POTHOLE BRINGS MAN BACK FROM THE DEAD

#MindOfMarlar is written by Darren Marlar, host of Weird Darkness

Photo: Charles Rex Arbogast | Associated Press

When it comes to driving around town, the worst part of the year is always going to be winter. Even here in Chicagoland where orange barrels are a year-round nuisance, it’s winter that brings the hazardous road conditions with ice, wet leaves, and… the dreaded potholes. I hear tell that Mel’s Hole in Washington actually started as a pothole – but that’s just a rumor. That I just made up.

Yet, in a bizarre turn of events, an 80-year-old man from Haryana, India, declared dead by doctors, defied all odds and returned to life, thanks to an unexpected encounter with, believe it or not, Ripley… a pothole. And despite my propensity for adding humor to just about everything I write, this is a story I did not make up. Darshan Singh Brar’s miraculous story has turned a family’s mourning into a last-minute celebration after a seemingly fatal diagnosis hit a bump in the road. Pun intended. Sorry, couldn’t resist.

Brar had been unwell for quite some time, prompting one of his grandsons to rush him to a nearby hospital. Doctors diagnosed him with a severe chest infection, exacerbating his pre-existing heart condition. Despite their best efforts though, the medical team pronounced him dead after four days on a ventilator. The family received the heartbreaking news of Brar’s demise on Thursday, January 11th, 2024. Plans for his last rites were set in motion, with relatives and locals gathering to mourn his passing. A tent had been erected for the memorial service, and arrangements for food and cremation wood were made.

But what should have been the end of this man’s story, was just the beginning of its next unbelievable chapter. While en route to Nising, near Dhand (a village in Haryana’s Kaithal district), the ambulance hit a deep pothole. In an unexpected twist, Balwan’s brother, who was keeping vigil over Brar’s body, witnessed the octogenarian move his hand – he was suddenly alive again! Sensing a pulse (and possibly hearing his brother in bed yell, “braaaains!”), the brother urgently alerted the driver to redirect them to the nearest hospital instead. Imagine a hospital getting a delivery not by an ambulance, but by a hearse! The confidence of the people in the waiting room immediately skyrocketed, thinking, “people bring the dead here to be brought back to life! We’re definitely in the right place!”

Upon reaching the hospital, doctors confirmed that Darshan Singh Brar was, indeed, undead… er, uh… alive… and immediately referred him to a different hospital in Nising. From there, he was taken to yet another (now the third) hospital — the NP Rawal Hospital in Karnal, where his critical condition was being closely monitored. Though still precarious, Brar was now breathing on his own, defying the earlier declaration of his death (and thankfully not craving human flesh as would be expected from a zombie). It’s a good thing they didn’t encounter any other potholes during the constant relocating of this poor guy from hospital to hospital to hospital – they might have killed him all over again! Assuming you can kill an undead thing – I honestly don’t know if it’s possible, outside of film and TV scripts.

Balwan, expressing gratitude for the unexpected turn of events, said, “It is a miracle, now we are hoping that my grandfather recovers soon. Everyone who had gathered to mourn his death congratulated us, and we requested them to have the food we had arranged. It is God’s grace that he is now breathing, and we are hoping he will get better.” So the food intended for a memorial service ended up catering a celebratory party of life!

As Darshan Singh Brar’s resilience continues, his family clings to hope after witnessing this miraculous turn of events, and Darshan now has the enviable ability to see how many truly loved him and the many who attended what was to be his funeral – thanks to an encounter with a deep and, uncharacteristically helpful, pothole in the road.

I can hear Clarence from “It’s a Wonderful Life” now… “You’ve been given a great gift, Darshan – to see what the world would be like at your funeral.”