1/9: Maykal's Story

Brothers Maykal and Ashoka

I have been hanging out every day for some time with Maykal. I met him one of my first days here in Diu. One evening at the street stand for roasted peanuts and roasted corn, I bought 10 rupees worth of peanuts. As I was walking down the street, he called me over. So I sat with him and his brother and shared my peanuts. "Peanuts good," he said a few times, and I agreed. The next day I found Maykal again. I showed him a brochure of Gujarat. He was very impressed with the photo of the lion (there is a nature reserve near by with some of the few remaining Indian lions), but had a hard time remembering and pronouncing the word. So he went back to his old standby - "Penile good," he said. It took me a while to realize and correct him. "Peanuts are good."

He is interested in learning English. He has no formal education, so the only way he can beg successfully is by learning English on his own. This morning he decided to look through my photos on his camera. He learned "cat," "goat," and "camel" from the photos. He tried to look through all of my photos, but after 1481 photos he finally admitting to getting tired (only 600 more to go).

Last night for dinner I went to my roasted corn and peanut stand and had two corns on the cob. Here, they rub chili and lime on the corn - delicious! I found Maykal and asked him if he wanted corn also. "No, peanuts good" he replied, so I bought him peanuts and we met his brother and sat on the wharf and ate our dinners. That is where I learned his story.

Besides he and his brother being dwarfs and the physical ailments that come with it, Maykal had polio as a child and so can not walk. His father died when he was 8 years old (he is now 20, and his brother is 30). The mother, who has 2 younger sons at home in Una, about 10 miles from here, can not find work, though she does manage to get some odd jobs. They have no house, but sleep under a plastic sheet (which now has holes in it that must be fixed before the next monsoon). They had an older brother who also died - electrocuted while working. Maykal has tried to get assistance for his mother from the government, but to no success. She is dependent on Maykal and Ashoka's success as beggars. He came to Diu 7 years ago to beg for his mother. He and his brother sleep together on the wharf to keep warm. He says that Indian people do not give money, so he is dependent on foreigners for support. One foreign person paid the money to buy his hand crank bike, so he has some mobility.

When I see beggars I often give them 10 rupees (about 22 cents), and they are so thankful. There is something so depressing about that. It is just a bandaid, and not a very big one. I have decided to give Maykal and his family 1000 rupees (about $22). For me, there is something more satisfying about giving 1000 rupees to one person rather than 10 rupees to 100 people. It is still only a bandaid, but maybe enough for his mother to buy a new plastic tarp and for Maykal to fix his bicycle.

Again, I am thankful for my health, for my legs that I can walk away on, for my job that helps provide for my family and allows me to travel to places like India, and for the life I was born into.

If anyone reading this is also willing to help out Maykal and his family, let me know ASAP. I will probably be leaving Diu in two days.

Maykal and I