Rattled by these words, Marayi begged her son, ‘Even if all you do is lie here on the cot under the tree, that is enough! You don’t have to do wage work with anyone!’

He tried reasoning with her, but his promises to be careful did not sway her one bit. Angry, he spent a few days lying on a cot under the neem tree. She did not ask him anything. She did not even seek his help with work. Finally he got bored and started working in the fields again.

Marayi wanted to find a girl for him to marry. But the first thing prospective families would ask was, ‘How much money does the boy have?’ It was Marayi’s wish to find a daughter-in-law who would come decked with jewellery and accompanied by a bullock cart full of vessels and a rich trousseau. But what did she have that could possibly entice a well-off family? All she owned was the thatched hut on the rock. There were some girls who did seem like a good match, but she found reasons to reject even them. She hoped that her brothers and other relatives would do their part in finding Kumaresan a girl to marry. They did try, but nothing materialized there either. Kumaresan wondered if it was because his uncles were not too keen on deciding anything for fear that they would have to spend on the wedding. If things continued like this, he was not sure he would ever get married. In time, he became convinced that things would happen only if they had money. Growing despondent, he even lost interest in the work around the house.

Marayi related all this to Bhai Anna. He remained silent for a while, before saying, ‘Let’s see, Marayamma.’ When he returned the following week, he had an idea. One of his relatives in Tholur owned four or five soda shops. If Kumaresan went there for a while and gained some experience, he could come back and set up his own shop here. He could easily watch over the field and goats and also run the shop.

‘In this day and age,’ Bhai Anna said, ‘if a man gets used to languishing about in the field like this, nothing will change for him. He’ll stay like this forever. It is good to have something else to do.’ He evidently knew a lot about shops that sold cold drinks. He continued, ‘All he needs to do is to secure business with ten other shops. These days every town has a liquor store; everyone wants soda to go with their alcohol. And then there are Tuesday and Saturday markets where he can sell his soda and cold drinks. He can make a decent living.’

Marayi was reluctant to send her son away for a year. ‘Can’t you find something for him close by, Bhai Anna?’ she asked.

‘Marayamma,’ came the sage response, ‘if I had thought that way for myself, would I be sitting here talking to you? Only if he ventures out will he learn a thing or two and make some money. If you had had a man in the house, you would have somehow done all you could and found a girl for him. The fact that you have raised him all by yourself is a major accomplishment. But now he has sprouted wings. Set him free. Let him fly to a few places and find his own food.’