Reel of feelings( N- All that is NICE is not NOBLE) - # A to Z Challenge

So you did get time to look at me dear , she said in her usual mocking smile . I was still not sure if I should ask her about my mother but one close look at her , something inside me changed. There were numerous marks on her face and neck, maybe on her hands too , and none seemed natural . Unknowingly my hands went to one of the marks and she said “ Oh, you also got curious now , leave them, these are my beauty marks , marks that scarred just not my beauty but my soul” and she continued cooking. “Come back tomorrow and we shall start where Hakim had left “ , she was the only one who called Baba just Hakim .

The whole evening I felt selfish of not wanting to understand her, she had suddenly grown old after Baba left us . After dinner I walked up to her room , the first time in 20 years , and what I saw there left me spellbound.  The whole room was filled with an art that spoke many things which only a rare few could understand and I could relate a lot of stories that Baba told us were from here.  Just then Ruhana walked in and when she saw me standing there , unspoken tears flowed from her eyes and all she could mutter was “ Hakim , the day has come , I am no more alone” .

Ruhana, like a part of her name was an untouched soul that many would wish to have.  Born in poverty, the weapons that helped her fight against all odds were her wit and willingness to help others. Her mom taught her that cooking is an art and one can do magic with that ( which for sure she does) . To reduce the burden in her family , she accepted to get married at a very young age of 13. She tells me that God was very kind to her and gave her the best companion in life and he instilled in her the love for art . Five years passed like a blessing and she was very contented and also considered the child in her hand as a blessing. Fate took a turn and one day she found herself in a room where everything was red in color and before she could realize what happened it was too late. She was nurtured all those five years to blossom to be the beauty who can be a means of getting money. It took her one year to come in terms with her life , she did it all as she knew that her blessing was in that man’s hand. When she described how she was used everyday,like a piece of toy they gave her marks in places wherever they wished to,  I wondered how she was able to live through it and also have the heart to re-live it now. 

One day when she saw her child with him just outside the door , she mustered all the courage in the world to snatch it away and run as fast as she could. When she thought she was over the victory line, she felt a sharp pain in her head and all she could see was someone protecting her but her child was with her no more. “ That was the day I met Hakim “ she says with a glee in her voice , “ he gave me shelter, safety and more importantly love “ but I took many years to heal. My shadows of darkness as all I wanted was to get back my child .” On that fateful night when you took a dislike to me , where I behaved like a lunatic was because my child left me forever not of any disease but just for that man”. When she stopped I could not believe what was just told. This lady who I always thought of as someone who cracked irrelevant jokes and lived her life with no aim was the one who has lived her life for the mere gift called “ life” .

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Ruhana continued and told me that if not for Hakim Baba , it would have never been possible for her to breath a new life. He brought in the lost love that a lonely soul was seeking , our relationship was very pure in terms of we never had any expectations from each other . We were happy in seeing each other happy and he was happy in seeing you happy. What was I thinking about them and what it turned out to be. She shook me hardly and said , let me crack another joke , in life I have learnt that “ All that is NICE is not NOBLE” … I did not pretend to laugh anymore instead wiped those tears that she tried to hide from the corner of her eyes.

Comments

Liz Brownlee said…
Very intriguing! ~Liz http://www.lizbrownleepoet.com
Ash said…
Thank you Liz!

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