SHABIHA NUR KHATOON
Delhi-based Monica Sharma, who derived great spiritual strength and confidence from the extraordinary experience of attaining motherhood, is an inspiration for all mothers
Becoming a mother is like attaining a state of bliss. Motherhood is a unique feeling, difficult to describe in words. A mother’s relationship with her newborn is not just pure, unadulterated love it is emotionally the strongest of all relationships. Only mothers get to experience this heavenly feeling. The bond between a mother and her child is deep and immortal. With Mother’s Day just a few days away, Orissa POST zooms in on a mother who finds great strength in motherhood.
Meet Monica Sharma who is like any other woman except for the fact that she is born blind. She was just two months old when her parents discovered that she lacked the sense of sight. Monica was a patient of optic atrophy, a medical condition in which the person experiences loss of vision first in one eye, and then in the other.
Monica was born and brought up in Delhi and through integrated education launched by the National Association for the Blind she studied at Faith Academy till Class IX and completed her schooling from Delhi Public School.
She gives full credit to her parents, teachers and friends for their constant support. “After Class XI, I did graduation from Lady Shri Ram College under Delhi University in political science (Honours). Subsequently, I pursued a bachelor’s degree in education from the Central Institute of Education, Delhi University,” says Monica.
She started working with the National Association for the Blind as a resource teacher in 2002 and continued till 2006. “My first job at the National Association for the Blind was that of a resource teacher’s. It was a familiar environment, where I had studied earlier. At present, I am working with IBM India for 11 years as a deputy manager in the training department where I impart voice and accent along with soft skills training,” she adds.
The romantic turn in Monica’s life came after she met her life partner Bharat Bhardwaj, who too is visually impaired. Bharat is currently working with Concentrix. They decided to tie the knot soon and are blessed with a son, 7-year-old Dhruv.
“While it might seem that my life was smooth, the biggest challenge for me began after I became pregnant. I was in fear whether I would be able to deliver a healthy child. However, the fear was gradually replaced by joy and happiness of experiencing motherhood. Motherhood is all about trust and joy of bringing a new human life to this world. This joy gradually transforms into a responsibility and the responsibility is shared amongst family, friends and daycare or help at home. By the grace of God, my son has perfect eyesight,” quips Monica.
What does Monica do after a long, tiring day at office? “When I return home, just like any other mother, the first gift I receive is a big hug from my son. We both like to watch TV. He describes what he watches all day on his favourite cartoon channels. Hide and seek, snakes and ladders and carrom are some of his favourite games that the two of us play together. However, he refuses to sleep at night if his father doesn’t tell him a story,” she says.
Monica’s day begins at 4 in the morning and so she likes to take a quick power nap while returning from work. She loves listening to old Hindi songs.
Dwelling on the sources of inspiration in her life, Monica says: “Like many others, my pillars of strength are my parents. With time I have become stronger and my self-esteem has increased. My friends, teachers, colleagues and, above all, the man I married, have all been pillars of strength. My in-laws and, of course now, my son are my perennial sources of support. In human relationships the greatest source of strength is love and understanding,” she says.
Monica’s greatest strength, however, is motherhood. She strongly believes that motherhood is a special feeling that imbues women with self-confidence and optimism. “Motherhood not only makes a woman complete but also endows her with courage. It empowers her. Being a working mother, I needed the support of my in-laws, parents and daycare centres to raise my son Dhruv. My husband has been equally supportive. Thanks to everybody’s support, I have been able to fulfil all my primary duties as a parent,” she says.
Like all mothers, Monica attained her true self and potential only after becoming a mother. And like many others, she derived spiritual strength and confidence from the extraordinary experience of motherhood.
