Jai Mata Di Provision

Jai Mata Di Provision sits right on Narsi Natha Street 1 in Pimple Gurav. It’s a busy corner, especially in the mornings when the milk truck comes by. We start early, pulling up the shutters while the sun is still low. There’s always a lot to do, like moving the sacks of grain and checking the dates on the packets. The shop is filled with the smell of spices and soap. It’s not a fancy supermarket, just a regular provision store where we know most of our customers by their first names. We know who likes which brand of tea and who usually forgets to bring their own bag. The counter is a bit worn from years of use, but it holds up. We have a small television in the corner that we keep on for the news, though nobody really watches it closely. My son helps out after his classes are over. The shelves are packed tight, and sometimes it’s hard to find something right away, but we eventually do. It gets quite warm in the afternoons, so we have a pedestal fan that oscillates back and forth. People stop by to grab a few things on their way home from the station. It’s a steady pace of work. We’ve been part of this street for years, and it feels like home to us. Nothing fancy, just a local shop. The big clock on the wall is five minutes fast, but we haven't bothered to change it in years. It keeps us on our toes. We keep moving.