When God Put Me to a Test – Papa’s Heart Surgery!

Life has a way of testing our character at the most unexpected moments. Here’s something that happened to me on the morning of my father's CABG bypass surgery—Tuesday, August 9th, 2022 a day I’ll never forget.

With Papa in November 2024

Walking under the umbrella, looking down at the muddy path, I suddenly saw what looked like bundles of ₹500 notes lying on the ground - stranded in the rain water waiting to be found. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I looked around—no one was there. My first thought: these must belong to some poor person; maybe they dropped them in their haste to reach a hospital for a relative’s surgery. It could also belong to a poor wife who came there to save her husband - it could belong to any passerby and any strange face walking around. The amount was large. 

Many in my shoes might usually think, “I'll just keep it…” 

But that’s not right. As we all know. 

I spent an hour walking around at the hospital, every floor reading faces - worried, in search of something, enquiring or may be crying. But, nobody seemed to be looking for the money. I approached the OPD security desk and asked, “Has anyone reported missing cash here?” They replied that someone was looking for their money a couple of hours back. 

I didn’t tell them the exact amount for an obvious reason - it was the only secret key for me to identify the owner of the cash. I asked them to contact me and handed over my phone number. 

"When the rightful owner reaches out with details, please contact me.", I affirmed. 

Hours went by without a call. When that happened, dark thoughts began to harass my mind—what could I possibly do with such a sum? Every face I passed among the patients’ family members, I tried to figure out who the owner might be—but I found no one.

As time passed by a firm resolve grew within me. Even if the rightful owner never appears, the money came into my hands for the very reason I was there. For a moment, poor thoughts lingered into my mind. It turned out to be a battle on conscience. I was with my Papa - to be with him on his surgery day. So it must be used for that reason, in that spirit. Patients at the hospital do not have faces. Their nearest relatives carry the worry. 

But deep in my mind, I was firm - "This was not my money!"

Dr. Gulshan Rohra, the heart surgeon performed two heart surgeries everyday - one in the morning and another was post lunch. That day it was Papa and another lady's turn. The lady was operated in the morning. It was Papa's turn in the afternoon. After hours of uncertainty, his heart surgery was ultimately successful. He recovered but the lady who was operated in the morning couldn't. 

It could have been Papa - I never felt this helpless before. It was all about a prayer - a prayer performed with a pure heart. There is immense power in good thoughts. I was determined even before his surgery - I will use this money for a right cause. It was about overcoming the obsession towards the unknown cash - the one that did not belong to me. I was determined to give it up. But, it was about owning the selfless thought of not deciding to give it up in return of a vested purpose. It was about being pure at heart. Seeing Papa restored to health felt like receiving my father back.

A few days later, the sum found its way into the hands of another needy, distressed acquaintance —someone who had lost focus and lacked hope in repaying a debt that was acquired to pay their ICU bills. In that act of thoughtful giving, peace was restored. As for finding the real owner of the cash was concerned, I decided to leave it to the cycle of Karma.

Papa - just before his surgery in 2022