524. Visiting A Relative

"How much time is there for the flight?" asked Arulmozhi.

"We will have to leave for the airport in about one hour from now" said his Personal Secretary Muthiah.

"In that case, we should leave immediately. I need to go to my relative's house too!"

"Sir! That house is located in the opposite direction. If we go there and then leave for the airport from there, we will be delayed."

"We have one hour time. It will take only 20 minutes for us to go there and another 20 minutes to come back. I am going to be there only for 10 minutes. That still leaves us a cushion of 10 minutes."

Arulmozhi and Muthiah got down from the car and walked to the house that was situated in a narrow street.

When Arulmozhi rang the doorbell, the elderly man who opened the door, expressed surprise at seeing Arulmozhi on his doorstep and said, "Hey, Arul! When did you come to Coimbatore? Come in."

He also greeted Muthiah asking him, "Come in Mr. Muthiah! How are you?"

Even as Muthiah replied, "I am fine, Sir," his eyes reflexively looked at his wrist watch.

"When did I come to Coimbatore? I am departing from Coimbatore! I have got just five minutes for you. Please don't offer me coffee or tea. I have to catch my flight. I have squeezed in a few minutes just to see all of you" said Arulmozhi, as he stepped into the house. He turned to Muthiah and said, "Only five minutes, precisely." 

Muthiah nodded his head and went out.

Arulmozhi spent exactly five minutes talking to his relatives and came out of the house. He joined Muthiah, who was anxiously waiting for him outside the house. Both walked fast to the car.

After getting into the car, Arulmozhi looked at his watch and asked Muthiah, "Hope we can make it to the airport in time."

Muthiah nodded his head, more in hope than in certainty and said reluctantly, "Sir, I am aware of your habit of visiting your relatives living in the places we travel to, on business. But today, the time was quite tight. That was why I expressed my reservation when you started for this place." 

"Most of my relatives are poor. I am the only person who became a businessman and attained a higher economic status. But I want to be intimate with all of my relatives. They are understandably reluctant to move with me, daunted by my higher economic status. It only for the purpose of removing their reluctance and making them feel comfortable to move with me as a relative that I have been visiting my relatives as often as I can and keeping my relationship with them strong" said Arulmozhi.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Cherishing One's Kith and Kin

Verse 524 (in Tamil):

suRRaththAl suRRappada ozhugal selvandhAn
peRRaththAl peRRa payan.

Meaning:

To live surrounded by the kin is the benefit gained by acquiring wealth.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'nEram illai Ayinum' by the same author.)

Verse 525
Verse 523