Agay (old man) who hands us chocolate every morning

Barely a mile from my office, around the basement of Changkha Lhakhang(temple) lays apartment where I stay. The place is fairly quiet unlike near Flyover Bridge where I used to stay before which was full of commotion; vehicular honks could impose dreams to awake at the pitch night when many are enjoying a sound sleep. As young as four in the morning people walk off from their cozy bed to make as many circumambulations of the temple doing rosary concurrently. Old and young, from all walks of lives visit the temple for a lot of religious reasons; to pray for a newborn’s well-being, receive blessings for long journey and important undertakings, and many reasons within. The places nearby is a good combination of all. But rental is also quite high. It takes half of my salary. For me I have no choice as my Office is caged by the basement of Sangaygang (roughly translates to Buddha hill). The diameter of my travel would pinch me in monetary terms to look for reasonable apartment in places like Olakha, Hejo, Taba and Babesa. So, I have to put up here, which is walking distance to Office.

Quarter to nine in the morning, as I ferry to my office with my office mate, a few meters away on the way, a man at his eighties trudges every day from his home to do rosary at the temple. His upper part of body bends to form distorted 90 degree angle and walks with a stick. Walking down to the temple and doing rosary is his daily work. This is what many old people do. As they count down their days, they engage more into religion and confine their lives around the thread of prayer beads.

Every morning I and my friend meet him on the way, he pockets his right hand holding his walking stick with left, and he offers us a chocolate each. “Thanks Agay” we say.  Then he walks. He does it every day. On the first encounter, we just thought he might have seen us like school going children, because usually the old people use to gift kids with chocolate to make them happy. He might have seen us like school going children as we have a bag each on our back and a lunch bag each on our hand.

Source; Google

We’re blessed to be greeted with sweet chocolates every day from the man of his age. Man who would outrun longevity of today’s generations. He might have many to take of the world with his lifespan near the heel of century. We have never asked any questions to him for he might have lot to do at the temple and he would take longer to reach there at his tortoise pace.

We are fortunate to savor chocolate from Agay; we believe that if we get something to eat from old people, we would be blessed with longevity. We feel immensely blessed on that ground thinking that we would have extended our lives to his age. Everyone likes to live longer if it is possible.

On the sad note, we still don’t know who he is. All about him remain questions in our mind. We love calling him Agay. Our talk with him starts and ends with ‘thanks Agay’ upon handing us chocolate each.

He is definitely a kind man. He flashes a smile every day when he sees us. This brightens our day at office. This prelude of our day with this wonderful Agay handing us chocolate is really worth engraving in our hearts. We shall remain indebted for his chocolate and kind heart that he carries.

May this dainty sweet Agay live longer with his kindness to spark a light in many lives of school going children who meets along the way and receives chocolate.

We know very little of him but know much of his kindness at heart. Thanks Agay.