25 GIRL POWERGail was a boon to the businesses, she thrived on responsibility. Lek and Ayr would not have been able to go away so much, especially Ayr, without her, as they became absorbed in local politics. Da and Bot too, also shifted up a level to take over Ayr’s absence. When local funds didn’t stretch for her to attend conferences and meetings, their company paid. The money that Lek made as Pu Yai Baan became their travel allowance. Lek and Ayr were a unit, and Lek tried not to make any political decisions without consulting her friend first at least by phone.
They soon became a powerful and well-respected force in the village and its environs.
Lek’s surgeries were well attended every week as the villagers got over their initial shyness and scepticism, however most people that went
