?Tea is my whole life,? Mohabeer Mayay cheerfully declares. She has been picking the leaves since the age of twelve and she cannot imagine her life otherwise. ?The job is really easy for us. Of course, if you are not used to it, you will find it difficult but I have been doing it for thirty-three years.?

She explains that none of her four children has followed the family tradition. Mohabeer learned how to pick tea with her parents and in-laws since they were all in the ?business?. Actually, in Bois-Chéri, picking tea is more than a family tradition; it looks like a regional passion.

In the past, both men and women were in the fields handpicking leaves. This is actually how she met the man who was to become her husband when she was twelve. ?We fell in love in the fields!? she says radiantly. This romantic experience may well explain the huge affection she has for her fields.

The mist and the gusts of wind on the plateaux in this cooler part of the country ? particularly in winter ? do not prevent Mohabeer from bringing her three bags full of leaves back to the factory. On the contrary, she works better in winter and cannot stand the heat of summer. As soon as the sun rises, she goes to the fields and comes back around 2 pm with up to 60 kilograms on days when she is really fit.

Although machines have ?stolen? many of their jobs, Mohabeer intends to continue doing hers ?as long as God will allow me to do it.? After all, everyone in the company agrees: ?manual picking gives a better taste to tea.?