Am Bricks

We have been working out of Thalapilly Road in Kunnamkulam for quite some time now. This area is known for its building supplies, and we just fit right in with the rest. The yard is filled with rows and rows of bricks. We use the local clay, so the color is that deep red you see on all the houses around here. Every morning, we check the kiln to see how the firing went. It’s hot, sweaty work, especially when the Kerala humidity kicks in. We don’t have a big marketing department or anything. It’s just me and a few workers who know how to handle the clay. People from Kunnamkulam know where to find us on Thalapilly Road. They usually just pull up in their small trucks or sometimes even with a cart. We spend a lot of time loading those bricks one by one. It’s a repetitive job, but it’s what we know. My hands are always stained with that red earth, and it doesn’t really wash off easily. We take a break when the sun is at its highest and just sit in the shade. Sometimes we talk about the local news or how the prices of wood for the kiln are going up. It’s a basic life, but it works for us. We just keep making the bricks and hope the rain stays away long enough for them to dry. We have a couple of clay pits right behind the yard.