Slice of Life: ‘The will to work hard keeps me strong’

I  was born in Chennai and used to earn a living by selling groundnuts and tapioca while walking through almost all the streets from Royapuram to Tondiarpet. But due to my poor health, I turned to selling fruit, as I can sit at one spot instead of walking throughout the day. It has been 25 years since I have been selling fruit.

I don’t have anyone to take care of me. My husband died when my children were young. I have two sons, for whom I struggled a lot – to get them educated and independent. But after they got married, they have not bothered to look after me. So, I stay alone and continue to eke out a living by selling fruit.

The only thing which keeps me strong is the will to work hard. I wake up at 5 am and go to Kothavachavadi in Parrys to buy fruit. My daily earnings vary based on the sale, which vary between Rs 50 to Rs 100 per day. Though I don’t earn much, I am happy to be independent.

Sometimes, I feel lonely and get depressed thinking about my children. I lived only for them after my husband’s death. But they abandoned me making me utterly depressed. Now, I have learnt to not depend on anyone and that nothing is permanent. We must stay strong and be independent. There is no use in wasting time by looking back at the past about what we have lost. We must move on.