MOSQUE

Mosque, Kadappakada, Kollam

LENDING MONEY

Most people don’t borrow money. They manage with what they have. But there are some who have no hesitation to borrow. Sometimes people go through unexpected situations which require them to borrow money. My experiences have been with people who I feel, did not really require the money so urgently. While most of them return the money, some try to delay or even avoid returning it. If you have to remind them about it several times, it could spoil a friendship. I don’t remember having any good experience.  

One person borrowed a small amount of money and did not return it for a long time. When I asked him about it, he said ‘I returned it, don’t you remember.’

There was another person who would borrow in private and return in public. If he needs money he would call you to a place where there was no one around and tell you about his difficulties. If you lend him the money he would return it in front of many people and those watching would think that you are taking money from him. It looked like he was building his reputation as a person who gives money.

One night while I was fast asleep there was a knock on the door. I woke up, it was past midnight. A colleague was at the door. He needed some money urgently. I gave it to him. He told me he would return it by the end of the month. Even after the end of the month he was sitting next to me and talking about everything under the sun except the money he owes me. I decided to ask him about it. He said, ‘I came to your house last night to return the money but the lights were off. I thought you were sleeping and did not want to disturb you.’ He returned it a few days later.

Another person told me that if I lend him 5,000 dollars he would give me a monthly interest of 500 dollars and that my 5,000 dollars would be safe with him. I only needed to give him a call and he would return the 5,000 dollars whenever I required it. It sounded too good to be true. I didn’t fall for that one. I am sure if I did, he may give me the interest for one or two months and then claim that his business has suffered a setback and he can give me the interest or the amount only after his business improves.

Then there are some people who have a good income but regularly borrow money. It seems like a habit they develop. I can see only two reasons for such behaviour. Either their expenditure is more than their income or they think they are smart by using other people’s money which can be returned later on without interest while their money is earning interest somewhere.

Neither a borrower nor a lender be – William Shakespeare

ICICI BANK

ICICI Bank, kadappakada, Kollam

HAIR STRAIGHTENING

When I first arrived in Africa, I noticed that most of the men have curly hair but many of the women have straight hair. I did not know the reason for the difference. Then one day while I was walking past a beauty parlour, I saw a board displaying the services that they provide. One of the services was hair straightening. I then realised that the women were getting their hair straightened. Later on, I saw hair straightening devices being sold in some shops. Most of them were made in China, some were made in Germany. People in China and Germany do not have curly hair. It is obvious they are manufacturing these devices solely for export. Africa is a big continent with many countries. Each country has a section of the population that is well to do. So Africa is a big market for such products.

Straight hair is more popular among the affluent African girls. Men don’t seem to care as much about their hair.

NEW BHARATH TYRES

New Bharath Tyres, Kadappakada, Kollam

ELEPHANT TROOP

I was a member of the boy scouts during my primary school days in Singapore. There were four troops and I was the deputy leader of the Elephant Troop.

On sports day there was a competition between the troops to put up a flag pole and raise the troop flag. All the troops had an earlier practice session and knew how to do it. Each troop was given several wooden poles of about five feet length. A few poles were tied together with a rope to make the flag pole. A pulley was attached to the top pole and a rope around the pulley would raise the flag. Three poles were tied to the bottom pole to create a stable base. A few long ropes tied to the top pole were pulled and tied to spikes in the ground to make it even more stable.

Many people had gathered to watch the various events on sports day. When our competition began we started in earnest. When we finished erecting our flag pole and were about to raise our troop flag we looked around and noticed that the others were still working on their flag pole. We were so excited. We were going to be first. We started to raise our flag. Suddenly we heard laughter all around. People were laughing. We did not know the reason. We then looked up and saw that the Elephant on our flag was upside down. We quickly lowered the flag. Some of my friends wanted to untie the flag but I realised it was not necessary. I told them not to untie it and raised it up the other way around. By the time we raised our flag another troop had beat us to it. We had to settle for second place. 

SREE VIGHNESWARA BHAVAN

Sree Vighneswara Bhavan, Kollam