Sense Of Peace

Two years ago during Celebrations with Sri Chinmoy in New York, when I was coming back from Circus at about 1 a.m., I fell flat on my nose. I have always felt that it was a case of pride goes before a fall. I was trying to show off, when I fell over. I went straight down without even having time to put my arms out, and the first thing that hit the pavement was my nose, followed by my chin. I told my friends that I was fine and could walk home, and to please ignore the blood falling from my nose. But someone called a taxi that appeared from nowhere and whisked me off to Annam Brahma, where all the meals are prepared. There I was greeted with such care and consideration. I felt very foolish—by then shock had set in and I was shaking. Although they said there was no ice for my nose, a pack of frozen peas was produced and placed on my face. My nose could be moved around my face and was very painful. A doctor from our Austrian Centre came, kindly bandaged my nose and said that it was indeed broken. While I was waiting there, Guru rang up to find out if some task he had requested had been completed. The answer was no, because an Australian girl had come in with a broken nose. I was told later that Guru meditated on me for a few moments. I have never felt such a sense of peace as just sitting there at 3 a.m. in the quiet, and I felt very reluctant to leave. By the next morning, I had two black eyes, a mild concussion, a chin swathed in bandages and a huge, swollen NOSE dominating my whole face—not a pretty sight. I went with a friend to the hospital to have my nose X-rayed, and people we passed on the street would look away quickly—my face was very ugly. A very nice Indian doctor examined me, and after the X-ray he came back shaking his head. He had believed that my nose was broken, but no breaks showed on the X-ray—he couldn't understand it. We left the hospital and went to the Tennis Court. I was trying to chant gratitude the whole way. There was just time to take prasad and see Guru before I left to return to Australia. By the time I arrived back in Melbourne, 30 hours later, there was not even a scab on my face to show the experience. My nose still has a slight tilt, and every time I look in the mirror, it is a quick reminder to work on my pride. But mostly it reminds me of how Guru cares for all of us, even when we are being foolish.

Namanita (Melbourne)