Sumi was a girl who often went late to the school. The teacher would be angry with her and make her stand outside the class. The next day also she came late. The same punishment was given. This happened continuously for three months. Everyday she used to come late and the teacher used to make her stand outside the class.
One day Sumi came to the school on time. The teacher was very surprised seeing her in the class.
The teacher asked her, "Sumi, how come you are on time today?"
Sumi replied, "Ma'am, I had a brother who was handicapped. When my mother used to go for work, I was supposed to take care of him. When she came back, I used to hand over my brother to her and used to come to the school. My brother is now no more."
In Ekalavya we have almost 215 students ( out of 1000 ) who are on "Financial Assistance" - they do not pay the full fees, they pay whatever they can, year after year. Last Feb when I met a family, the mother told me "Sunil Sir, this is most probably the last year we will take Financial Assistance. My mother-in-law is ill with cancer and we have to spend Rs 20,000 per month on her, but now the doctor says that she does not have much time left, maximum a couple of months. After that, we will be able to pay the full fees."
source: Stories from Here and There, Ekalavya Education Foundation - By: Sunil Handa - http://www.eklavya.org/storyhere.html
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