A little prince had recently fallen into a dark pit one feet wide and sixty feet deep while playing with his friends in his remote village in the Indian State of Haryana. The little one is not from the royal family but is a son of a poor daily wage earner. When he was born, his parents had named him Prince. The day he had fallen into the pit, it was his fifth birthday.
Prince remained in the pit for over 48 hours before his rescuers saved him after the Herculean task of digging further into a nearby well and then chiseling a tunnel to reach the pit. The entire operation was telecast alive on numerous channels, making use of a close circuit camera that was lowered into the pit. May channels stopped their regular TV programmes to focus on the entire rescue operations
Millions of people from all walks of life across the country remained glued to their TV sets to have a glimpse of the child. Many went to churches, temples, gurdawaras and mosques to pray for his safety. Prince belonged to no religion, he belonged to all religion.
Deep in the pit, Prince fought all odds. He was a symbol of confidence, composure, patience, and bravery but above all HOPE. There was hope in his eyes, hope of his rescuers reaching him eventually, hope of not letting those down who had prayed for him.
Eventually that moment came for which people were hoping. The moment of victory of life over death, the moment of hope being realized into reality. The prayers had been answered. Hugs were exchanged. Smiles were getting multiplied. The tears of joys started rolling down. The star had emerged from the darkness of the pit and the star became an instant celebrity. The star brought further hope that all was not lost, hope that there will be better times, happier times. There was hope that the nation can stand united to save every child irrespective of his religion, caste, creed, and color and for that matter the economic status of his family.
There was hope that the clouds of darkness, like the darkness in the pit, will move way giving space to light, like the light that was lowered into the pit along with the closed circuit camera to monitor how our young hero was faring while the rescue operations were being mounted.
Prince brings further hope. The rescue operations brought media focus on the village that had been neglected all along. The village lacked safe drinking facility, almost negligible electricity, no roads, and no hospital. The State Government as if awaken from deep slumber responded immediately. The village is being converted into a model village. Already the village has started getting fresh and safe drinking water. Electric poles have been setup and the village is illuminating in the night as if it is Deepavali, the festival of lights. Roads are being laid and some other projects have been announced.
Prince has shown the way. Prince has brought hope that a small child can make a big difference. Prince has brought hope for change. But, do we have to wait for another child to fall into another pit in another village before the change comes in. Hope not. Hope is that it will have a rippling effect. Hope is that the newfound love for progress and prosperity will spread to other villages.
Prince was in Mumbai on a special mission immediately after the rescue operation concluded successfully and he had some time to rest and recover. He was there to say his special thanks to the residents of Mumbai for their prayers and wishes and the gifts that they had bestowed on him and his family. The residents were special because they had prayed for him even when their own gloom had not subsided in wake of Mumbai blasts that left 200 dead. He was their hope because he brought to the fore that there was greater joy in saving a life than destroying life. Life is a blessing from God. Who are we to destroy it? There is every cause to save a life and there is no cause big enough to destroy life.
Prince has shown there is hope and that hope lies within us provided we are prepared to unleash it by spreading the joy, cheer and brightness of our being by putting our arms around the shoulders of those who need them to reassure, “All is not lost. There is hope for the future. Hope for a better, safer and peaceful world.”
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