Jay Kirana Store

My shop is over at Nag Singh Nagar on Plot 26. It’s a quiet spot most of the time, except when the Zila Parishad School lets out. Then all the kids come running for snacks and those little packets of chips. I’ve been in Bhadravati for a long time now. The store isn’t huge but I try to keep the basics like sugar, oil, and different kinds of dal. I spend a lot of time lifting heavy sacks and putting things on shelves. Sometimes the delivery truck doesn't show up when it's supposed to and I have to explain to the aunties why we are out of their favorite brand of tea. It's just part of the job. I usually open up early in the morning because that’s when people want their milk and bread. The dust from the road gets inside sometimes so I’m always cleaning the counter. I know most of the people who come in here by name. We talk about the weather or how the crops are doing. My back hurts a bit from the lifting, but it’s okay. I don’t have a computer system, I just write everything down in my ledger. It works for me. If someone is short a few rupees, I just tell them to pay me next time. That’s how things go in a place like this. I have been thinking about painting the front door, but never get the time.