Chaya aunty

It was not that there was not enough help in the house. It was just that Sunita liked cooking for the family. She had just finished cooking lunch and sat with a cup of tea and the morning newspaper. As she skimmed through the newspaper absent-mindedly, her thoughts drifted to the party that she was invited to attend that night. She shifted uncomfortably as she thought about the gathering that Naveen, her husband's colleague and his wife,Preeti had invited them to. Having been brought up in a small town, she preferred small get-together to big parties. The loud music, the dark ambience, the women in loud dresses, men laughing loud just did not make sense to her.

The evening of the party was not much different than what she had imagined. Women in thick make up, high heels and stylishly made up hair styles filled the party hall. As she stood in one corner watching the crowd, she couldn't help but wonder, "Why did they all look a little lost?"

She shrugged the thought aside and went inside the house to help Preeti. She made her way to the dining table, began arranging the dishes, when she heard a loud excited "Hello madam.. !!" at her back.

She turned around to see Chaya aunty, the family's help for five years, smiling broadly as she was waving at her. Sunita couldn’t help but reciprocate back. She could see that Chaya aunty was as happy to see her as she was, to see Chaya aunty. Sunita and Chaya aunty spent the next few minutes chatting with each other as they arranged the dishes on the table. Chaya aunty's company made Sunita feel completely at home at the party. once she came out of the dining hall, she started interacting with a few people and made a few friends.

By the time the party had ended, she was completely at peace. As she waved a goodbye to Naveen and Preeti, she could hear Chaya aunty's soft humming from the kitchen. She couldn't help smiling and acknowledging to herself, that, in the sea of people that both she and Chaya aunty did not understand that day, perhaps they had both found a friend in each other.

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Hope

"What did you tell her the last time you spoke to her?" I could hear Priya's husband asking Priya.

"Beats me.. I don't remember saying anything that could influence her to take such a quick decision to buy our product"

Priya was at my house to sell her special learning packages. The packages though good were extremely expensive and were not something that I would have normally bought. But something about Priya had touched me.

I will not forget that day.

We had just shifted back from the US and were still settling down. Some of our stuff had come to the Bangalore flat and we were expecting another shipment in a week. Our house was filled with unopened cartons lying around. The climate change and the excessive traffic was getting on to us. But the thing that we found most difficult was getting admission for our 13 year old daughter.

Even though Ria was getting called for the admission tests in all the good schools, she was finding it difficult to pass the exams because of the change in US and India syllabus. Since she was about to get into high school, it was really important for us that she got into a good institute.

That day yet another school informed us that Ria had not cleared the admission test. I was getting a little desperate and worried, when I heard my phone ring.

"Hi! your reference was given to me by Amit", the lady on the other side of the line who identified herself as Priya informed me. Amit was my brother who lived in Bangalore. "We sell some educational kits for teenagers. And Amit thought you would like it."

An educational kit was the last thing on my mind that day. And I told her so. I also told her that we had just relocated to Bangalore and it was more important for me that Ria got admission in a good school.

"Oh..! I am so sorry! Can you send me Ria's details? I would like to help," she said. We spent the next half an hour on the phone, talking about the various contacts that she had in the numerous schools.

From then on, she called me once a week to check on the progress of Ria's admission. 

I was surprised and touched. Priya's presence in my life, changed my mind from despair to hope. I did not know Priya before that call and I wondered why she went out of the way to help me.  With new found energy I continued applying for schools and eventually, Ria got into a school that could identify Ria's potential beyond the difference in  syllabus taught in the US and India schools. The school was also one of the best known schools in the city and very few children got admission to it. We all were ecstatic.

Earlier, I had also contacted the two schools that Priya had referred me to - though Ria did not get selected in those schools.

I had promised myself, that once Ria got into a good school, I would call Priya in for the demo of the product she had initially called me for. 

So as soon as Ria got in, I called Priya for a demo. The day Priya came in, I did not think much and told Priya that I would buy her product. My quick decision must have surprised Priya's husband. Which was why he asked her the question "What did you tell her the last time you spoke to her?"

But then for me, it was not about the product. It was about Priya. No money could ever buy the hope that Priya had placed in my heart that day. 

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