Note - First a disclaimer! Readers please bear with me. This is my first attempt at writing a story -thankfully a very small one you might say! The idea for the story line came to me when I was driving back home from office one night. I bounced the idea off my wife and she suggested some additions as well. Well, if you don't like my story, now you know whom to blame :-). Back to the story then –
Kannan's story
Hello! I have been told that when meeting someone for the first time, the polite thing to do is to introduce oneself first. So here goes - My name is Kannan and I used to spend most of my time at the Sri Ganesh restaurant adjacent to the Pazhavangadi Ganapati temple in Trivandrum. My major work was to clean up after patrons who ate at the restaurant.
I am usually very serious about my work. And that's why I was in the good books of the supervisor Murugan - or so I thought.
Murugan-annan is normally a nice guy when the proprietor is not around. At the fag end of the night near closing time, he used to let me have whatever food I wanted though others were normally entitled to only idlis. It is not that he did not know - many a time he had seen me having my share of puris, chappati and dosa - but then he usually flashed an understanding fatherly smile. Once when I was having a dosa, he even came over to where I was and served me chutney ! I was thrilled.
But Murugan-annan was a different person when the proprietor Mr Appaswamy was around. Or for that matter even when others were nearby. At such times, he used to speak to me in very harsh language and I felt I was unwanted there. Anyway I took it in my stride and carried on the next day as though nothing happened. The job was good, the food free and the best part was that I had free accommodation (at night I slept in the restaurant) as well. You could say that I performed the role of security as well.
Though I hardly ever used to go out and had seen very little of the world, the world used to come to in the form of the people who come to eat at Sri Ganesh.
And yes, the regular patrons, there were many of them. There was the elderly retired gentleman who visited the temple at 7 AM sharp. At 8 AM would be at his usual seat on the corner table having coffee (without sugar), 2 Idlis and a Vada. He was also there in the evening at 7:30 PM (post another temple visit) and would have 2 chappatis and kurma for dinner. I have often wondered about why he ate breakfast and dinner there. Did he not have a family? If he did not, what about lunch? Did he go elsewhere? If he did have a family, did his kids thrown him out in his old age? What about his wife?
Another set of regulars were three spoilt kids from the neighbourhood. They must have been about the same age as me. They visited during the evenings after school. They used to order snacks and ice cream. These kids never treated me well. I tried to avoid them but if they chanced on me they never failed to prod and tease me. When they were around I used to make myself useful in the kitchen and returned to the dining area only after I was sure that they had left.
Then there was the fat priest of the Ganapathy temple - another person who was not consistent in his behaviour. Whenever I used to get spare time, I used to rush across to the temple to pay my respects to the Lord. Many a time, when the priest saw me there, he recognised me and handed out the prasadam of the day be it modakkam or appam. Truth be told, the prasadam drew me to the temple again and again.
The priest was a regular patron of the restaurant as well. He normally used to come after the ucha (afternoon) puja. He regular order was for unlimited thali meals (the right choice for he used to eat quite a lot !) and he used spill rice and curry all around the plate. It was a nightmare to clean up after him!
The first time I saw the priest at the restaurant, I was extremely pleased and went up to him and smiled. In return I got a glare and a mouthful of swear words. All I could do was to make a retreat and suffer in silence.
Of course like I said earlier, Murugan-annan was the only one who looked out for me. Even the other chappies who worked there ill treated me when Murugan-annan was not looking. It was not physical abuse (because I was usually too fast for them) but verbal abuse.
One night however, something happened that turned my life upside down. Late at night, I was in a corner peacefully having some food. Murugan-annan and Mr Appaswamy were closing the account books for the day.
Suddenly Mr Appaswamy glanced up and saw me. He turned to Murugan-annan and said sternly - "How many times have I told you to buy a mouse trap? Well, if you won't, I will. Tomorrow I am going to get one myself, catch that pesky mouse and drown it".
That night I fled from Sri Ganesh restaurant and have never been back.
