Chennaiites remember Sister Nirmala’s kindness

Chennai: As the world mourns the loss of Sister Nirmala and pays it condolences after she passed away on Tuesday, Sister Remy (65) fondly recollects her association with her “novice mistress”.  “She has come to Chennai twice. Once when the homes of Missionaries of Charity were opened at Anna Nagar and another time after the Tsunami,” she said adding that she first met Sister Nirmala way back in 1971 as she inducted her into the Missionaries of Charity.  Sister Nirmala succeeded Mother Teresa as the head of Missionaries of Charity. “She was my novice mistress and I was under her,” Remy said. She remembers her as being kind and gentle.

“She always told us about the importance of sacrifices. Once when we were fussing about our food she advised us to sacrifice and offer the food to someone who needs it. She always lived for the needy.  She was also a huge lover of nature.”  Sister Nirmala was her role model, she said. “I knew her since 2000 when I was about to finish college studies. I met her twice, once in Kolkata and again during her visit to Chennai right after the tsunami,” said Dr Pravin Devaprasad, Professor, SRM Dental Hospital.

He remembers her as being very soft-spoken and fragile but mentally strong. She worked for the needy. “She was also very spiritual and was like a mother for the sisters at Missionaries of Charity, extremely caring and pampering. She also loved St Joseph very much and used to call him ‘Papa Jo’. Being a nature lover she used to ask me to observe nature and how it grows silently.”

When she visited Chennai after the tsunami she had brought along with her relief material from Kolkata for those affected, he said. “I travelled with her during that visit. After the ravage caused by the tsunami, she went to Marina beach and stood there to pray for a long time. She really had Mother Teresa’s spirit in her and that was always visible,” he said.