I reached the exam centre and roamed around. When I told the people there as to why I had come, they all smiled. I was informed that no visually handicapped person had ever appeared for the exam and so I could just sit back and relax.
I sat down in the control room with a book. Suddenly the chief examiner told me that the candidate had arrived. So I marched into the room and sat down beside him. The man was in his late 20s and he was a teacher. He had a very high power in his eyes and he could just see the outlines of objects. He told me that his subject was mathematics and he had read everything through audio medium.
The first paper was objective. As I read out the questions, I could see him concentrating hard. I felt helpless as I saw him solve mathematics questions in his mind. It was a tedious procedure. I had to read out each question a number of times for him.
And then I realized that he had actually given his whole future in my hands. I had just come here, as I was a free. But he had come all the way from another city to write this exam, which would ascertain his whole career. If I did not put in effort to read the problems in the proper way, then he would be unable to solve them. With this thought, I resumed my work with increased effort.
The second paper was subjective which was even more difficult. I noticed that he solved only those questions where you were required to prove something. I understood that the questions, in which some value was supposed to be found, were obviously difficult for him.
At the end of the paper, he thanked me for being a good scribe. On hearing this, I felt happy. I thanked God for giving me the opportunity to help that person. The person’s determination inspired me. It was a learning experience for me.
I was reminded of these lines:
I complained that I had no shoes, until I saw a man who had no feet.