<B>Ode to a lover of life</B>

Jay retired 15 years ago, but he never stopped living. He was born in Gujarat, and sometimes Mauritian nature reminds him of Kerala. Listening to him is like an invitation to the joy of existence.

“Be comfortable and happy. Life is just one off so make the most of it while you can and don’t take it too seriously.” Jay Lathia’s philosophy of life could be resumed in that way. Good-humoured, welcoming and very communicative, Jayantilal Hakmichand Lathia was born in the Western Indian State of Gujarat. «You can see that my first name is a bit of a mouthful and for non-Indians not easy to pronounce so I have shortened it to the first three letters. I present myself as Jay,” he adds with a smile.

Jay was the only child of a very loving family with a businessman father. He describes his childhood as “wonderful – although sometimes I wonder if I had any childhood at all because it was such a long time ago.” As he recalls those years, one realizes the child in him is never far. This unknown world where “there were no computers or TV” and where “half the houses had no electricity at all” must have been everything except monotonous: “Most of the playing time was spent on the streets including game of cricket as the houses had no glass windows!”

Jay narrates his life with a kind of all-embracing good humour. “I never was an ambitious child so the only dreams I had was to remain happy for ever.” After studying Economics at the University of Gujarat for his BA, he fled in 1960 to the USA, where he studied for a MBA at the University of Cincinnati. Two years later, he went to the UK to join the Post Office. Though he found “English people are much more reserved than Americans”, these London years must have been “swinging”, for he was receptive to the “English sense of humour.”

His plans to remain happy would prove even more successful. “In the early 60s, I met a Chinese student in the UK. When he said he was from Mauritius I thought the country was somewhere in West Africa. I was mixing it up with Mauritania.” Then Jay the Post Officer met his Blue Penny, Lysele. “By chance. She should have been the friend of a friend of a friend, sort of thing.” The friends became lovers who married and had two lovely daughters. “We are now proud grandparents of two little grandsons.”

Jay retired from the Post in 1990. But happiness did not desert him. With Lysèle, he went on journeying to UK, Spain or France. After Lysèle retired, she persuaded her husband to settle in Mauritius in May 2000. “I had come twice with my family before in the 80s, but at the time I had no idea that one day we would live here.” Yet, the idea of settling turned out to be better than he thought at the time. Life in Mauritius is “as you say in Creole – mari bon – in every respect”.

After all, Mauritius reminds him of the South Indian State of Kerala. “It’s almost as green,” says Jay, who enjoys long walks in nature, during which he familiarises with people. “I don’t speak Creole or French but I have no problem communicating as a lot of people here speak English but many more speak Hindi.”

There are some things that Jay always wanted to do, but can’t, like play the piano or violin or sing. But, as he confesses, we can’t change everything: “I am happy that I can give all my attention to music, because there is no opportunity here to watch cricket, which is the next thing I like best in life”.