The Young Mousambi Juice Wala

Niharika Borah

It was yet another boring Monday after a short and sweet weekend. I know it’s the same story for most of us….I was waiting for my cab pickup call from our transport (IT companies spoil you at times!). Usually on Mondays the cab comes in 10 mins beyond schedule and that Monday was no exception. I got the call from Praveen, our transport desk coordinator at about 10:20 am informing that the cab has arrived. I was already on my way to the pickup point, we get door to door pick and drop but I choose to wait at the east end of the lane I reside instead.

I saw the Innova pulling over; I greeted my cab mates and exchanged smiles. We IT professionals don’t talk to each other in the cab as we feel we’re too busy with our own lives, I am no exception. I plugged in my ear phones and switched on my music player. It’s a 1hour ride daily to the office, so i prefer reading a book or listening to music. I assume that nothing new or exciting is going to happen which will catch my fancy.

But I was wrong. Our car was at the junction near Miller’s Road waiting for the traffic to clear and then I saw this young boy of about 15~17 years standing just outside the Muslim Orphanage. He was dressed in a fluorescent yellow shirt, which looked surely new. His hair was oiled and combed properly, parted on the left. He stood next to his cart full of Mousambis and a hand juicer. The sparkle in his eyes told that it was his first step towards being independent. I have seen that sparkle before, had it in my eyes a few years back, when i had started to earn on my own. The Mousambis were nicely arranged in a perfect triangle, which appeared equilateral to me from the car (I had scored 49/50 in geometry in 10th boards, so can trust my assumptions), they were shiny and fresh too. The white sheet laid beneath the fruits was crisp, starched and white in color. It was new too, no fruit stains, no signs of washed and used before. The hand juicer was nicely covered with a crisp red cloth. Also there were few plastic glasses which remained sealed in polythene, they lay next to the fruits. My eyes however drifted to the young boy again, he was wearing a white cap too which he kept adjusting frequently. His bright eyes were constantly and eagerly looking for possible customers. The boy no doubt was nervous about his 1st day on the job but somewhere he was also confident that he would pull this off, the smile on his face told me. It brought back the sweet memories of day 0 of my 1st job. I smiled and said a silent all the best to the boy. I hoped to see him the next day as well.

Next day same time and same place I saw the boy again. Only this time he had a customer to cater. He was busy draining juice out of a Mousambi, hands stretched out moving the hand juicer in circular motions. I was happy to see the progress.

It has been a week now and I see him every day catering to customers tirelessly. The newness of his fluorescent shirt has gone, he no longer wears the cap and his hair doesn’t even look combed. The white sheet beneath the fruits looks stained with fruit juice (which means he has had some business) but the sparkle of his eyes and the knowing smile still exists in his face while serving a customer. It makes me happy every morning these days, just to watch the young boy working so hard perhaps to realize his dream and bear his responsibilities. He inspires me in a way and that’s why I am writing about him.

Someone once told me that life has a lesson each day. True, I had my lesson from the young boy selling Mousambi juice at Miller’s Road. He brought back the memories of my early days a fresher in the industry and the zeal I had in me to achieve. Somewhere I had lost that in the last few months, but this boy inspired me to start each day as a new beginning, to open my mind to learn new things from different people and experience every moment.

Thank you and the All The Very Best! May you realize your dream 

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