Zheshkah Lal had grown- in small way-great; and by our sights she had prospered. Her husband was slim and frail and afraid of her. The people in the village pitied her for she had been working so hard for the family. She had to wake up early and prepare everything for her family before she went to work. Her father was the one who encourage her to marry to a man she never been her boyfriend. They had a child, a girl and a boy. There seemed to be a complete family of four. She loved her children so much. That’s why she works very hard. But that is not the issue; she had to work not only for her children but for her husband too who is frail and sickly.
Sarah Mashey was a thin petite woman who lived a little beyond Zheshkah on the same road. She lived in a small room condo with her husband and four children. In this stumbling steps that day; she climbed the stairs to Zheshkah’s little office and turned the knob to the office door.
Zheshkah said angrily, “Come in! Do you want me to get upset with you? This time what is your business with me?”zheshkah asked Sarah. Sarah shuffled in and closed the door behind her. How are you, Ms. Lal ! Zheshkah said, “What’s your business? You had a lot of things to settle this time.”Sarah nodded. “Yeah, I know, Ms. Lal. But I can settle that all.”
Lal exclaimed impatiently. “An old story! How will you escape from what you have been through? Everyone knows what is going through, you cannot hide yourself. You need to decide now or maybe you will not be out of the cage you’ve been through all this years. I was about to speak when we heard a tip toe of shoes few meters from the stairs, maybe that’s him. You go back there I don’t want him to see me talking to you. Sarah took a piece of bread she saw in the dining table and sip a little of coffee, she seems very hungry. “He didn’t feed you at all? Alright, take the slices of bread and take some sweet potatoes too. “Sarah nodded and say, “thank you!” She hurriedly runs to her unit and after a while silence was break by a horrible shout of a familiar voice from his monster husband. Why we called him monster? Everyone in the village knows what he is doing to his family. Sarah just doesn’t fight with him for she is afraid with him and because of her children too. She wants complete family and she will sacrifice for her children. I heard how Sarah painfully screaming with pain saying “Please stop, it hurts, the children they will be affected, don’t do this please!”Screaming of pain and tears of children saying… “Stop it papa! Stop it!”I don’t know how it took me sometimes listening and tears of pain feel in to my nerves. Then for a while silence again… I heard no noise but empty cries of Sarah and kids. I peeped in the window and saw him going out with huge bag on his back. I hurriedly came in to the house and I saw my friend Sarah was bleeding, I couldn’t imagine how she suffers this much, for so many years of silence, pretending to be happy, to just save marriage for what? I held her hand and she hold my hands trying to talk but no sounds came out from her bleeding mouth.”Zsssssh, Calm down I’m here for you I’ll take you to the hospital.”I glance once again to her children, the eldest keep busy fixing the broken chairs, second is also sweeping the floor of broken glasses scattered on the floor and the baby twins crying in the crib, an innocent look of reality that brought by misery. I want to cry and clinched my fist, how cruel he is. He is so unfair! He must be punished, a man like him should not be loved. Why Sarah? She had been a good wife, a working mother, she work a lot for her family...Why life is so unfair to her. "Hematoma, and she needs surgery, for her CT scan results of brain damage. She needs surgery at once,” doctor says, a minute from now. Sarah has no family except his strange husband and the kids and I consider her as my family, so I decided to sign the consent for her surgery to save her life. I don’t know how many hours I spent my time in the chapel, looking for his face asking him once again to give Sarah a chance to live even in this world ,...life for her is so unfair but because of her children, she needed most by her children. “Please, Lord God let her live!” It was almost 2:00 o’clock in the morning when the nurse wake me up." She is now in the ICU, operation was successful", nurse said. I thank God he heard my prayers. I rush into her room and saw her, tears from my eyes seemingly feel the pain from her swollen face."There will be tomorrow for you my friend, I know God is powerful he will save you and your children".
After that incident, I heard Sarah went to the province with her kids and we don’t have any news from her except that she work abroad and no news from him too. Ten years had past and I am preparing myself to work when my eldest daughter caught my attention. “Mommy, look at the window! A limousine car park outside, do you expect some visitors?” Lucky said. “No, I said. I don’t have a rich friend maybe that is our neighbor’s visitor.”I went out to see who is there, and with all my surprise... It’s her, Sarah is that you? That face is so familiar to me; you look good and so beautiful. We talk a lot and I am so happy with her. All her children are big now, two of them are now working in the office and the twins are in college now. They all move in Colorado and no news from him, and I didn’t ask her about him. I know she is now free and her freedom brings her success for her and for her children. Tears of joy from her beautiful face, she again hold my hand hug me and say, “Thank you my friend, you never leave me when I needed you most”. I can’t see her car anymore but I am still waiving, I can’t believe it will come true. I held my head up in the sky and offer prayer. Thank you Lord God you save my friend, Thank you for keeping her with you and her children too.
“Mommy, it’s getting late now. Were going or not?” Yes lucky let’s go. I again look at my watch and took my bag and it’s getting late now. I also work too much for my family but at least my husband afraid of me and never hurt me at all. Because he loves me so much, we help one another for our future. I go back to the house and give my husband Bill a kiss and bade him goodbye.” take care Janie, I’ll see you tonight. Common, lucky let’s go!
