Unfair comparison.

The skies over Chennai have been sprinkling water , non stop for the past several days. The plain and straight city has suddenly become as misty and mysterious as a town atop a mountain ! The entire city looks like as if it is enveloped in the cool spray ,of a distant water falls.

Capitulating to the pull of the magical climate , I ventured out with an parasol to relish it in the open .After an enchanting walk under green cover, I proceeded to the temple ,that is in the center of a road ,that witnesses steady stream of traffic.

A spry, middle aged beggar , a new comer [ the old timers, the toughies having long given up on me as 'Vellaikku avadhu'--hopeless ]stuck out her hand , which I ignored .On my way back this woman who was squatting on the same spot ,persevered . With a pathetic look ,contrived effortlessly , gestured towards my purse and said

'Nanum onna mari pombalai thane'?

Am I not a female like you ? In the fond hope of touching me for some amount.

I smiled at this comparison and envy.

If I were to sit on the slushy road side , inhaling the noxious fumes and exposed to the elements and this rain without a cover for even an hour I would definitely catch some infection or be struck by pneumonia and be hospitalised for a fortnight at the least.

No doubt she is a 'Pombalai' like me . Poorer ,in purse but richer in physical endurance and immunity!