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ask the person to come another day etc. It was a constant practice of his to delay payment
as long as he could. This seemed to have been inbred in him, and for no particularly good
reason. To others he was gentle and jovial, and cooperative. By nightfall, the children
would be at study again. Abraham usually sat with them to read the daily newspapers or
books of which he had a goodly collection. Children were quizzed about their tests and
results, scoldings given, punishments threatened and sometimes meted out. He helped
with problems whenever he could. He particularly liked language and literature, and
insisted that children learn poems - whether in English or Malayalam by rote. He himself
had an extraordinary memory for poems and quotations. He evinced great interest even
in the simple text book stories of the children. Mental arithmetic was an exercise that he
excelled in, and encouraged his children to use. After the children have had their evening
baths, it would be time for night prayers.

Time for night prayers was perhaps the single most important time in the life of
Abraham’s family. No one was to miss the prayers at night. Abraham had personally
designed the prayer room, and the paintings around the holy pictures were his own. The
room was in the centre of the house, and there was always an atmosphere of sacredness
while passing through it. In later years, Abraham added to the decor of the room by
hanging a coffin from the ceiling with the inscription “ Today I, tomorrow you”. This
would shock the visitors and would later be a conversation piece. Children kneeled on the
floor, some knelt on the veranda or in the two or three adjoining rooms. Unlike many of
the other households, Abraham’s household did not have very long prayers. A short
series of prayers followed by the rosary and concluding prayers to the Holy Spirit should
normally take less than twentyfive minutes. But often there were expansions and
variations. Abraham was a great devotee of the Holy Spirit. He disliked the arcane
language of the rote prayers, and dared (before anyone would touch such things) to
change them to more meaningful phrases. Routine was not to his liking. Therefore on
occasions he would shorten the rosary from ten Hail Mary’s to five or less, always
wanting to demonstrate that substance was more important than mouthing of prayers.
He had also learned spontaneous prayer from his Anglican school teaching days.
Frequently he would pray for God’s blessings on one or other member of the family,
never mentioning names. His discourse to God was as much to the captive audience who
listened to him with baited breath. Abraham would touch upon the concerns, the faults,
the failings of the members of the household and intercede God’s special blessings.
Sometimes these prayers were heartrending, at other times they were bitter, and
occasionally humorous. But this was the time for advice and counsel and castigation.
There would be no retort or protest, as the address was to God on behalf of the family.
Often these prayers were preceded or followed by hymn singing. All the household knew
the songs - in Malayalam, and occasionally in English - and joined the singing with
gusto. Abraham himself had a powerful voice and could hold a tune. Though untrained,
he was an excellent vocalist. He had tutored one of his daughters in formal music, which
he himself attended with diligence. Therefore these singing sessions were full of spirit
and warmth. On occasions the singing would go on for quite a length of time. People
travelling by boat often remarked on the hymn-singing that they heard from the
Kalluvelil household. At the conclusion of the prayers, the members of the family would
salute the father and mother and the elders. Then all retired to the study room to read a

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