Supply-Demand

In Tamil Nadu beef is not eaten and it was our favourite meat, but there was no way of getting it, it was available in one shop in the meat market but going there to buy meat turned one into a pariah in the community. So the malayaee Christians in Appan's office had devised a plan to get beef. Appan worked in the Indian railways sleeper factory and they were always testing sleepers by running train engines on them and Madras like all other Indian cities and towns were filled with stray cattle. Cattle entering the factory premises were strictly forbidden as during testing accidents could be caused, so if any entered the factory premises, no one dared to claim them.
This was used by the beefeaters as a pretext and they would run the cattle on to the track and have an engine run into it, effectively killing it and the engineers in the factory shared the meat. This worked well, especially because while trespassing was a crime it was a bigger and punishable crime for a cow to cause an accident by being on the track.
Well, this ensured that we had a steady supply of beef during our stay in Madras and as none of the locals knew we were not subjected to the sanctions a beefeater usually is

The New House

We were all going out to look at the new house we were going take on rent. After the measles everything was starting to get back to normal and school had just started again. The new house was near George’s house and Appan’s office and it was also bigger. We could see the trains from the house. There was a big jasmine bush in front of the house but the garden and yard looked neglected and unloved. It was a two-story house but the upper floor had the exact same design as the lower and they intended to rent it out to someone else. The lower part was to be ours.
“Do you like the house?” Appan asked Vena and me.
“Hmm Hmm” Vena nodded
I wasn’t so sure. I liked having a friend near and watching trains from the house but I loved the bougainvillea tree in the old house.
“What about you, Leila?” Appan asked.
“This is good, I think we should take it.”
And so it was decided.
We moved the next week and settled in. Kousu came with us and Appan’s office peon Masilamani, visited regularly to run errands.
The first problem we encountered in the new house was bold crows; they flew in through he dining room window and flew off with food from the table, sometimes even when we were all sitting around eating. Closing the window made the room stuffy and we were all at our wit’s end when someone suggested that we trap a crow in the room kill it and hang its wing outside the window. Masilamani came to our rescue in the killing and trapping and soon we had a dead crow’s wing tied to the window and it worked, the crows would come swooping down take a look at their dead comrade’s wing and would fly off. I loved sitting and watching the crows take an about turn at the window and sit and watch for hours on end. Vena started talking and walking and was turning into a very opinionated and stubborn little girl. Her mornings invariably started with three hot idlis, she would wake and up in the morning, go sit on the door step of the kitchen and amma would the idlis and she sat their quietly finishing it all off. Then she waited for Appan to come home and the moment she heard the gate opening she would run screaming “Ente Appan Vannu, Ente Appan vannu (My Appan has come, My Appan has come). Appan loved hearing that. As the sun went down and bed time approached she would start saying, “ Appan poe, Appan enne idekkenda, Appan enne thodennda, Appan enne nokkennda (Appan go away, Appan don’t pick me up, Appan don’t touch me, Appan don’t look at me)” and every night Appan and I end up on a mattress on the floor and Amma and Vena on the bed, because Vena refused to let Appan anywhere near her after sunset.

Devi Vilayattom

“Get up Get up, Vena is very high fever” Amma shook Appan.

“Hmm Hmm” He went right back to sleep.

Amma shook him again and he got up at last. “What time is it?” He asked, sleepily, and then turned to look at me. I was sitting on the bed rubbing my eye. Vena had rashes all over her and she looked very ill.

It is not morning yet and it is dark outside. Machachan, Appan and Amma get dressed and take Vena to the doctor. I am left with Kousu and her mother. Kousu’s mother says, “Don’t worry, this is Devi Villayattom, the goddess is visiting this house, that is why Vena baby has rashes all over her. The Devi is blessing this house.”

She then goes and soon is back with neem leaves, bundles and bundles of it, She ties them around the cot where Vena usually sleeps and we wait.

The news about the Devi blessing Vena soon spreads and people start coming to our house and when they comeback from hospital, the front yard is filled with people waiting to see and get blessed by Vena. Vena is sleeping and the noise of the waiting devotees wake her and she starts crying at the top of her lungs. Amma tries to calm her but they themselves are scared seeing the crowd. They manage to reach the door and take her to the bed.

“Oh My God, What in God’s name is all this?” She asks.
””This is Devi Villayattom, the Devi has blessed the child and is now inside her and people have come to take her blessings.” Kousu’s mother explains.

“Non sense Vena has measles, not Devi inside her” Amma is almost hysterical. “Why are all these neem leaves tied around the cot like this?”

Appan tries to calm her down; “Neem leaves have disinfectant properties so it is okay. The thing to do is stay calm, don’t get upset.”

“They have different customs and while we may not like it, as part of the community we may have to let them do at least some of it.” Appan tried to reason.

“Well, I am not letting them touch or do any mumbo jumbo to my child, she is sick as it as and I don’t want any of them performing any black magic on her.”

Appan asked, “Kousu, what do these people want?”

“They want to see the Devi and take blessing.”

“Now! Vena is very sick and needs rest. Maybe after a few days.”

“I don’t know how they will take it. Anyway I will tell them.”

She goes off to tell the crowd outside, Appan follows her and she tells them they can’t come in and see the Devi today but maybe after a few days. They are angry, some try to reason, others try to push in but then they all leave without much of a scene.

Kousu’s amma stays to help with the Vena, who sleeps peacefully surrounded by neem leaves.

In the evening I don’t feel so good, and I start breaking out in rashes and a trip to the hospital confirms measles. I too go to sleep near Vena surrounded by neem leaves.

When I wake between bouts of sleep I see people standing around with hands folded, praying. Amma sits near us keeping a watchful eye on the devotees.

Days later, as the fever leaves us and we start getting back to normal, I see that the old leaves are replaced every day with new ones. Then it is all over and Vena and I are back to normal, fully recovered and ready to take on the world.

“It was scary when it happened but in a few years we will look back on the Devi Villayattom as funny.” Appan said.

“ I suppose so but coming home from the hospital and seeing all that crowd in front of the house really scared me.” Amma replied

“Good thing all this happened before the house shifting.”

“What shifting?” I wanted to know.

“Didn’t we tell you? We are moving to a house nearer Appan’s office.”

“It is also near George’s house, so you can play together.”

“Okay I like that. But what about Kousu?”

“We are taking her with us.”

The Angel fight

Christmas was approaching fast and we were doing a nativity play at the school. I was to be one of the angels. We practiced and practiced everyday. Amma and Suja aunty came over everyday to pick us up after the daily rehearsals. Sometimes as we waited the flower man came over carrying a huge basket on his head, a basket full of Red Roses. Everyday I asked amma to buy one for me to put in my hair and everyday she would refuse. On the last day of the rehearsals Suja aunty came to pick me up and she bought me a rose. “But Amma will be angry, she will say I forced you to buy it” I told her.
“Don’t worry I will explain to her that I bought it because you were a very good girl.”
The rose was big, red and smelled good and I kept pulling it out of my hair and smelling it, by the time we reached home very little was left of it, all the smelling and counting of petals caused all the petals to fall of and I was left holding the stem. Amma was excited on seeing me, “How did the dress rehearsals go?”
“Good, I wore wings today.”
“So all set for tomorrow’s play.”
The play was scheduled for the evening of the next day. I was taken to the school early and all of us were made to change into the costumes, make up was applied. Out of the window we watched the parents and other guests coming in to watch the play. The teachers ran around making sure things were all ready and soon it was time and we were all on the stage. The play started, on the stage were three angels including me, we had huge wings and were crowding one another.
I asked the angel next to me, “Can you move a little, there is no place for me to stand here.”
“She glared at me, “Shhhh… Don’t talk.”
I tried adjusting my wings a little to make them a little more comfortable. In the process my wings touched other angel’s wings and she pushed me and then I pushed her and in minutes there were two angels fighting on the stage, pulling and pushing and hitting each other until the other angel’s wings broke into two and she started crying. I felt myself being pulled off the stage, I screamed and looked at the person holding me and saw Appan. He was looking amused.
“Well, Well, This is the first time people saw two angels fighting like this” someone said from behind Appan. I turned around and saw Machachan, Amma’s youngest brother and my favourite uncle. I smiled and he held out his arms. Soon I was in his arms, explaining how the fight broke out.
“She refused to move and I had no space to stand on the stage.”
“But we saw you break her wings and pull her hair. Why did you do that?”
“She pushed me.”
We looked at the stage; the play had stopped and there was a crying angel on the stage.
“I think that is it for today, we might as well leave and go home. Vena did not seem well so amma probably wants us home fast.” Appan said
“What’s wrong with Vena?”
“Just fever and cold. She will be fine.”
At home, Vena was sleeping, slightly feverish and Appan and Machachan had a great time telling Amma about the play and my role in it.

The first lie

“Sneha, Sneha Come here” Appan was screaming and he sounded angry.
I tried to think fast, I have not been naughty, I haven’t broken anything, then why was he angry. I walked inside and went to where Appan was standing. ”Oh my God” I thought “the statues”. He was standing in front of the cupboard and holding the broken statue, the rest of them were on the table. I held my breath terrified, knowing that I was going to be the recipient of Appan full terrible fury. But instead he asked calmly, “What happened? Did you break this?” holding the broken statue out to me. I shook my head, “No, I didn’t.”
“Really, who did it then, Amma, Vena?” he wanted to know.
“I don’t know’ I shrugged “I haven’t even come near it.”
Amma also had come running when Appan called me and now she said, “ Sneha, it really is okay, tell us the truth, we are not going to punish you.”
“No, I am telling you, I did not do it.” I was adamant.
Amma glanced at Appan; she was scared Appan’s temper.
“Listen Sneha, we know you did it, no one else could have done it but I want you to tell me that and tell me how it happened.” Appan sounded calm but I could feel the anger trying to break free.
“Did you take it down to look at it?” He asked.
I refused to open my mouth, and looked down concentrating on finding new shapes in the speckles of the mosaic tiles on the floor.
“You have to tell us, and do it fast, before I lose my temper and spank you.”
“Tell us what happened.” Amma tried again.
Then Appan walked out of the room. I stood there scared, not knowing what to do.
The day passed without my confessing to anything. Appan did not talk about it again.
Then one day sometime later as I was telling Appan about George, I said, “Appa, the, I showed the statues to George one day.”
“Is that when you dropped them?” He asked.
I did not know what to do, I hadn’t intended to tell him but it just came out with any plan.
I nodded, “I told him you will be angry, but he still wanted to see and then I showed him one and he wanted to see the rest and that is when one of them fell down.”
“But then why did you not tell me that? Things get broken all the time but why did you have to lie. Good children don’t lie.”
Later that night as we lay down to sleep, I heard Appan tell Amma, “It is her first lie. The broken statues don’t bother me much but her telling a lie made me feel as if I am bringing her up wrong.”

A New Friend

“Did you meet Thamby?” Chachan asked Amma.
“No, Not yet, we will ask them to come for lunch now that you are also here.”
“They have a son, her age.” He nodded in my direction.
When George and his family came to lunch the next day, we hit it off immediately, running around and playing in the sun. The mango trees had tender mangoes; sour not yet sweet and amma plucked a few, diced them and mixed in chilly powder and salt. Everyone loved them. As the day wore on, the adults sat around talking and we were left to our devices.
“Do you know, my Appan has been to Calcutta?”
“So what?”
“Well, it is very far off and a very big city, much much bigger than Madras.”
“No place is bigger than Madras” George said with certainty.
“Really? Are there statues here like the ones appan brought from Calcutta.”
“What statues?””Statues of women. They are so pretty that no one is allowed to look at them and so appan has stored them on the highest shelf of the cupboard.”
“I don’t believe it.”
“Well, it really is true.”
“Well show them to me then.”
“No, No one is allowed to take them down. When we build a new house we will display them. That is what Appan said.”
“Well I don’t believe you have any statues. Otherwise you would have shown me.”
“George, Sneha, come inside, it is hot outside, don’t play in the sun.” Amma called.
“Amma, when is appan coming back from office? Can you show George the statues, please?”
“No, Appan will be angry if we take them down.”
“But Amma..”Amma shook her head, “Please don’t start whining Sneha.”
I looked at Chachan; he also shook his head to show he was helpless.
Then Appan and George’s father were back and soon the statues were forgotten.
“It is good that you guys are here, at least Suja will stop complaining about having no friends here. Now once the children go to school you can meet and do what you like.” Thamby uncle said.
Soon George left with his parents.
A few days’ later Suja aunty and George came back. Suja aunty and amma went to the kitchen and Vena was sleeping.
“Show me the statues.”
“Okay but you shouldn’t touch them or break them.”
“We went to the bedroom. I got a stool climbed on it and gently pulled a statue, unwrapped it and showed it to George.
“Can I see another one?”
I took out another one. After we finished admiring them. I put them back and then I dropped one of the statues. It sounded like an explosion going off. I got down from the stool looked at the statue on the floor, it had broken into two and I quickly got up the stool wrapped them up and put it back just as it was before.
“Don’t tell anyone.” I told George and we ran off to play, the statue and the crime soon forgotten.
“This is a good age, old enough to know the basics but not old enough to be brats, still able to coddle and have fun with” George’s father and Appan were watching us play.
“But they are still pretty unpredictable” Appan said, “A few days back we were lying on the bed and playing with her, when suddenly for reason she aimed and kicked be hard in the face. My!! I saw stars for sometime.”
“Yeah, unpredictable but soon they will grow up, start lying and learn other bad habits and then these things will seem small and insignificant.”

The Coconut Thief

“Why are Appappan and Ammamma leaving?”
“If they stay here who will take care of our house at Pudukad? Besides Ammamma likes to attend early morning mass in Malayalam everyday, which is not possible here,” Appan answered.
“Can I go with them?” I ask
“What about school?”
“Maybe I won’t go to school for some days.” I suggest.
“No, you have to go to schools everyday”
Soon Ammamma and Appappan are gone and we are back to being the four of us.
“Some one has been stealing the coconuts from the tree” Appan announced one day.
“Non sense, how can anyone do that, the tree is in front of the house and we would hear it if any coconut fell on the ground.”
“Well come and see for your self, the entire bunch of ripe ones are gone.”
Amma and Appan go of to check and Vena and I follow. Amma is livid, “Now we will have to buy coconut for our daily use. I really cannot imagine who could have done it.”
“Well thieves are every where, anyway ask Kousu if they heard any sound at night.” Appan says and leaves for his office.
In the evening, appan brings a guest, the gardener at the railway depot. They go to the coconut tree and look up at the remaining coconuts.
“Well, whoever stole it will be back for more” the gardener says.
“You do whatever has to be done, I don’t want anyone robbing me like this anymore” Appan tells him.
Then as appan and I watch he climbs the coconut tree and starts putting broken pieces of blade into the tree. This he does for quite a length of the tree and comes down.
Appan looks worried, “Even if he is a thief, the man mind hurt himself with all those blades.”
“Well, serves him right for stealing. This is what do at the depot and always the thief is someone we know.”
Appan still looks uneasy. But the gardener is sure this will work. “Aiyyah, this is how we do things in Tamil Nadu, you malayalis are too soft, feeling sorry for the thief when he is robbing you.”
Early next morning I rub off to check the result of the previous days handiwork but everything is normal. I run back and shout, “Appa, Appa the thief did not come yesterday, the coconuts are still there.”
Amma smiles and tells Appa, “Just like you to inform the biggest chatterbox in the world about your thief trapping plans. She has probably told everyone about the blades, the thief included.”
Appan picks me up and whispers, “This is a secret between us, don’t tell anyone about the blades. Okay. If you do the thief won’t come and we won’t be able to catch him.
The door bell rings and we go off to open the door.
“Chachan, Chachan Amma Chachan has come, Amma, Amma, See Chachan is here,” I shout happily.
Chachan picks me up and kisses me, “Where is Vena?” he asks.
“With Amma. You know Ammamma and Appappan were here with us, but then they went back to Pudukad.”
“Lucky you” Appan says, “One set of grand parents leave and the next grand parent comes to see. She always has someone or the other to fuss over her.”
“Chacha do you know we have stuck blades into the coconut trees here to trap the thief who has been stealing coconuts from us.”
Amma laughs at this, “She really cannot keep anything to herself.”
“What blades?” Chachan wants to know.
Appan explains and we all sit down for breakfast.
“Do I have to go to school today? Chachan is home and he will be alone if I leave,” I tell them.
“No, go to school now and in the evening we will go out with chachan.”
A few days later, Kousu comes running, crying.
“Aiyyah Aiyyah, My Appa has hurt himself, he says he fell and bruised himself, his body is covered with cuts.”
We all run to her house and sees him cut badly, “Come I will take you to the hospital” Appan tells him.
“No No Aiyyah, I will apply some medicine and it will go away.”
“But what happened, how did you cut yourself like this.” Appan wants to know.
He looks down and mumbles something.
“Did you fall somewhere? Were you drunk? Appan is shocked; he has never seen anything like that. It is as if someone had cut him up with a blade. Then it strikes Appan, “Oh my God! You climbed the coconut tree, you were the thief.”
Everyone looks shocked. Kousu and her mother start wailing and beating their chests, “Aiyyah please don’t report this to the police. This good for nothing man steals things to keep drinking.”
“No, No don’t cry, I am not reporting this to the police, but this should not happen again.”
We leave the wailing women to their misery and get on with our routines.