The Dreamsmith We Met It was a day around end August when me and my wife thought that the sky

has developed a huge crack and the Lord of Rains has opened the flood gate with ghastly speed of wind. Yet we could not cancel our programme as it was fixed after third revision. Mr. T. . !awar" the !ro#ect Manager of $ommunity Aid % &ponsorship !rogramme '$A&!(" also )raved such inclement weather. *e met us near +ohnson and +ohnson,s plant premises in Mulund. -ith a smiling face he alerted us that we have to clim) a)out one hundred fifty steps to reach our destination to meet the .reamsmith. -e parked our car at the foothill and started walking. /m)rellas were swaying at the wish of wind. Atmosphere made us to feel that we were in an expedition" -e were drenched in rain )ut warm with our desire to meet the dreamsmith. 0n our way clim)ing multidirectional steps" we were reminded of the ghats we pass through while driving towards 1asik. 2ut the #ourney was saddening as the )eauty of nature was replaced )y very small grimy dwelling units where human )eing like us spend their life with children and elderly parents. -e were reminded a)out the prover) ,survival of the fittest,. Around that time my wife said ,Ar parchhina ektu darao' 'it is difficult to )ear more pains" let us stop for a while( as her knees were paining. Rain also intensified. 2etween the two options we decided to move on as Mr. !awar consoled saying that only a few more steps are left. &uddenly a )oy came running out from a corner and with flash of #oy in his eyes said" ,$ome" we are waiting for you,. A few more steps took us to that doorstep of a little room where our dreamsmith lives with her parents and )rother. *er mother,s Marathi language was not an issue as cordiality of mind and warmth of heart were gleaming on her face. As we entered the room we were cautioned )ecause the floor was )adly wet with water leaking from walls and roof. 3ood was )eing cooked #ust )eside the place we sat down on a )ed. Looking up we could not stop staring at the me44anine floor where household items were stored. &uddenly the mother called" 5&onal come and meet them5. 0ur dreamsmith was standing )ehind a hanging dirty cloth" separating a few s6uare feet of privacy that they have. Aptly her name is &onal as her dreams are also golden. &he is a student of standard nine and is doing well in her studies at school. &he has scored on an average 789 marks while moving from eighth to ninth standard. My wife asked her plans for future. !at came the reply" 5I want to pass 2. $om. and earn money for my family5. &he hastened to add that my father works as a security guard everyday in two shifts for sixteen hours. &he wants to give him some relief from the prolonged struggle. I could o)serve that her eyes were engrossed in dreaming. I tried to add a little more golden touch. 5&onal while you can earn )y tutoring students" why not you make your parents more proud )y )ecoming a $hartered Accountant5. I could make out from her face that those words" known to an ur)an kid" have not yet reached her ears. &he heard me with keen interest a)out possi)le future studies that she can pursue. I was encouraged seeing that she a)sor)ed all that I said through her )eaming eyes. !erhaps she was emerged in thoughts to add one more possi)le item in her dreamsmithism. They did not know how $A&! could come to know a)out &onal and who are we and why we were visiting them. Mr. !awar explained to them. Rains )y that time changed its source from sky to a few pairs of eyes. My wife said let us move and leave the family to en#oy their lunch. I could feel that her voice has choked. In India social customs die hard howsoever rich or poor we are. -e had to sip a cup of very sweet )ut hot tea. 0n our downhill way we rededicated ourselves to the dreamsmith,s #ourney towards the world of learning. My wife did not forget to remind me that people like Mr. !awar are serving the society a)ove self. !aritosh 2asu