Chapter-X
With little money in his pocket, George left the house with full confidence, stopped the bus going to Thiruvananthapuram and boarded it. He got off at the Central Bus Station and walked staring at the big buildings, Malls, Star Hotels. He was amazed by the beauty of Thiruvananthapuram so the desire to go back to the village diminished little by little and was finally completely forgotten.
Occasionally he would go to the village to stay for a week. But will return to city within one day. Reason- ‘Son, get married and stay in the village’, his mother would start to annoy him.
This time she did not take that topic for discussion, George wondered why. Whether she got tired of saying it? Or she wanted to remain silent as George will pack off if she starts the topic?
This George didn’t expect- maybe she was busy with some other things and she didn’t remember this.
“George, they said, in city, there are fifty to sixty storey buildings, Is it? They would be going upstairs in a crate, would they? He was not so happy to hear her innocent words. He was worried about hiding many a thing from his mother. “Mom! For six months I was not enjoying the fabulous buildings in the city, but I was exploring the dark depths of the City Central Jail”, he was suffering from guilt for not being able to say that.
“Didn’t you take tea last night? You asked for it?” mom asked.
“Sorry Mom, I didn’t feel like taking”., he replied. “My dear Mom, Am I going to study for the exams by drinking tea and remain awake the whole night?”
The son laughed but the mother could not. She sighed, thinking about how her son missed his bright future. “The milk I kept for you is still there. Fortunately, it is not spoiled. Go to Jasmine's home and give it to her”, she said.
Is this a well-planned conspiracy that mom has played to get me close to her? Jasmine was busy with her work inside the hut. George with milk glass entered Jasmine’s hut.
In one corner of the hut on a coir cot an old woman was sleeping very sound. The morning sun was slowly raising. The old woman might be Jasmine’s Grandma . He hesitated for a moment , then clearing his throat, “Mom said to give you this milk”, he said.
She held out her hand saying only "Give it”. It appeared that she just had a bath the smell of her shampoo arouse unknown feelings which he had never felt. "I would have died if she didn’t look after me," he remembered what his Mom said.
“You are so helpful to my mom. My mom said. I don’t know… how to...show my gratitude…” George was stumbled without getting appropriate words.
She smiled, “I don’t have mom and dad. Gracy Maa supports me like a mother” She said in two sentences very appropriately and went inside. But he could not forget the softness.
Her sleeping grandma just turned and continued to sleep. George came out, Just then unexpectedly he collided with a young man who was coming inside.
George had a very vague memory of playing with him at a young age. But “Oh! George, don’t you recognize me? I am Eddy”, he introduced himself.
“Oh! Eddy. How are you?”, George asked. Although he did remember him clearly.
“Why, so far? You came looking for my girl?”. There was both anger and doubt in Eddy’s tone.
“I can always meet the ones I like. Who are you to ask that man?”, he thought to answer. But holding his anger, “Eddy, Mom wanted me to give a glass of milk to Jasmine”, he answered.
“Do you know, George? I came to city three or four months back. If I know your whereabouts, I thought to meet you and tell your mom about you so that she would be happy…”
George controlled himself and waited- wondering what next would say,
But Eddy just went without saying anything else.
Why does he say like that? Are there any specific reasons? George felt that there was some hidden threatening lurking in it. Before he was thinking more about it, “Jasmine, come here dear”, his mother called her.
“She is busy with some other work, Mom. What do you want? I’m here you know, a useless good for nothing fellow, tell me mom”, George said
“Nothing dear, you do not understand. You may not know how to handle this dear, you are coming from the city, right?”
“It’s, ok,please, Just tell me, mom”
“We worked yesterday in Nandan’s land. As it was dark, we didn’t collect the wages so...”
“Why Mom…”, his voice stumbled. “You never go for this kind of job before...”
“Can it always be like that dear, when a need comes, we have to do any kind of job to fill the stomach, right? Since we cleaned the peanuts, sand and dust had penetrated inside my nail gaps and was very irritating and painful. So I thought Jasmine can help me to go and collect the wages for me.
George slowly came out of the hut. How a mother will feel if her son is not able to look after her in her old age? His heart ached…
“Hey,Joju! When did you come?”, a voice stopped his walk.
The only person who uses ‘Joju’ and call him is his teacher Father.Rozario. He always has his lion-head walking stick with him. There is not much change in him except he has become a little skinny. “I came two days back, Father. You have become very skinny, Father”, George said.
“I’m getting older now, son. I am about sixty now”, he said. “You are staying in the City, right? How much money you saved dear?”, father asked in a caring way.
“Sir,”
“Son! I’ll tell you one thing. Listen”, he knocked the floor with the walking stick three times. “Many people are going to the city thinking that there is no way to earn their bread in this village, Fools! Is there no survival here? There are about eight houses in the first street alone making coir mats in their house. They complain that there is no one available for work. Three hundred rupees per day. You can earn in thousands per month ...”
“Really, Father?”
“Not only that. In the village peanuts were planted only once in a year in the past. But now? They harvest twice a year. Apart from that, there are the regular paddy, ragi and rye. I am saying that there is eleven-month survival in twelve months in villages now. “
“But … Father”
“Son! You don't have to say anything. Come with me now. There is a job for you, and I am sure that you can do it.” George could not refuse him as he grabbed his hand and started walking. But he did not expect he would be taken to Nandan's farm. The women were standing in a line to collect their wages. Seeing Jasmine in the line George got excited. The earthy aroma of plucked fresh peanuts filled the atmosphere with a nourishing energy.
Nandan really was short of men even for calculating and distributing wages. “Come on Joju, Go and check whether the accounts are correct and distribute the wages”, he said, sending him to the front of the line. As Nandan was a former student of Father.Rozario, he could not object to Father’s decision.
Now Jasmine was standing in the line as the first person to receive the wages. Her face blushed when she saw him. But as if she had made it a policy not to talk to him much, she just stopped with a smile.
“Hey,Jasmine,you have come to collect my mom’s wages?” George voluntarily asked.
“Yes, so what?”, she said.
“I have come to help with the accounts. All measurements should be correct. I will not tolerate any adjustments because of the reason, it is my mother's wages.” George said strictly.
She did not answer it, she said “You have to pay three days wages!”.
“What? Nandan said, only two days. But you are asking for three days?” George inquired.
“Nandan bro told that as your mom was ill, she can take wages for one more day for medical expenses, which can be adjusted later. If you have doubt, go, and ask Nandan Bro”, she replied very fast.
George was happy to see that she is fighting for justice and that also for his mother's wages. Someone touched his shoulder as he was saying "It’s ok, now you can take the wages"
Again Eddy.
“I am at work man. Don’t play with me”, George said very seriously.
“I have got more work than you bro, and of course, I have other people to play with. Come with me for a minute...”
“Wait”, George said to Jasmine and walked with Eddy. Eddy stopped at a little distance away from the crowd. “Why are you trying to be so close with Jasmine? No, bro, I don’t like it.” George could not simply tolerate the arrogance of Eddy.
“Hey, What is in your mind? Why are you so much worried about this? Why are you always behind me like a cop?”
“Why George? You are always thinking of the cop”, he laughed.
“Come on man open up, what is that you want to tell me?”
“Ok,then in that case, it is not a big issue, George. When I came to City, some friends told me where you have been, ha ,ha,but your mother actually do not know about this, do not worry I will never tell her …”
The very next minute, George grabbed his shirt collar and said, “I understood now! See. Man! If at all if you tell mom, my prison story, then you will not be alive. Be, Careful!”, as he said, George tightened his grip, hurting Eddy’s veins near the vocal cord, his eyes were popping out. Suddenly George realized his mistake, his inner self told him, “you, Fool! Don't repeat the same mistake of doing some crime again to go back to jail.”, George left his hand off from Eddy’s shirt. Eddy did not react. After standing for a while in the shock he walked away with full of vengeance in his mind.
Jasmin’s face withered with panic. Others were busy with their own work, so they did not notice the fight between George and Eddy. But Jasmine was very closely observing the entire show with fear.
“Don’t take this seriously Jasmine”. George said. She continued to measure the peanuts harvested. George called Nandan and handed over the accounts for the day.
George could not sleep for a long time that night. He was confused as to whether Jaya and Thiruvananthapuram should be deleted from his memory forever. He remembered Father Rosario’s words that there is no shortage of jobs in village.
He lied on the rope cot in the side of street itself, staring at the sky. At about three in the morning, the farm workers went with the hurricane lamp to turn on the pump set.
“You wish to marry Jasmine, Dear?” his mother asked suddenly. Has she been thinking about this since the evening after she had seen Jasmine and him coming together?
