Ramalingam General Store

Thiruvathavur Main Road is a busy stretch in Melur and the shop sits right there at 36/173. I see a lot of buses and bikes going past all day. The noise is something you just get used to after a while. I start my day by splashing some water on the ground outside to keep the dust down. It doesn't help for long but it’s a habit. The shelves are packed with everything from soap to lentils. I try to keep it neat but things get moved around when it’s busy. I don’t have any assistants, so it’s just me managing the till and the stock. Sometimes my son comes by after school to help for an hour. We talk about his lessons while I check the ledger. The light inside the shop is a bit dim because the bulbs are old. I should probably change them. People stop by on their way home from work to pick up a few things for dinner. We talk about the rain or the lack of it. It’s a very ordinary life. I don’t think much about the future, I just focus on what needs to be sold today. The road gets quiet late at night and that’s when I finally sit down and rest my feet. It’s been this way for years and I don't expect it to change much. The street dogs usually gather near the corner when the butcher shop down the road closes up for the day.