LIFE STORY

IN KERALAM-1 I left Keralam in 1957 and went out, to earn a living. In 1998, we returned to this State, leaving our children and grandchildren in Delhi. We could not continue in CS puram, as Sudhir’s would be wife is employed here, at Trichur, in SNA Oushadhasala.. So my first priority was to find a place to live in. The natural choice was our ancestral home at Kadalassery, on the bank of the river Karuvannoor puzha. Practically no one stayed in that big house and I had conveyed my wish, to the concerned person, but it did not click. When I discussed my plight to K.K.Raman, his wife Indira told me there is a god terrace building near by. We went there and were satisfied, though the house was locked. Indira told Damu the house owner’s brother and he agreed to keep it clean and ready for occupation. My next step was to arrange the marriage of Sudhir and Sreeja. I went to my wife house at Shoranur, made a draft invitation letter and got it printed there. We prepared a list of the persons to be invited and came back. I went from house to house and delivered the letter. This way, I could meet all people and update my whereabouts. Then my daughters and Ranjith, Vasudevan etc. came along with Damodaran, my son-in-law, who took over tne full charge. We arranged a van to take people from Manavazhi, where we lived, to Perumbilissery, the place of marriage in a temple there. There was only garlanding; no rituals were performed. The same day, kudiveppu (reception)was also done. The date was 28-12-20004 28-12-2004 Sreeja’s background. She is a married woman. Her husband was involved in some criminal case; so she refused to live with him. However, there was no formal divorce, when she married Sudhir. Muthurssi Vasudevan’s wife is related to Sreeja and it was she, who brought this case to our notice, when we were in Delhi. As my son is a chizophrenic, we wanted his wife to look after him, after our time. We decided to see the lady and came to my wife house. After much discussion, we decided to see her. We fixed up a date and went to Aryampadam, where she lives. There was quite a crowd of relatives and my nephew Parameswaran also had come with her. The lady is coal black, thin and sickly. I felt pity for her and thought that any one who marries her and gives her a second lease of married life, will be blessed by God Almighty. Her added qualification is that she is employed and gets regular income of her own. After tea etc, we got her photo and came to our home at Manavazhi. Parameswaran objected to this marriage:”It is unfair to tie Sudhir to this woman; I will find out a fair girl for Sudhir, from my tharavadu itself.” Sudhir took six months, after seeing the photo, to take an un-decision. But he used to talk to her and liked her voice. At my wife house, the relatives of Sreejja came and we fixed up the date of marriag. It is a matter of great satisfaction that their marriage is highly successful and produced two children; about that, later on. Daily life Those were heavenly days. It was heightened by the presence of a star-a slight girl, somewhat fair, named Sangeetha, studying in St. Mary’s College, Trichur. All her expenses were met by me, she being Sreej’s niece. They were very poor. Sreeja’s sister worked in Khadi centre and her husband, a lame fellow worked as poojari. I think Sreeja used to send money to her mother, as they were depending on her income, for survival. The girl was always first in her class; she would go up to her aunt’s room, after coming from the college and having refreshments and come back, on completing her work, though we will be watching TV. My wife too treated her as a daughter. We never felt that we were living in hired accommodation. Damu used to give us mangoes, jack fruit, turmeric etc. free; he is a good farmer. In the morning, K.K.Raman will bring fresh cow’s milk . He had purchased a car, very old, the make of which is not available in the market. He tried to learn driving, but abandoned the idea, when his car hit and damaged the parapet by the approach road; but the car was parked in the shed, in front of our house. I am very particular about all dues being paid on the first of the month. I will give two 500 notes to Indu, (Damus’ wife), the rent paid in advance each month. She is sweet as her name, ‘moon’, and very loving. I miss her now, as we are living in our own house. I used to go on a walk in the morning, usually to Naruvakulangara, my mother house, where my aunt is lying ill. I will shout Sasi’s name and he too will join us and it was a good entertainment for my aunt, who loved me as her own son. Poor aunty was laid up in the bed for a long time. One evening Sasi told me to see her, but I ignored it, as it was about to rain and I had no umbrella. That night she breathed her last. One night, there was rain and wind; in the morning Sasi collected a bag full of mangoes and gave it to me. With much difficulty, I carried it to the bus stop. I had to wait. The auto driver demanded more money than the cost of mangoes and so I waited for a long time till the bus came. From the stop at Manavazhi, I had to carry it all the way home. But my wife was thankless. Indu had also given mangoes. To supplement the gas, we used to buy wood fuel, for which I had to locate the half truck carrying fuel.