A Visit to Cambridge Summary
The author begins by telling readers that at some point in life, England meant Cambridge only to him and nothing more. He further commented that after the meeting with Stephen Hawking, England's meaning and relevance in his life completely changed.
The author mentions that he went on a walking tour through Cambridge when his guide talked about Stephen Hawking. The guide called him a "poor man" because he was different. He also told the author that Stephen Hawking now holds his place at the university, formerly near Issac Newton. The author revealed that before the guide was mentioned, he had forgotten that Stephen Hawking, one of the most prolific and completely paralyzed astronomers, one of the biggest sellers, author of A Brief History of Time, lived here.
Once the walking tour was over, the writer grabbed the nearest phone booth and nearly tore the cord, so that it could reach him outside the booth (because he was in a wheelchair). He calls Stephen Hawking's residence where his assistant answers the call. The author introduces himself as someone who came from India (which the assistant may have taken literally in the sense that he traveled all the way on a wheelchair from India to write about his travel experience in the UK ). The author reported that he needed to see Professor Hawking even if it meant only ten minutes, but the assistant gave him a thirty-minute slot from three-thirty to four minutes for the next day.
The writer started feeling weak at that moment. He relates how one is constantly said to be brave and cheerful as you grow up are abled in a different way as if it were easier. He mentions that people think that what is different is just lazy to pull a check on his courage account. In such a situation, the only thing that gives you courage and strength is that people like you do something big. It is only then that you know that there is hope and possibility that takes you beyond your limits and imagination.
The next afternoon when he went to see him, Stephen Hawking told him that he was not brave. He stated in his disgruntled computer voice that he had no other option. The author wanted to answer that living creatively even with his disability was a brave choice, but he avoided doing so because his guilt responded by talking to him every time he pushed Stephen Hawking. He spoke and found the words on his computer and then tapped the little switch in his hand with the only movement remaining in his light and long fingers. He used to get tired easily and would close his eyes every time. The author mentions how he could feel Hawking's pain because the thoughts in his extremely active and vibrant mind were emotionless and as harsh as a corpse.
The author expresses how most people think that people with different abilities are constantly unhappy and unhappy but this is not true as far as he is talking about himself. He asks Hawking if it was true for him or he was laughing from inside. It took Hawking about three minutes to respond. He finds it amusing when people are only kind to him because of his various abilities. The writer further asks him if he gets irritated when people like him come and keep him away from his work, to which he answers a firm 'yes'. Stephen then smiled his oneway smile, not giving in to the emotions, but the author was aware that he was seeing one of the most beautiful and amazing men in the world.
When you look at him, it seems as if he is like a lantern whose walls are so bad that you only see the light. Yes, in front of you, a man has an inner glow. It makes you feel that the body is irrelevant and only exists like a case made of shadows. This also makes the author, a non-believer in eternal souls, one realizes that a man is no more than this. Everything else is not necessary.
The writer asked Stephen what the best thing about him was, according to him, to be followed in a different way. To which, Hawking replied that he could not find anything good about it. The writer then expresses that he feels that this shows you how much kindness there is in the world. Stephen agreed, but due to his sound synthesizer, the author could not understand the excitement behind his answer because a disadvantage with it is that it does not express any inflection, shadow or tone.
The author mentions that every time he adjusted himself in his chair or glanced at the time of tracking his wrist-watch, he wanted to ensure that not a single minute of the meeting was wasted. He says he was relaxed and happy about the limited possibilities his body had to offer. At that moment, it made almost no sense to the writer that he would never be able to walk or stand for the matter.
The author confessed to her how Stephen inspired her beyond limits and was sure that she must have inspired many. He asked if this fact is better for Stephen. Stephen said that this did not happen. Hearing his answer, the writer also felt foolish for asking such a question. This is because Stephen Hawking feels when your own body is like a very small and suffocating room with walls coming closer by the day, with the fact that the people there are happy that you Are alive, doesn't matter much to you.
The author asked Stephen if he wanted to give a piece of advice from other different people that would help make life a little easier for him. Stephen said that they should focus on their strengths and what they are good at. According to Stephen, things like the Olympics are a waste of time for different kinds of people. The writer gets an idea of what Stefan meant as he spent years playing a Spanish guitar that was larger than his own size and how he accomplished it one night with great joy.
The thirty-minute time had elapsed and the writer smiled saying "I think I disturbed you enough" and continued to thank him for his time, but was interrupted by Stefan who instead allowed him to stay said. He waited for Stephen to say something next and he gave the author some tea and a chance to show his garden. Even though the garden was as big as a park, Stephen showed her every inch and corner on his motorized wheelchair. The writer tried not to get in his way. Because the characters on his screen at the time had disappeared into the dazzle, they could not understand much. It seemed as if Suraj silenced him.
An hour passed and it was time to leave. The writer did not know what to do as he walked, as he could not kiss her or cry either. Thus, he touched his shoulder and went into his wheelchair on summer evenings. The author knew that Stephen was waving when he was returning (when he really wasn't).
The author expresses that Stephen's glimpse was like seeing his eldest self, the one he was moving towards and the one he had believed in for so many years. He was well aware that his journey was over, for now, in England.
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