His father was his
inspiration and his mother and elder sister support and solace. Without no lift
to come down from the third floor apartment, his father used to carry him down and take him to the school bus
and school and then the numerous medical treatment and therapies including
swimming.
Life moved on and I too moved on from them and this little boy grew bigger, better, stronger, intelligent and ambitious to be one among us.
In between we lost contact for several years. After some 7
or 8 years, I reconnected with them one day and as fate has its own way in our
life, his ever loving and smiling father passed away on a Friday morning within
a short period of our meeting. I was back to Abu Dhabi by then and immediately rushed down
to Dubai hearing this sad news.
His father, Late Sri E N Sukumaran, was an
inspiration to many of his friends and well wishers. Those who all know him
never misses his presence, even so many years after his death. That was the
personality of the man and there were numerous friends and well wishers in that
home at that moment. Seeing me amongst the crowd, Sujit, emotionless and in shock leaned on to
me and remained with me for the next two days till his father’s body was
repatriated for funeral. My tributes and prayers to his soul, once again, while
posting this message here.
The connection we made during my short stay remains
everlasting and the little boy of that time has grown leaps and bounds and now a
self made enterprising individual as any one of us.
Sujit Sukumaran is now an established Toast Master in UAE.
Add a very good writer, a professional Resume Maker, a promoter of
vegetarianism and Indian culture along with a "no physical or personal
difficulties can hold me from moving on in my life attitude"; you will get a
picture of Sujit. Oops sorry, add one more precious quality - an eligible bachelor for those numerous young girls out there!!
I invite you to please
take a 30 minutes of free time from your life and read the two articles below and
carefully listen to what Sujit has to say in his 19.02 minutes video to the
world during his recent speech at TEDxAlAin 2012.
His is an inspiring story of exceptional courage, of triumph
over the most difficult challenges. It is also an outstanding example of what a
human being can achieve if he has the determination to succeed and the support
of devoted parents, dedicated doctors and helpful teachers and friends.
By Jyoti KalsiPublished for GULF NEWS December 7, 2002
Strong family and willpower have enabled Dubai resident
Sujit Sukumaran defeat cerebral palsy
His is an inspiring story of exceptional courage, of triumph
over the most difficult challenges. It is also an outstanding example of what a
human being can achieve if he has the determination to succeed and the support
of devoted parents, dedicated doctors and helpful teachers and friends.
Sujit Sukumaran weighed just one kilogram at birth. Oxygen
deficiency after birth resulted in cerebral palsy, leaving him with several
physical disabilities. He started crawling when he was 18 months old. He took
his first steps, on crutches, when he was four and was unable to walk without
support till the age of 12.
He has known the discomfort of daily physiotherapy since he
was nine months old and he has spent every school vacation in hospital
undergoing medical treatment.
Not only did he have to overcome physical challenges but he
also had to deal with the pain of losing his father at the tender age of 15.
Yet, today the young man of 17 strides confidently towards a bright future,
free from physical or emotional crutches.
"I prefer to count my blessings. Most cerebral palsy
patients have some amount of brain damage, but I am lucky that my brain is in
pristine condition," says Sujit.
Life has forced him to grow up quickly but he speaks about
his struggle without the slightest trace of self-consciousness or self-pity,
and a lot of humour. And a struggle it has indeed been.
Sujit's tryst with physiotherapy began at nine months.
"The stretching and bending was extremely painful and I remember that I
always went in crying, kicking and shouting all the way. But four years later I
was able to stand with the help of callipers. Today I am very grateful to the
physiotherapists at Al Wasl and Rashid Hospitals," he acknowledges.
Sujit's main sources of strength were his mother Ramani and
his father E. N. Sukumaran. "God gives special children to special parents
and whatever I am today, I owe to it my parents," he says. He was
particularly close to his father. "Dad was my friend, guide and mentor. He
was a self-made man with a very positive outlook. He always pushed me to aim
for the impossible and taught me that problems only exist because we create
them," reminisces Sujit.
His nursery school teachers recommended that he be sent to a
regular school. Sujit did well in the entrance exam of The Indian High School,
Dubai, and despite initial reservations, the school agreed to admit him.
"The happiest day of my life was the first day I went
to a regular school. With my callipers on and holding the hands of both my
parents I walked shakily into school, but this was my first step into a normal
life," states Sujit emphatically.
He strongly feels that regular schools should be open to
admitting students like him. "A special needs child can never be pushed to
improve in a special school environment however good it may be. Whatever I am
today is largely due to what Indian High School was able to do for me," he
insists.
A helper carried Sujit and his bag from the school bus to
his class everyday and his teachers were always encouraging.
"A major milestone for me was when in the fifth
standard a friend suggested that he would carry my bag instead of the helper
and others followed suit. I am fortunate to have such friends who do these
things for me with love," says Sujit, adding with a smile that the front
seat in the bus was always reserved for him.
Being in a regular school also had its share of problems and
disappointments. Children stared at him all the time. "When I asked dad
why they did that, he would explain that people stare at anything that is
different. They will stare at Aishwarya Rai also if they see her at close
quarters, he would say. And eventually it was their curiosity to know which
strange planet I came from that helped me to make friends with them," he
laughs.
Sujit felt particularly miserable when the class went out to
play. "I sat on my bench and watched them running around and felt really
angry. I would pray that someday I could join them and luckily for me, even
though it took 15 years, that prayer has been answered," he says happily.
His most disappointing experience was his first school
picnic to Mushrif Park. "Dad had given me money and told me to try all the
rides, but the teachers were too scared to let me go on them. So I just sat on
the grass and watched the others," he recalls sadly. But Sujit immediately
brightens up at the memory of his parents taking him back the same evening to
all the rides in the same park. "And recently I went to Wild Wadi with my
class and enjoyed the 80 foot Jumeirah Sceirah, one of the scariest rides in
the park," he says beaming with pride.
Big strides
While he made big strides academically and socially at
school, his medical treatment continued. Every morning before school he went
for two-hour physiotherapy sessions and there was some surgery scheduled during
every vacation.
The first operation, at the age of eight, was a dorsal rhizotomy
performed in Hyderabad, India, to treat his spasticity. In a
five-and-a-half-hour operation, the doctors opened his back and cut off a
series of nerve fibres from the spinal cord. "This was my first experience
with big time pain. The physiotherapy was just a trailer while this was the
movie," he jokes.
For 15 days he lay in hospital on his stomach and had to
stay in bed for two months. He could not sit and any movement was painful.
"The anticipation of a better future, prayer and my ability to make friends
with doctors, nurses and other patients is what kept me going," recalls
Sujit.
He finds a positive side even in this traumatic experience.
"The doctor gave me a set of books called the 'children's knowledge bank'.
This is what got me interested in reading and in quizzing. And though I still
had to wear calf splints, after this surgery I could walk better and the
spasticity reduced considerably," he reflects.
His 11th birthday was again spent in hospital. This time it
was to loosen his hamstrings. "Instead of cake, I got some chloroform.
Both my legs were in plaster for two months and the itching felt like there was
a swarm of ants in there," describes Sujit.
As usual he had read up everything he could about the
surgery and even watched part of it under local anesthesia. The physiotherapy
after the prolonged immobility was extremely painful once again.
"There is no gain without pain," he says
nonchalantly. "At least now I had total freedom of muscular movement. I
could touch my feet and tie my own shoe laces, though I still had to wear
support pads to protect the muscles," says Sujit with typical optimism. He
has yet another scar from a tendon lengthening operation done during yet
another vacation.
Around this time Sujit took part in a poetry recitation
contest. "The cruel remarks of some boys triggered the desire to prove
myself on stage. The confidence I gained led to participation in quiz contests
and other such competitions," he admits. He remembers with pride his first
stage experience as a compere at a variety show organised by the Al Wasl Ladies
Club for special needs children and their parents.
Best wishes Sujit, Good luck and keep travelling - you are an inspiring personality to all of us.
Ramesh Uncle
08 June 2012
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