Love Conquers All

Anney always believed that all adversity might be overcome by a strong relationship. Troubles like infidelity, alcoholism and domestic violence are difficult to tide over. So was insanity. In fact, in the latter case, there is no way out but to divorce your partner. However, when Anney hears that a couple has split because of a downturn in finances and a lowering of the living standards as a result of it, she is surprised. This story will show you that love conquers all. Is a relationship so fragile that money or the lack of it can break it? The Japanese believe that a problem with money is no problem at all.

Anney believed this, but her husband was of a different opinion. He believed that money is everything in life and therefore, he worked on all the days of the week. He only took a holiday on a public holiday. He worked on Sundays too. Many times, Roshan and Anney had an argument over their beliefs. One day, they decided to have a bet. Roshan said money is important while Anney said love is. Roshan promised Anney that he would become her servant for life, if it was proved that love is more important in life than money.

Roshan was an average employee of a private company and their boat was sailing well because Roshan had taken on loans to maintain a high standard of living. He wanted his family to have a high standard of living so that he could maintain his status in society. Anney was more down to earth and grounded. Anney and Roshan were married early in their lives. Anney was just 20 when they got married. They had a traditional arranged marriage out of which they had two children. Their love and Roshan's steady job, along with their two children ensured a sturdy family life. Until……….

Roshan's company closed down suddenly one day. With the compensation offered and a large bank loan, Roshan floated his own company. He floated a computer-learning center. When it seemed that they would tide over the initial setback, Roshan was to discover that his entrepreneurship needed more than hard work and sincerity. Things came to such a head that Anney had to pawn her gold jewelry and Roshan borrowed more money against it from some local loan sharks to stay afloat. When things still did not work, he looked back at his ancestral property to bail him out of trouble.

Loans have a way of leeching at you, by way of interest and a feeling of ill ease and dread when your creditors circle around you like vultures. Roshan's two daughters were still studying and they felt that their father had let them and their mother down. Anney, however, was a person of deep conviction. She was sure that they would come out of this trouble untarnished. She was sure that everything would go well. When all doors close, God opens a door that even you cannot expect. Anney's younger brother secured a prestigious position with NASA and was soon working there at a very high salary, in New York.

After he secured the job, Anney's brother and his family settled down in NY. He began to help his sister out financially by giving her small hand me downs. Soon, it was time for Roshan's eldest daughter to get married. They were still hand-to-mouth. Had it not been for Anney's brother's help, they would not have known from where their next meal would come. Roshan's total debt of Rs 40 lakhs bore down on him. The last straw was when a gang of strong-armed thugs knocked at his door and asked Anney about the loans. When she claimed ignorance of the status, one of the men leered at her and said that he did not mind being paid in kind.

That was the only time Anney broke down and cried. This was when Roshan immediately took matters into his own hands. Though he was touching his 50s, he pushed off to a supervisory role at a construction site in Dubai. In those times, Dubai was a center of new growth in the real estate business. Roshan soon paid off his debts and returned to India six years later, all aged and sunburned. However, he had kept his promise to Anney. His daughters were now employed and they earned handsome salaries. So did their husbands. Their family is now a strong unit with the ship sailing steadily. Roshan and Anney's grandchildren now add to their joys.

A catastrophe that was threatening to devastate their family was quelled and their family life now grew into a strong tree due to the committed and steadfast ploughing through during tough times. Roshan had been defeated in his bet with his wife. Roshan's belief that money is very more important than love was conquered by Anney's belief that LOVE CONQUERS ALL.