Perspectives

Share a story about someone who had a positive impact on your life.

“You may think your light is small, but it can make a big difference in other people’s lives. Let your light shine”

When I was in grade 5, we relocated to a new locality that was some distance from the school. Mum had started to go to work regularly as did Dad and the older siblings were in high school. Tired of the constant complaints from the other parents on the street, Mum had us join the gymnastics school for evening practice. All of us were busy and all of us were out of the house, but the house had to be cleaned and the clothes washed. So, when Yellamma came over and offered to do the chores for a fixed salary every month, Mum agreed. Yellamma was probably in her late teens, and she always chewed beetle nuts and leaves. Her teeth used to be stained red and she used to keep scraping the walls around the washing stone for the chunambu or limestone painted on the walls. She lived with another lady, whom she insisted was her aunt. This dubious aunt was a fast talker, lots of promises less work. Yellamma on the other hand, would talk less, finish the work, and would sit around and wait until it was time for Mum to leave for work. Mum used to pack our lunch boxes and usually, the food left over she would give Yellamma a cup of tea. Typically, Yellamma would finish the meal and the tea and clean up after herself while Mum got ready. They walked out of the house together.  

Both Yellamma and her aunt used to work at a couple of houses on our street. While Yellamma came home by 7 am to help Mum finish the chores, her aunt used to visit one of the other houses to start her work. They never worked together in the same home. Yellamma helped with sweeping and mopping the house, and then she would wash the dishes (pre-dishwasher days) and she would manually wash the clothes. Back in the day, our houses used to be equipped with stone tanks built near the washing area. That was the water, we used to clean and wash the clothes. She had to ensure that this tank was always filled with water. Her last chore was to wash our clothes and hang them to line dry. Usually, she was at our home at around 715 am. But sometimes she would come early and wait so she could start her work. At this time, she would sit on the washing stone and eat her beetle nut and leaves to while away the time as she waited for us to finish getting ready. As Mum left for work, she would finish the last of her work and walk out with Mum. This was her usual schedule and she kept at it for a year.

That house was on the first floor and a part of the stairs used to be hidden from the road. There used to be times when she would get bored at her house, and we would come back home to find that she had fallen asleep on those stairs. This was a rare occurrence, and she always had an excuse for her presence. Mum never questioned her or banned her from coming over in such instances. So, she used to sit and wait. We had 1.5 hours from when our school dispersed to when the gymnastics classes started. We used to rush home, change our clothes, and rush right out to the bus stop to go to class. Sometimes, Yellamma would sit there and wait for Mum to get back, then would either drink a cup of tea or eat something and then leave. We never knew if we would see her or not. Eventually, we moved out of that locality into a smaller home further away. Yellamma continued to come and help around the house. This house had been painted before we moved in and the limestone around the washing stone was fresh. Yellamma was often found sitting on that stone, scratching at the walls to add some Chunambu to her beetle nut and leaf combination. As this house was closer, Yellamma invariably spent more time with us than she did in her place. Around this time, she also met a boy she fancied, and would often go out with him for a movie at the Cinema-Tent. A few months after she mentioned this boy, she would come to work with bruises on her arms and face. The “I walked into the wall” or “I stumbled and fell” became a constant until Mum threatened him with legal action. The bruising stopped and Yellamma started smiling again. Around this time, Dad and Mum had to take an impromptu trip and they asked Yellamma to handle the cooking and cleaning in the house, and she had to spend a couple of nights with us.

This was an adventure for her and us. This was the first time that Yellamma would be staying overnight with us. I remember telling Mum that Yellamma may as well stay with us, as she spent most of her time on that stone outside our house. None of us knew if Yellamma knew how to cook, but we all assumed that she must be eating something. It never occurred to us to check this with her. Dad asked her if she knew how to switch on the kerosene stove and spent time teaching her about this. We did not feel like making rice using the pressure cooker, so we used dough, and she made a huge mess while mixing the dough. Chuckling I took over and rolled the dough into balls and then eventually into flat bread or chapatis, which we put on the stove. For some reason, we managed to burn, every one of those chapatis. Giggling like giddy schoolgirls, we sat around and munched away happily. She would wait until we were all done with our food before she would eat. And then we would wind down for bed. Yellamma never took the house key and I’ve never seen her sleep. She would insist that she would sleep outside and would wait for us to lock up for the night. Two nights of chaos and fun. She would giggle and laugh at everything we did. And she gave us a lot of excuses to giggle and laugh at her as well. She was never worried, and nothing affected her. She would finish her work in all the houses, and then she would come and sit on the washing stone and wait for us. She never got bored and even on the days she had her worst bruises, she always smiled. Yellamma was honest. If she scratched the limestone off the wall, and you asked, she would accept it. She worked in our house for almost a decade and never asked for anything more than what she worked for. She taught me the value of a cryptic smile. You know the- “Keep smiling it makes people wonder what you’re up to”-one. I’ve moved several homes, and have hired help in most locations, but have never found another Yellamma, with the perpetual smile showcasing her trademark red-stained teeth. Over the years, I have often visited our old haunts and homes and when we run into her, she comes and just sits with us. No words. Just a sense of safe comfort.