I am Muthupandi. And I am 92 years old. I am still alive. My children and grandchildren don’t like me anymore because I don’t have any strength to tell a story or play with them. My life is about to end in five or six years. But they don’t even want me to live anymore as everyone is considering me a burden. Is it my fault?
My own family members are going to kill me tomorrow, not with a gun or a knife or any weapon. They are going to kill me with a ceremony. My grandfather died because of this ceremony. This ceremony is called Thalaikoothal .
My children have invited our close relatives. Early morning they will wake me up and massage my head with oil, and give me a ceremonial bath. Then, they will give me tender coconut to drink, so that I get pneumonia and die soon. But I don’t want to die. What should I do? My plan is to escape tonight. But how will I escape? My only hope of survival is to call my close friend Thangaraj. Will he come or not?
I asked a boy Jeeva who supplies milk to us to call Thangaraj. After a few hours the little boy came and told me that my only hope was dead. I could not control my feelings and fear. Jeeva said with an emotional tone that he would help me to escape from this. I thought my friend was reborn as Jeeva.
He told me to be ready at 12:30. It was12:00 and I was ready to leave my family. I was waiting for Jeeva to come. Jeeva came on his old bicycle, and helped me sit on the carrier. Jeeva and I raced to the railway station.
We boarded the Kovai Express and reached Coimbatore. Jeeva helped me find an old age home. It all happened five years ago. Today, I live free as I smile on...
The writer is in class VI, Navadisha Montessori School, Chennai
