When Shri
Ramanarayan Chaudhary came first to the Ashram in Sabarmati, he was suffering
from some skin trouble. So Bapu began to treat him. One day he suggested to the
patient that he should daily take some raisins in his food. For this purpose he
sent him to Ba. But hardly had he gone a few steps, when Bapu called him back
and said, "You will do well to go there prepared for some unpleasant
experience."
Now Ba
did not know Ramanarayanbhai well enough. So when he saw her and he asked her
for some raisins, Ba, pointing to him, asked Pyarelalji, "Do you know this
gentleman? Who is he? He has come to take some raisins from those kept for
Bapu's use."
But
before Pyarelalji could reply, Ramanarayanbhai, who had already gone prepared
for Ba's plain-spokenness, said, "Ba, I am a newcomer here. I have not been
keeping well. So Bapu sent me here to ask you for some raisins, in spite of my
own disinclination to do so."
At this
Ba's heart melted with sympathy and she replied, "That is all right. I had a
goodly stock of raisins before. But now it is almost exhausted, because Bapu
gave away much of it to those who were ill. However, I had kept back some for
Bapu. But it appears your need is greater. So here are the raisins."
When
Ramanarayanji heard that the raisins, intended for Bapu's use, were being given
to him, he felt still further disinclined to take them. But Ba persuaded him to
accept them and afterwards affectionately began to ask him questions about
himself and his family. Then he went back to Bapu. Seeing him smiling, instead
of with a sad-looking face, Bapu was rather surprised. However, when he heard
the whole story he said, "Well, that is just like Ba. She loses her temper at
times, specially whenever anything has to be given away to someone else from
anything kept for me. But her heart is like the ocean, full of sympathy. No
sooner does she hear of another's suffering than she is all sympathy. Then she
forgets even her overmuch fondness for me and also keen attentiveness to my
needs."