XXVI. Celebration

Today is a big day in my family. It is Jane’s Birthday (Happy Birthday!) and my parents’ 74th wedding anniversary. It also is the 12th Anniversary of the laying of the cornerstone of the Advanced Centre for Research Treatment and Education in Cancer.

Things are going very well; so, I have many of life’s little miracles to celebrate. One thing that I was not anticipating being so grateful about is the clean smell of the night air. For several months, there was a very acrid smell of burning toxic waste that would permeate the ACTREC campus. I was advised by friends and colleagues to leave until it got sorted out. However, I felt that my presence was needed for a resolution. I asked myself what Gandhi, or Jesus, or Martin Luther King would do, and decided to stay. To abandon the cancer patients seemed like a cowardly exercise in privilege. So in a state fluctuating between scared, angry, and sad I set out to do what I could as a visiting scientist to make things better.

I wrote letters to the editor of several papers (the Times of India, Indian Express, and the Hindu). As many of you know, I have some practice with that sort of thing. I was interviewed by Mr Namdev More from Lokmat, a local Marathi paper, and there were stories in the local media that got some attention. I then wrote a letter to the regional authorities that apparently finished the job (you can blow this, or any image, up by clicking on it):

I was not willing to acknowledge this kind note from Dr. Sarin until I was pretty confident that it stopped: "If it was not for your persistent effort we would not have reached this stage." After several nights of clear air and word from Mr. Jayaraman, ACTREC Chief Security Officer, that the menace is over, I am ready to celebrate that we can breathe in peace! I think that Jane will be proud and happy that this came to a final resolution around the time of her birthday.