Amma. Content Warning.
Amma, the housekeeper of the senior girls’ dorm, rang the loud alarm bell at 6 A.M. sharp every weekday like clockwork. She walked into each room and followed a robotic ritual. She opened the curtains, loudly screamed, “Good morning. Wake up. Jogging.”, and without any eye-contact, she moved on to the next room, continuing the attempt to wake up the girls. Hardly anyone would wake up right away so Amma followed the same routine twice. With sleep-laden eyes and contagious yawns painted on their faces, no one noticed how Amma was all dolled up before sunrise everyday. No one would recognize how she walked in each morning with a perfectly draped saree, keys tucked in on the side of her waist, hair oiled and pulled back in a neatly tied bun. Amma woke up at 5 A.M. every morning, bowed down to mother earth and got dressed. She had a total of 7 sarees and you could tell the day of the week just by looking at the color of her saree. Much like the fixed menu of boarding school breakfast, Amma’s sarees also followed a strict routine.
