Most Chennaites would be familiar with Sterling Road, the one opposite to the entrance of Loyola College in Nungambakkam. At the corner of the first right turn on that road, there is an old middle-class house with walls discoloured by algae. I go by that road, every morning around 6.45 and almost on all days, I would see an old spectacled man with greyish hair, sitting in the backyard with three dogs beside him. For their comfort, there are two oscillating fans — one at a height and the other on the ground,
The old man feeds them around the same time every day and on some days, he would get them one or two street dogs for company. One day, he was cuddling a street dog, placing it on his thighs like a baby. I would never forget that image. I have also seen him feed some crows with the remaining food on other days. The backyard might look old and dirty, but what makes it beautiful is the presence of love. In these days, when humanness is rare, his love for animals, I thought, is something to be written about.
The writer is a working professional
