The unheard voice of an old woman

I was going for my morning class, while I saw few officials standing behind one of the offices gate. An old lady came there and she started to talk with them. It seems like the officials were denying the old lady for something and I felt quite curious to know what is happening there. I was quite far from the reach of their voice; I put my few steps towards them so that I could hear their conversations clearly. I was watching them form the unknown distance and listening to their talk. The old lady was requesting to the officials to let her in from the gate as she wanted to pay back the credits to her friends who were staying inside the compound. She was requesting them time and again but the impolite officials were refusing her all the time.

Then one of the officials asked her that what kind of credits was she talking about and as an answer to his question, she simply replied ‘credit for the half kg of potatoes’. The officials found her answer quite humorous and talked among them what will be the cost of half kg potatoes, if one kg cost only Nu 25? But they forgot to think that maybe she might have more to be paid and that half kg of potatoes is only the thing as far as she could remember. They said to the old lady that they will pay for her and asked her the money. She agreed with them and took out her money to give it to them, and I could see few 100's notes rolled inside one 500 note.

After few minutes, one woman came down to the gate with a basket of chillies on hand and smile on her face. She gave the basket of chillies to the old lady and talked with her for few minutes. After their talks, the old lady decided to return back to her home. The officials were still watching them talking from the behind.

As soon as she started to walk back, I could see few women coming down again with some vegetables on their hands. When they reached at the gate, the old lady had already walked about fifty meters away from them. The first woman tried to call her many times but she never turned back, maybe she doesn’t want to. The women there kept their vegetables in-front of the gate and they were waiting for the old lady to come back.

By the time I realized, I was getting late for my class so, I quickly run to attend my class. At 12 noon our class got over and I was returning back to my resident from the same path that I took during the morning, and when I reached in-front that gate, the vegetables were still lying in-front of the gate as the old lady never came back.