Ayya: An inspiration

This is another travel diary of mine. Generally, I like to travel alone as it gives me time to reassemble my thoughts. But this one time, my Ayya (Grandfather) accompanied me on my trip back to college from Nagercoil at the beginning of my 3rd year.

It takes 12 hours to come from Nagercoil to Chennai. I was glad my Ayya was travelling with me because after I grew up, I never had the patience to listen to stories and this felt like the perfect time to talk to him. In the beginning, we were making ourselves comfortable for the journey. Then, the TTR came and asked us to show our identification cards. My Ayya forgot his ID. It was more important that he had it as there was a concession in the ticket for aged citizens. I asked my aunt to send a photo of it through WhatsApp. Technology sure does help us out, we thought.

My mom has told me that my Ayya worked in Kuwait but I never really knew the full story. I whiled away my time in this journey by hearing out his story.

My Ayya had an elder and a younger brother. Farming was what the family did for a living. Almost everyone in the village survived on that. The family was struggling to send all three sons to school. So one had to drop out to support the family. All three of them were excellent in academics, so it was a hard decision to take. My Ayya was a mature kid and told okay when his dad asked for help. He dropped out of school and took up farming.

Life was going well for him. He got married and had 3 kids; 2 boys and a girl. The girl is my mom and the middle child. He not only did farming for a living but also used to have a maatu vandi (a sort of vehicle which moves with the help of cows). He travelled for long distances carrying goods and big utensils using this vehicle. This gave him the idea to start supplying these utensils in his own village. He bought one or two utensils or benches whenever he could. He then gave these for rent to others for big functions at their home or the kalyanam mandappam (party hall rented for functions like wedding or baptism). The family got income from all this.

Then, he got an opportunity to go to Kuwait. He didn’t want to miss out on it and took up the offer. It was a job to cook food for a huge Arabic family in Kuwait. He made friends with the other workers there and also learnt how to communicate with the owner in his own way. He exclaimed proudly that he used to cook Biriyani for the family and they used to like it. The owner was a sweet man and was affectionate towards all his workers. He liked my Ayya very much and never wanted him to leave. My Ayya used to come back home only once in a while. His kids used to love when he came back because he used to get gifts from Kuwait. My mom has told me a story of how she always wore half skirts which her dad used to buy for her. Everyone used to call her the London girl.

In Kuwait, he wanted to get another job. He tried to run away from the owner’s house once. His owner found him and took him back. He clearly understood that my Ayya wanted a change in place and took him to a bank. He started working there as the clerk. He smiled as he narrated this part of the story. In the bank, he was assigned to the files room. In the olden days, the documents were stored in tinned cans instead of drawers. Whenever someone used to call and request for a file, my Ayya used to find it in a matter of minutes. He knew that room like the back of his hand. He was always perfect with his work there.

Later, he wanted to get a driver’s license. He was terrified to drive and on the day of his test, it was raining heavily. This made him freak out more. He just prayed that he should pass. Somehow he drove safely and managed to pass. He came back to India for some time when he met with an accident in Kuwait. Afterwards, he went back to Kuwait and worked. However, he returned when the house owner who loved him dearly, passed away.

He had a farm and the renting business. Everything was going good because he did what he loved the most with his family by his side. He raised his kids and made sure they got the best education. The eldest son has settled in the U.S., his daughter in Dubai and his youngest son in Djibouti. My grandmother also helped him to take care of the orders. She was one of his biggest support.

In our village, Azhagappapuram, everyone knew him and loved him for being a helpful man. He was an active member of the DMK party and got selected as the Panchayat President of the village. He was able to help many people during his 5-year tenure. He helped the village develop as well by the construction of proper roads around the lake.

Although he is 75 years old right now, he still goes around doing his everyday chores and helps people as much as he can. He has helped many kids with their education and he provides moral support to many. Though it’s difficult for him to travel, he makes sure he goes to the airport to receive his children and grandchildren.

He is a cool grandfather who loves watching wrestling every day. He makes sure we are all entertained and cracks funny jokes. Till today, he has the same enthusiasm. Any kid who meets him will love him instantly. He once mentioned that he is very proud to have all his grandkids all grown up and standing beside him in church. Even the youngest one loves him and keeps searching for him to go on long bike rides.

The affection he has for us is tremendous and we all are surely lucky to have him as our Ayya.

David Ayya.