BRAVE

Chapter One

Like every other day, Kurmi was bustling with life and energy. The sky was clear, the atmosphere dry, the birds were chirping loudly, even a gentle wind blew.

To a normal person, this would be perhaps a normal day but only to a normal person leading a normal life and Lami was leading a life far from normal. Despite having been done with her chores since early morning, Lami just couldn't find the willpower to push some food down her throat.

The sun had travelled to the middle of the sky and yet, Lami was still seated in the same spot from the morning. Even the peaceful and encouraging atmosphere could not ease Lami's troubled mind. They say that when the mind is occupied, the senses turn numb. She stared at the two bowls before her, and yet however tempting the tuwon masara and miyan kuka looked, she had no appetite. Her iddah had ended since 5 months ago, her third iddah from a third marriage.

This time, she was welcomed home quietly, nobody tried making an attempt to invite the in laws for a reconciliation after all, they had no valid reason to and doing so would draw mockery and even a fight for them.

She understood she was at fault and didn't blame anybody and appreciated their efforts so far. She had brought shame and disgrace to the family, not once, twice but three consecutive times.

When you've been to different houses, tried different times and still have nothing to show for it, no one can mention such a thing as reconciliation, even if just to save you some face.

"Why are you staring at the food like that? Looking at it won't make your problems disappear"

Baaba Jummai, her grandmother interrupted her thought and she sighed, swallowing the food quickly even though it felt pretty tasteless on her tongue, no need starving herself over matters that cannot be helped.
Sometimes, when fate decides to be  harsh on you. It peeks into the deepest part of your heart, sees that one thing you want more than any and decides to deny you that.

Before, when she heard people complain on how fierce or wicked fate was to them, or curse the bitter games it played with them she used to think silently that maybe people were not looking the right way. That maybe fate was only trying to push them towards the one thing they needed most or getting them away from a bad thing which they thought was their good. But now she understood that she had been wrong all along and that the people's anger towards fate was justified.

That all along, it was a game to test you to your limits and here she is, at the very peak of her limits yet fate was still determined to keep toying with her. Baba jummai remained standing, not sitting and not saying a word either. Lami instantly knew that by the tone baba jummai used to talk to her,there was something else she wanted to mention to her.

She sighed and played with her fingers, her detest for the look of pity people gave to her whenever they saw her increased and it was why she started starving herself of socialism so much that it thinned her down.

Baaba Jummai watched her grand daughter eat and her heart ached a bit. She could not help herself and went down the bitter memory lane.

When Lami got married the first time, to Ado, the farmer's son, it had been a colourful and happy event. It was after all, a marriage of love and convenience.

Both families were happy and proud, most especially the bride's people after receiving the white cloth that proved their daughter untouched.

They swam in joy and pride, they boast around, walking their cheats puffed and even called to people to help them receive the gifts and praises their in-laws sent them. They brought up a good daughter, she was a jewel to the family.

Baaba Jummai would walk with pride in the market, telling whosoever cared to hear that the new veil she wrapped was a gift from her granddaughter's in-laws after the wedding. Whoever heard would smile, congratulate and look forward to the next celebration.