NAVRATH JEE (2)

My hero Navrath is an ideal brother and the rarest of all. He is an ordinary farmer. He is alone brother and has only one sister. His parents died when he was mere fifteen and his sister was of eleven year old. He left his studies and started farming. He also started a road side shop where he kept all daily usage items. Tea, betel, nut, biscuit and breakfast items were available there. The village breakfast items beaten rice, curd and sugar were always available. The beaten rice and curd was so special that people passing through the road could not pass the shop without taking the taste of the items. His tea and betel were so special that persons came there from long distance to enjoy them. Suppose, a man is coming from Basopatti. He is crossing so many markets in the way. He has great urge to take tea and betel in the way. But, the eagerness to enjoy Navrath shop forces him to postpone stopping in the mid-way and he is bound to come directly to Karmauli Navrath shop. Navrath jee is never in hurry mood. He prepares the tea and betel in his own style. At least five minutes in betel and ten minutes in tea is must. I never saw him angry. In my child hood I purchased bataashaa and sakarpaalaa (both items are prepared from sugar) several times. Some of my seniors stole items from the soap so many times. Some items were kept in the outside verandah and some in the room. The naughty boys ordered for the item which was in the room. When he went inside, the boy stole something from outside verandah. Whether he knew it or not, but some boys had regular practice. I think, he knew it but never rebuked them. Sometimes, in the absence of those naughty fellows, he expressed abusive comments about them and their dynasty. The shop was near the Sanskrit Vidyaalay and primary school. Teachers of both schools often took breakfast of beaten rice, curd and sugar at the shop. Gurujee (Pandit Jay Madhav Thakur, Headmaster of Sanskrit Vidyaalay) regularly took breakfast from the shop. Someone brought it from the shop for Gurujee. He was paying for it on monthly basis. Navrath took the money without fail. He was writing the daily account of all those persons, who paid on monthly basis. Some naughty boys had also monthly account. But, getting opportunity, they used to tear away the pages and got rid of paying. There is a very interesting story about Navrath jee and Gurujee which shall be told in the next blog. ------contd.