Almost a Miracle

My name is Gopamma. My friends call me Gopi. Now, when you see me I may seem like any other normal girl of my age, except that I have crutches. But less than a year ago, I was walking on all fours, dragging my eight-year-old body like a sack of potatoes.

When I was two, I got sick with polio. I was ill for a long time, and my parents feared I wouldn’t survive. I did—but I couldn’t walk any more.

Gopi

My parents were very poor. They didn’t have enough money. All their savings had been spent on my treatment. There was nothing more they could do to help me. Relatives often wondered what would happen to me. “Who would marry her?”, they asked.

I felt very bad. I couldn’t go to school, I couldn’t play like all other kids. Children ignored me, or often made fun of me. I would sit by the side of the road and watch them play. I had no friends.

Then a miracle happened. Members of a voluntary organization came to our village, looking for children who needed medical help. They found me. Soon they took me to a hospital where doctors did corrective surgery on me. Later I had another operation, Soon, I was able to walk with the help of two wooden crutches. I was excited to be able to walk.

Doctors told my parents that if I had been given a polio vaccine in time, I would have be spared the pain. Just imagine, such vaccines cost less than a bottle of soda water! When my mother learned about it, she took my three-year-old sister to be vaccinated. I was glad that she wouldn’t have to go through the same suffering and sadness I went through.

Now I go to school. My elder brother, who is 10, takes me there every day, carrying me on his back. Other kids often joke about me, but they are friendly jokes. I know my friends mean no harm. I hope one day I shall grow up to be a teacher. Then, I shall tell everybody how important it is to give children polio vaccinations.

adapted from Teaching About Human Rights