The memory of that
day, so many years ago was crystal clear. Her friends were seated at her home,
nervously facing an irate middle aged man, whose traditional world they sought
to upset. He was clutching a bunch of papers as though it was his arrest
warrant, her college admission papers precisely. He was lecturing them on the
role of women, which in those days meant stay at home mother and wives. The
basic schooling was given simply because most grooms demanded it. He lectured
on how, too much knowledge and independence in a woman was asking for trouble.
She
and her younger sister, whose own dreams hinged on his current reaction watched
sadly...they had hoped for, but expected nothing different in their father's
behaviour. Their elder sister had, had a similar battle in her time before losing
it. Her older sisters had accepted their roles in a traditional society and
household and gone on to marry. They spent their days doing what
many other unlucky friends did...waiting on their
husbands, in-laws and kids hand and foot.
The
young teenagers looked at the sad duo, as though silently saying ‘We are doing
this for you two, why don't you speak up for yourselves?’ If only they
knew how much his six children feared him? The grim remainder of sharp hits of
the cane on tender hands and legs for every perceived act of disobedience and
stinging pain effectively sealed their lips at crucial junctures. He was a
loving, caring man but not to be bested...
His
lecture over, the papers tossed carelessly into the dustbin, he walked away for
his evening prayers. The friends slunk off, not before giving them 'Sorry,
we tried' embraces. She retrieved the forms when no one was looking and put
them among her books as a keepsake till it was time to fulfil her
fate.
She
tried again, a couple of years later to change the life path set up for her. This
time with a job application in a telephone company and the alibi, a maternal
uncle who cared for them. It was an opening specifically for high school
graduates. But as before, her efforts come to naught. Her uncle was given
permission, in a very rude and scathing manner,
"Go ahead,
your sister's daughter after all. Recommend her for the job by all means."
Every one was
shocked to react, as he continued
"I wash my
hands of her henceforth. Arrange for her marriage too, if you are so inclined.
Just remember, no daughter of mine works and stays here."
The uncle
hesitated, his sister shrinking in the corner, close to tears. With three
daughters of his own, a measly salary the government job provided, a small
house with far too many people to fit in, there was no way he could support her
even if she was gainfully employed. Besides who was he to break up a family
especially his sister's? He was gone too, the encounter humiliating enough
in his opinion to not warrant future visits and with passing time, grew
distant.
Years
later, when she held her daughter's hands as she took her first baby steps, she
vowed that her child's life would be very different. She would be a friend,
guide, and a supporter of all her children's dreams. As the front door
opened and her daughter enveloped her in a huge hug, she knew she had kept her
promise. A newer, positive chapter in her family history was being created....
cwc 582 need 131 words more
