The Eastern Woman

I used to write many stories in my childhood. When my son came to know, he asked me to write something. Now that so many years have passed; my children have grown up and I haven't penned down any thought, how may I travel back in the past? From where may I begin my story?

While I was busy thinking, my mother appeared in my mind, the eastern woman who was embodiment of patience and forbearance. I remembered my beautiful small house. We were four sisters and our father was a Government officer. We were living very well. Being the youngest of my sisters, I was dearest to everyone. 

I had my father's demeanor; a short temper, however, my father used to calm down as easily as he used to get angry and people could tell he felt guilty afterwards. I used to wonder and ask my mother how she kept her calm with the temperament of my father, and she used to say that anger is bad for health and she is just worried he might make himself sick. I always felt surprised with that answer. I had never seen my mother lose her temper or quarrel with anyone. Maybe that was why my father used to love her so much. 

She neither scolded us nor punished us, ever! She neither had something bad to say about anyone nor did she like anyone talking bad about someone in front of her. She was very steadfast on religion and I never saw her abandoning her prayers. She was very respected among all our relatives in general and her in-laws in specific. People who have left this world are always remembered in good words, but she was always remembered in good words in her life as well. 

When we grew a little older, we saw families bringing marriage proposals for my elder sisters. We saw people from different backgrounds come to our house, and every family wanted to see all four sisters so they may find the right match for their dear boy. As we entered youth, we started liking spending time in front of the mirror, dressing nicely and putting on make-up. We felt beautiful. Our mother was very pretty but our father was the most handsome man in the city. God had certainly taken His time to make his mold. My father used to love me so much that he brought everything I liked to cheer me up if I ever got displeased with him. We sisters felt so lucky, enjoying like a princess in our simple beautiful life in our simple beautiful home. Our father never let us feel his wistfulness for a son. 

Some more time passed, and we became adults. We faced many problems while going to school. It was a time when girls used to go to their schools on foot. Boys started following us on our way back home. They would try to gain our attention, sometimes by singing a song; sometimes by hooting and sometimes by throwing a few romantic lines at us, but, I being aware of being the center of attention always assumed a nonchalant attitude like I wasn't even noticing them and took my path to my home. I used to worry how badly would it affect my family's reputation if someone from my neighborhood ever saw that and how much it would disturb my father if he ever came to know of it. With these thoughts, I used to walk home with an expressionless face trying hard not to give any sign of attention they sought so much. I never listened to the heart; always listened to the mind who makes the best decisions for that age. I used to laugh, when after a few days, I used to see the same boy following another girl. I believe a woman's real beauty is in her character. 

A house filled with sisters gets a lot of attention from all the boys in the neighborhood and the family as well, but with our character, we never let anyone get any false signals and kept waiting for the prince of our dream world to come and get us. When our eldest sister got married, we didn't like our brother-in-law and feared our own dreams may also fade away into reality just like that. We felt sorry for our sister's fate. After some time, we saw our sister complaining about her parent-in-laws to our mother, but our mother always told her to consider them as her parents as well; take good care of them and it will surely win their heart. Our mother always discouraged our sister from talking foul about her in-laws. She always used to say "Neither sin yourself, nor make me sinful by talking foul about them behind their back". When I got to know about the bad attitude of my sister's in-laws, I felt like confronting with them because I felt I was brave, outspoken and very smart. How could have I known that my own husband was going to be Mr. All-Wise. I was going to realize how reality unfolds itself.