Originally, I was scheduled to be home tomorrow morning. But my dinner meeting today was canceled. So, I switched to an evening flight back home. Like the meeting with Amy yesterday, this change too was blessed by fate with an undeniable upside.

The Skyclub was crowded. But I had a Zoom call to take. So, I settled in a nook away from the main area of the club and got on to the video call. Mid way thru the call, i heard my name being called out. Here too, my ear problem came in handy. Since the right ear is completely swollen (we still do not know why), I had my AirPods on only in my left ear. Which is why I could hear my name being called out.

I looked up and saw this lady smiling at me. Clearly she was on a call too on her phone but she was obviously addressing me. And in one of those rare occasions, my facial recognition algorithm failed me. Fortunately, she realized that and offered “Monica”. Aah! Ms. Moore!! Immediately, memories flashed back from that day – Gosh, some 10-12 years back? – when I was introduced to her on a stage under spotlights. We were panelists in a forum discussion together.

I asked my Zoom call folks to hold on and quickly chatted with her. Found out that she is on my flight too and that both our calls were ending at half past. And when the calls did end, I met up with her and caught up on the time since we had met.

“Do you remember where that panel discussion was?”, I asked.
“I do not”.
“Me neither”
“It was called Money 2020”
“Wow! You certainly have a better memory than i do’

After that panel discussion that day, I had befriended her on Facebook and Linkedin. Of course, the birthday calls started. But also I used to get updates on her from my close friend Sanjib (Monica was his customer and friend) and Sreerupa.

It was interesting to find out her background in Venezuela and her husband’s in UK. But the most touching event she narrated to me was how both she and her son were told on the same day early last year that they had cancer (of course, different cancers). The best part of it is that they are both in remission now.

I loved the way she put it – “Listen, Rajib, if I had been told that I will have cancer and that my child will have cancer too, the one thing I would have asked is that I go thru it together with him”.

Panelist, successful executive aside, a mother is always a mother. Supreme human being. And Monica is one of a kind!!