strangers
all at once and keep them safe.
I finally reached home at five in the
morning. We came to know later that
several people had lost their lives that
evening—under collapsing buildings
or sucked into manholes. It was a
miracle that a kind family rescued a
bunch of complete strangers—out of
the blue. The Bhosales remain in our
prayers to this day.after snacks. It was a tiny room and all
the furniture had been moved to one
side to make space for us.
Much to our surprise, we met around
12 other people, who had been accom-
modated just like we were. Meanwhile,
my wife called once again, anxiously.
However, she was relieved to know that
we were safe and comfortable.
readersdigest.co.in 97WE LOOKED
AROUND AND FOUND
A LADY CALLING OUT
FROM THE BALCONY
OF A RUN-DOWN
BUILDING BEHIND US.Kindness of Strangers