All four served us well

All four served us well ……. I must have been around 4, because that is as far back as I seem to be able to remember, and her name was ‘Needle’- at least that is what she was called. She was the lady who looked after me – the domestic servant, known as the ‘Ayah’ back then. A short, rather wizened, grey haired old lady, with a high-pitched voice, she stayed with our family till I was about ten. Not exactly sure how old she was, but she looked about seventy to me at that time ! Thinking over the name now brings a smile to my face. ‘Needle’? I have come to two conclusions about why this odd name. The first could be because she was extremely thin and looked like a needle and the second because she had only one good eye so “the eye of the needle”! However, that does not matter. She was loyal, kind and loving and looked after me well. My fondest memories are of her dressing and feeding me and taking me into the garden to play with a large ball – all vivid. ‘Needle ayah’ probably lived close by because she was in the house when I woke and put me to bed before she left. She was also tasked with staying the night when the family went out and were scheduled to return late. On those occasions she and I would have dinner together – she feeding me. Then she would tell me a story or two and I would soon be dozing. Then there was a couple who lived down the road in the railway colony. He was ‘Bansi’ the cook and she was ‘Bl - - - y’, his wife. Now before you jump to conclusions and say that is a rude name etc. let me tell you that she was an extremely dark lady, but we never gave her that name. She had worked with another family for some years before joining us, and they had given her a pet name – it stuck. She knew what it meant as she spoke a smattering of English and made fun of her own name . When she was asked what her name was – she and her husband both said BL- - - Y. So, B L- - - - - Y it was, and all was good. She did the cleaning and other odds jobs around the house and he cooked. They were treated like family, arriving early in the morning – always smiling, very chatty and kind natured. I do remember that she was a bit of a gossip, as she sat for hours in the afternoons filling my aunt and mother in with all the news from the colony. She was also rather funny and was always saying stuff to make us laugh. She was given all the old clothes and the leftover food items in addition to a salary . On a few occasions when he returned in the evening to cook dinner , I am sure I smelled liquor on his breath but no questions were asked and if at times he could not complete the cooking for any reason , she did so . On a few occasions he was also accused of stealing sugar, rice, cooking oil & tea leaves and was given a shout for the same. He always denied the charge. I also remember him being told not to return to work but like a repentant little boy he would come the next morning and all would be forgiven. Great memories of another resident cook of ours called ‘BOY’. He lived in the outhouse adjoining the main house so was what you would call a ’24-hour servant’. His only possession seemed to be a tin trunk and some bedding. He was, what I would refer to now as, “ really old”. Powder white hair, weatherworn face, short and slim, he wore a large white turban, for some obscure reason. When he walked, his head shook from side to side and made me laugh, but we sort of got used to it. Irrespective of the season, that turban was always worn. I once saw him without it and failed to recognize him! This was the 60’s and no one had gas stoves back then. There were no gas stoves in India, so coal fires were lit, and all the cooking was done on them. ‘Boy’ lit the coal stove extremely early in the morning, and by the time everyone woke, the tea was in the tea pot and breakfast was almost ready. He was a sort of cook cum bearer who cooked and served as well. He laid the table, served us while we were seated, and washed up after that. A first-rate cook, he excelled in making ‘Anglo Indian dishes’ and all types of salads! Strangely I do not know why and when he left but back in the day, these servants were often told to “go” for some unfathomable reason. ‘Needle’ , ‘Bansi’ , ‘B----Y’ , his wife and ‘Boy’ were four servants who served us well .