The older man and his red blanket
Richard was a shy boy who did not have any friends, and the primary reason for him not having any friends was his introverted nature. He was, azae, Q q wsshesitant to communicate with people and make friends. Another reason for him not having any friends was his poor financial condition. He was always having this thinking that money is necessary for making friends. He tried to remove this deficiency by working extra hard in his studies. He was one of the best students in class and respected by teachers because of his quiet attitude. Many students tried to be friends with him, but he was always reluctant because he always felt that someday he would lose them. After all, he could not spend on them like the class students usually spend on regular days and special events.
He used to repeat this attitude in his family as well. His low confidence did not even allow him to discuss his feelings with his family as well. He always seemed sound, did not respond to their questions, and never frank with his family as well. He could not connect to them, and his family was also worried about him because he did not have any social life, and his whole life was limited to his books.
He saw an older man has a red blanket in his hand, sitting alone while coming home from school. He did not show any reaction towards the older man, but when he passed by Richard, the older man said, "Hey Son! can you stop for a while and listen to me?" Richard got shocked for a moment, but then he moved towards the older man and said, "Sure Sir, what can I do for you"? The older man said, "It has been so long since I had lunch with someone else, and I do not have anyone to talk to. My house is nearby and will you be an angel and have my lunch with me? You do not know how much I miss that conversation I used to have with family and friends, and now I have no one to talk to and share my lunch" Richard replied, "Sir, with all due respect, I don't like talking much, especially when I am having my lunch so you, please find someone else". The old man said, "No issue, son. You will not have to talk with me. All you need to do is to share my lunch. All I am seeking right now is someone's presence, especially when I am having lunch because I am having lunch when I feel the most lonely and sad. So, I beg you to honour my request and have food with me". Richard could not say to such a desperate request and follow the older man's commands, and he went to his home. When they both went to the older man's house, they saw a small but well-decorated home.
The older man immediately took his lunch from the freezer and put the food into the microwave to warm the food. I had prepared this lunch an over ago, and I was waiting for someone to join me at lunch, and I was waiting outside to find a lunch companion. No one was willing to share lunch with an old man except you, my son" After this, he served the lunch on two plates for himself and Richard. The food was excellent, and the older man was requesting him, again and again, to have more food, so Richard ate to his fill. After lunch, Richard asked permission to leave, and the older man gently shook his hand and came to the gate to say goodbye to him. When Richard went home late, his mother asked him why he was late, and he told his mother that he was late because he was having lunch with his mother. It was a real surprise to his mother, and she thought the friend must be from the school
The next day, again, he saw the same older man with the same red blanket when he was coming back home. Seeing Richard, the older man had a spark in his eyes, which Richard couldn't overlook. He went to say Hello to the older man who had served him a pretty good lunch yesterday. When he said Hello, the older man said, "Hey! My friend came. Look, my little friend, even today I couldn't find anyone to share lunch with me, and so my angel came back. Let's have lunch together". Richard couldn't say no and went with him to his home. Again the food was delicious, and also he requested Richard to have more and more food
So, this became a habit for both of them. Richard started having lunch with him, and his knowledge about the older man started increasing gradually. The older man was an army officer, and he used to discuss how he spent his life in wars and used to have lunch with friends. Even at dinner times, he started missing the chats of older man and instead of having his dinner in his separate room, he started having dinner with his family and started to become a bit comfortable with his family, classmates, and the old man
Sometimes he used to get emotional discussing war and discussed how many times the person who was with him in the lunch was no more before he had dinner, and he saw many of his friends die in front of him. He often used to cry remembering them, and one day he said, "Sometimes I use to say when I was in the army that I should be the one to die rather than my friend, especially the day when I saw a young boy of age somewhat around 21, who died in front of m and who was telling me about his engagement story and how he is going to marry after three months. I seriously wished for death that day, and I even appointed a gun on myself, but then I thought that death is inevitable. Someday sooner or later, I will die no matter how hard I try not to, and on that day, I will meet all the close ones who left me during my life.. I thought, what face will I show to them? Would they really be happy if they saw me coming to meet them as a loser? How are they going to receive me? All of them did their level best to survive, but they tried their level best. So how would I show my face to them if I wasted the thing they were striving to till their last breath. So I thought instead of leaving this world by myself, I will let God decide it so when I will meet them, they will meet with pride in their eyes, and I will tell them that I respected the gift of God till my last breath like they did in their lives and I won't only live my life, but I will also live my life happily as they would have wished me to do so. And you know I always carry the red blanket with me because I have spent my life in war and this color always remind me about them and also reminds me that I will never allow the sadness to overcome my attitude towards my life and instead of trying to prevent this color from me I actually embraced the color with open hands because I know that when watching red color I always need to remember the red color of Ross and not blood and nothing should be strong enough to dictate my attitude towards life and this reminds me that only becomes beautiful when you start feeling it that way "Richard was really surprised with this attitude and he thought "Why didn't I ever appreciated the gift of God and which thing is preventing me to have happiness because at that time he started remembering about other members of his family and the students of class who were also not very much rich like me still they try to be happy and this old man who lost so much in life is still living life to his fullest so why can't me? That day he finally promised himself that he would change his attitude towards life, and before leaving, he shook hands with the older man with more warm hands than usual. He also promised himself that he would also tell him tomorrow how he changed Richard's life. He went to his home, and on that day, he was much more talkative and enthusiastic than average days, and he talked with them and told his mother about the old man
The next day at school was also a pleasant one for him as he had a smile on his face and was warmly greeting everyone, and it was a beautiful surprise to his classmates and teachers. Even he was feeling better because he was feeling a bit more mixed in the class. That day he was going not towards home but towards the older man to share his thoughts with the older man
However, when he reached the place where he regularly used to meet the older man, he saw no one there. He thought he must be at his home waiting for him, so he went to his family but when he went to his home. He saw an ambulance in front of the house. He immediately sensed something was not right but what he saw was even beyond his expectations. His older friend was lying dead in front of him, and hospital authorities carried his body in a stretcher.
It was a real shock to him, but he remembered all the old man's words that life is too much worthy of being spent in grief and the implied lesson that life is also too much short, so if you have someone must tell them before it's too late. Richard never disrespected the gift of life and carried the older man's tradition of the red blanket.
The Magic Bowl
Andrew was a student of class four, and his house was near a forest. He was considered a good student in the class, but he was also good at sports and respectful to his elders in a routine. The only problem with Andrew was that he was very selective in his food choices, and because he was the only child of his parents, his parents used to prepare his favourite meal for him every day. His parents noticed this and finally stopped serving Andrew's favourite food to him every day, which started making him angry all the time. One day he was coming back to his home, and he heard the noise of a person from the nearby forest crying loudly for help. Andrew immediately followed the direction of a sound ad saw a person trying to save himself from a bog and finding something desperately to hold to come out of the swamp. Andrew immediately finds a branch of a tree and moved it towards the person asking for help. The man immediately took hold of the department and safely and soundly came out of the tree because of Andrew's service. The person became very happy with Andrew and informed him that he is a magician and he can grant his one wish anything he wants. Andrew told him about his parents not providing him with his favourite food every day and how he wants to eat the food he likes every day.
The magician smiled at Andrew's request and immediately moved his wand, and a beautiful bowl appeared. The magician told Andrew that this bowl could provide him with anything he wants, all he needed to do was think of his favourite item, and the dish will appear in the bowl. Andrew got surprised by this, and after holding the bowl, he immediately thought of the fries he used to love to eat, and directly in a moment, the fries appeared in the bowl. Andrew got so happy with this that he did not even realize when the magician left the place and started moving towards his journey. When Andrew ate his full, all the remaining fries got vanished, and the bowl got clean all by itself. It was a big surprise for him. He thought he would tell everyone about it at home and school, but then thought if he told about it to everyone, his parents would snatch this from him, and if someone got the news about this in school, someone would steal it. Andrew could not risk the bowl's security, so he decided to keep it a secret and put the bowl in his bag. Now he immediately went to his home. After reaching home, when he saw the same dish prepared for him, which he never used to like, instead of showing his anger towards his family members and especially his mother, he politely put his share on his plate and went to his room. His parents were also surprised by this, and they got happy after seeing this polite attitude from him. Andrew immediately poured the food from the plate to his pet cat, took out the magic bowl from his bag, and thought about his favourite cheese pizza. The pizza appeared within a second, and Andrew, instead of eating the food prepared by his mother's hard work, ate the food from the magic bowl.
Now Andrew started repeating this same trick every day, and in a few days, he demanded everything he ever wished to eat from his magic bowl, and the bowl provided it to him. He even used to throw out his lunch for school on his way to school and use the magic bowl to get something for a recess break. One day after finishing his lunch in school recess, he started watching other students having their lunch. Everyone was busy with their lunch except Roger, who managed other students having their lunch and repeatedly put his hand on his tummy. Andrew immediately went to him and asked him if he forgot to bring his lunch today for school, to which Roger replied that because his father died last year, now his family runs from earnings from his mother. After paying the school fee for him and his siblings, his mother cannot provide food for him every time, and sometimes they even starve at night and have not eaten anything from last lunch at his home around 18 hours ago. It was a real shock for Andrew; he immediately opened his bag, used the bowl, and brought something for Roger, but he knew that this was not enough. For the first time, he started thinking about the importance of food. During the night, he made a decision.
The next day he took Roger into confidence and told him the bowl's complete story and took a promise from him that he and his family will keep it a secret and handed over the bowl to him. Roger was delighted and had had tears in his eyes not because he was happy to have his favourite food every day but because he was going to have food every day, and Andrew could saw the happiness in his eyes, which provided him more happiness than he could ever achieve from any his favourite food. During his walk back home, he met the magician again, and the magician told him that he knew handed over the bowl to someone else and knew the reason due to his magic and told him that how much he is proud of him. Also, he said that the real magic bowl is not the one that provides him his favourite food every day but the one which his mother prepares for him from the hard-earned money of his father and how no magic bowl can match the love of tat real magic bowl of the food which his mother provides to him. The magician left, and Andrew immediately went home to have lunch from the Real Magic Bowl
Dreams are never compromised
Mathew was twelve still couldn't learn how to drive a bicycle. At first, it was expected, but day after day, things started getting more challenging for him. His friends used to come to school on their bicycles, and he had to walk to school. His friends used to go on a bike together to different places to have fun, but he was the only one who didn't know how to drive a bicycle, and his frustration kept increasing day after day. Even he became a topic to laugh in his family and started teasing him for that. The only support he had at this time was his grandfather. His Grandpa always used to support him in this and used to tell him that this is not a thing to be ashamed of and one day you will learn how to drive a bicycle if you dream it because dreams are never compromised, and if you couldn't know it, it won't be a big issue for you in future. Mathew tried to learn when he was eight, but he could not know it, so he left trying. However, when all of his classmates went together for their final party after exams on bicycles, it was a big blow for young Mathew. He promised he would learn how to drive a bike, and he immediately went to his grandfather said, "Grand Pa! I had enough today. Now I will learn how to do today; otherwise, I am not going to school tomorrow", His grandfather said," one ay is seriously not enough for this task. I assure you within a week, you will be driving a bicycle." However, he kept o insisting that he learn and learn it today, so his grandfather took out the bike of his elder brother, which he stopped driving since he grew old, and took Mathew out from home. He supported Mathew firstly from the front and then helped him from the back of the bicycle.
Within two hours after falling more than five times, Mathew finally drove a bicycle of his own without his grandfather's help. Mathew got too much happy, and although he was trembling, he was driving a bike all over the streets at night, and his grandfather was also pleased seeing him enjoying." Now I will go to school by bicycle." Mathew said. Grandpa said, "Son, your school is far from here, and you are short of practice. You need some practice before taking the bicycle in heavy traffic." Grandpa, you know how much I get tired by walking every day. Tomorrow I will go to school on the bicycle. "Grandpa knew that Mathew will not listen to him now, but he suggested he drive safe, and he promised his Grand Pa that he would try to be safe.
The next day, he was more than happy going to school. He went to school in the morning on his bicycle, and he reached school safe and sound. The whole day he was extra happy at school and thinking about returning home on his bicycle. When his friends took out their bicycles, Mathew was happy to join his bicycle with them, and he was very much delighted to join their pace. After a moment, they planned to race till to their Colony. Mathew was not as experienced as them to drive in traffic, but still, he joined them. When all of them started running their bikes, Andrew joined them, and as he grew his speed, he could sense the wind coming on to his face, he was living his dream but immediately a car in front of him from the opposite side and because he was not experiencing too. Holding the bike's control in such crunch situations, he got hit by the car, and he fell unconscious. His friends immediately took him to the hospital and contacted his family
When he came to his senses at the hospital, he saw his Grandpa, parents, and other relatives and friends looking at him and his leg in plaster. The doctor told him that he would not be able to walk for three months, and he will be on complete bed rest. His Grand Pa came to him and said, "I know, son, you tried your best, but you also ignored my advice. You know traffic can be dangerous, but you ignored my warnings, but I assure you, you will be fine in a few months. So, you must take care of yourself, and so tell me what will you do when you get back n your feet?" I will drive my bicycle, but this time I will take my bicycle in traffic only when I will have experience, and I want to live my dream like I lived my dream in the morning as dreams are never compromised". Mathew said in a peaceful tone.
The Strange Guest
Rachel was always fond of pets and she spent a fair share of her time with her pet cat Lucy, but unfortunately when Rachel was about to turn 12 Lucy died.
It was a big blow for little Rachel. So, her parents brought a new cat as a present for her, and finally Rachel got happy.
She named the new cat Lucy as well and when she slept with her cat on first night, she started hearing strange voices from her bedroom
She got frightened and immediately tried to leave the room but then she remembered about Lucy, and when she opened the cabinet to take Lucy out with her.
It was a big shock for her when she opened the cabinet, as it was Lucy who was talking in a human voice and was praying in a way, as a human does typically to God.
Both Rachel and Lucy got shocked for a moment, and Rachel tried to run away, but she heard Lucy's voice. 'Hey, Rachel! Please don't get frightened and run away. I am a fairy from Fairyland, and you are seeing me as a cat only because Mother Fairy punished me because I was not respectful to animals, and I used to hurt them a lot, and that's why I am suffering in this position for the last five years. I was told that only one person in the world would be able to hear me once my punishment is finished, and the only trait of that person, I was told, would be that the person will be an animal lover."
'So, what can I do for you? Rachel asked.
"All you need to do is to remove my collar", and when she removed the collar of her new Lucy, it turned out to be a beautiful fairy.
The fairy got happy, and she said to Lucy, "I am sorry I could not be the friend you deserved but turned out to be a strange guest, but I am sure you will get a pretty friend very soon, and you will never stop loving animals". Saying this, she shook hands with Rachel and went to her land forever
Brothers are Always Brothers
Ayesha was a bright student in a prominent medical college in the city. She would become a doctor in the next three years and live in her house alone with a helper lady. After becoming a doctor, she was sure of handling her expenses herself to be independent of her father. Although she belonged to a wealthy family and her father was one of the wealthiest persons in the city; still, she wanted to live her life by her choice rather than the choice of her father, who had forgotten her since her mother died when she was in the first year of medical college. He only used to call her to inquire about her expenses, and the father-daughter relation between them had been long forgotten by then.
Although he was married to another girl of his village in a Baltistan region's remote district, her father married his mother. The area was considered outside the boundary of Pakistan. The Jirga was used to handle issues between parties. Ayesha knew about the other family other father and her father used to take her and her mother to her village so that he could boast off about marrying an educated girl in his town. Her father had another daughter from his second wife and two sons as well. Everyone in the house used to hate both Ayesha and her mother, and even though she was a child, she could sense the hate around herself and her mother. No one ever had the decency to with both Ayesha and her mother with morality. Only her younger brother Hassan who was almost three years younger than Ayesha, used to talk to Ayesha. Every year whenever she and her mother used to go to her father's village for a month, only Hassan was the one who always used to show her love and affection. Because he lived in a town far away from urban life, he used to ask questions about city life and show his excitement towards having a better education. Even Ayesha tried once to convince her father to allow Hassan to live with Ayesha and her mother so that Hassan could also acquire better education. However, her father never allowed Hassan to further education in the city because her father was informed of his elder son's violent and foolish nature. He knew that only Hassan was the one who was able to manage his business in the city. His other daughter was also rude like her mother, and she did nothing in her life except beating her servants for minor reasons. She was informed of her authority, and she always tried to do everything to show everyone who is the boss. She was engaged to the son of a local businessman of that area, and her marriage was due within the next six months. Ayesha's father stopped Hassan's education when she turned 13 and started training Hassan to handle his business. Although the in-charge was still her elder brother Rashid, because of his attitude, he was never liked by customers or employees. Also, he never bothered to take more interest in his business as Hassan, who was now 19, was managing things very well. The business was progressing with full flow, and father 0f Ayesha was always proud of Hassan and his achievements in business and his understanding of business at such a young age. He was sure that Hassan would be able to take care of his business and his family once he died, so Hassan was the only hope of her father.
The only person who was close to Ayesha after her mother died was only Hassan, who was still in contact with her, and he always used to come to meet Ayesha whenever he used to come to the city and ask her if she needed anything. Even when her mother died, and her father didn't bother to stay with her for more than a day, Hassan regularly visited her and supported her in her huge loss. Ayesha loved her baby brother, and she always used to hug him tightly whenever Hassan used to come to meet him and used to call her Kaka (Baby) as she used to call him when he was young, and she knew that only she could count on Hassan if she needed anything. One day she got so emotional she said, 'Kaka! Why are you so nice to me? Don't you see how your mother and your family treat me? I can't see any reason why you don't treat me in the way your mother treats me; why are you so much good to me, Kaka?" You are my sister. It is my duty to be protective of my sister. There is nothing special about this. "Hassan replied softly.
"Since when we became brother and sister, we don't have the same mother, and our father never gave me the same respect to my mother or me which he gives to his other daughter or your mother. The only relation we have is that you are my stepbrother. Sometimes it is difficult for me to imagine why someone can be so good?" Ayesha said in a sad tone. "It is all how you perceive things, my sister. It is enough for me that we have the same father to call you as my sister, and whenever I call someone my sister, I do not think about the word step or real sister. You are my sister, and you will remain my sister throughout my life." Hassan replied. That day a big load laid off from the shoulders of Ayesha, and her love for Hassan grew many times more. She promised Hassan that although she would never visit her village home because she is unable to handle the hate in the eyes of her other siblings, she will see her village for Hassan's marriage which was planned to be held one year after the marriage of her sister Arafa and the search for the girl was begun.
Today when she came back from college, she saw her father waiting for her. She got shocked as she was seeing her father after a year. His father ordered her to come with him to the village immediately. She told her father that she cannot take leave from college right now, but her father did not listen to her clarifications and ordered her to pack her belongings, and said he will tell her the details in the car. When the car went for the village route, her father said, "You know why I took out from the house? Rashid has killed someone, and now they are looking to take their revenge, and because everyone in the village knows about you, they could have attacked you. So, I took you out from there, and now you will stay with me till this thing sort outs in Jirga". It was a big shock for Ayesha, and she immediately asked about the safety of Hassan. Her father told her that Hassan was safe in a place far away from the village with his friends. No one knows about the location of Hassan, and his elder brother Rashid has locked himself inside the house. His wife, sister, and children are in the real panic situation because they know that an attack can be any time, and they will go for the life of someone, especially Rashid/s life." When she reached home, she was treated with the same hate, but now no one had the time to express it more openly because everyone's face was filled with terror. So, everyone remained quiet, and she kept her peace and started living there peacefully, and gradually, the proceedings of Jirga started.
Ayesha's father offered to pay any amount as compensation for life, but the boy who was murdered also belonged to a strong background. More importantly, the murder was really unjust as Rashid killed a random boy only because he defeated Rashid in a car race. After winning the race, he was teasing Rashid, and everyone was laughing at Rashid. Just for this small reason, Rashid fired bullets at him in front of everyone, and this led to the presence of so many eyewitnesses, so it became impossible for Rashid to put the blame on any of his subordinates. A trick which was used by him in a similar incident before. Also, Rashid was not informed about the background of the boy before killing him, but when he knew the background of the boy, he understood that he is in real trouble. He locked himself inside the house and hoped that his father would pay some compensation for his mistake and solve the issue.
After several meetings of Jirga, the Jirga announced the verdict on the final date. When Ayesha's father came, every family member gathered around him and asked about the verdict. Ayesha's father told they are given only two options
One is to give them a life for a life. It can be of Rashid or Hassan.
The second is to marry a sister of Rashid to the physically challenged uncle of the boy who is unable to eat, drink or even clean his urine or stool himself. The girl will have to be a loyal wife of the physically challenged person all through his life. Also, even after the person's death, the girl will not be allowed to remarry, and she will have to spend all her life serving the boy's family. Along with this, a compensation of fifty million was also demanded.
Everyone got shocked. No-one thought the conditions could be this hard. The eyes of everyone pointed out towards Arafa. Before someone could say something, the mother of Rashid spoke: "I know what we are going to do, we are going to choose the second option and because my daughter Arafa is engaged, my second daughter Arafa will make the sacrifice of her brother as girls have always made sacrifices for their fathers and brothers". In a moment, the girl who was not even been considered a member of the family became the sister of Rashid. No one even bothered to look at her and in very next moment, the conversation was about how to arrange money in such short notice. It was a big shock for Ayesha, who never thought her father could be that cruel, and she could see the hidden smile on the faces of Arafa and her mother. She looked towards her father for the last time in search of some hope, but she saw her father hiding his eyes from her. She understood the actual motive of her father was not her safety, but the safety of her son. And he knew that Jirga could be announcing a verdict of such nature, and he knew that Arafa would get the support of her mother, but no one is going to support that poor girl. She immediately said, "I have only one brother in this whole world whose name is Hassan. Had it been Hassan's case, I would have given up my life for him, but I will not serve in hell all through my life for the person who never considered me my sister. I came here because I thought my father wants to protect me, but I forgot that in our societies, being a daughter is still a curse and especially when you are a daughter with no father and mother. From now on, I don't have any father, and I don't need anything from you. All I want is to go my home back" Saying this loudly, Ayesha started crying heavily. "Who asked your opinion? and who are you to decide what will happen? In our house, the men make all the decisions, and we have decided this," Rashid said. "So why can't Arafa, your beloved sister, marries that guy?" Because I am engaged." Arafa said. "Ok, we both sisters will share the burden of our brother. I will marry the person with whom you are engaged, and you should match that person your father has chosen for me in this way, and we both will be sacrificing for our brother. Can you do that?
"This time, the tone was sarcastic. No one could answer that question. Everyone was stunned and looking at each other. When they got no answer, they locked Ayesha inside a room, and the date of marriage was decided three days later. Ayesha knew that only Hassan can help her now. She tried to contact her for two days, but no one gave her a mobile so that she could get her. Also, no one even bothered to give her food as it would be easy to control her on the day of marriage. On the third day, the old house lady came to her room because of pity on her and asked if she needed anything, Ayesha begged her to give her mobile to Ayesha so that she could contact Hassan. When Hassan received her call, she immediately told her about what happened to her and how her family members decided to solve the dispute by sacrificing her. It was a real shock for Hassan, but before he could say something, the phone call disconnected because of mobile credit deficiency. Hassan knew that he was unable to do anything at such short notice. He knew that police could not do anything beyond the area outside the jurisdiction area of police, and no press-member would be willing to go in such danger. He knew he was short of time, and then an idea clicked his mind. He knew the implications of that idea were hard for him, but he knew that he cannot let the girl suffer all through her life who has suffered all through her life till now. He immediately went to the boy's house, whose boy was killed by Rashid, and gave them an offer which they couldn't refuse.
At night, Ayesha lost all her hope when her father came to her room and said, "I know I was never a father you deserve. If you want to go, just go." He gave her his gun and said, before you go, do a favour and kill me because I will never be able to convince my other daughter to offer that sacrifice and nor I can see the dead body of my son. "Ayesha lost all her hope and just sat in the room, wishing for death as soon as possible.
The following day when the family took Ayesha with here, but there were not any marriage arrangements. Both father and brother of Ayesha got surprised. They asked to meet the boy's father, who told them that Hassan had solved the issue now they do not need to pay the fifty million as well. It was a big surprise for Ayesha's father, Ayesha, and Rashid. But when Ayesha's father asked how Hassan solved the issue, the boy's father took them towards their house's backyard. The scene waiting for them was the biggest shock of their lives. The dead body of Hassan was waiting for them.
Your son came to our house last night and offered his life in exchange for his sister. When we told him that we have already settled on a truce, he said if we didn't accept his offer, he would kill every member of my family to save his sister. He gave his gun to me so that I could avenge my thirst for retaliation. When I told him I could not both kill such a good guy or forgive his brother, can he do the job himself? He just smiled. He gave me these two letters, one for Ayesha and one for his father, and took the oath from me that I won't try to marry his sister with my brother and never will hand over his dead body to his family and no one will be allowed to touch his dead body except this sister Ayesha. He pointed his gun towards himself and shot at himself.
Both of them opened their letters.
Letter to his father was written as:
'I knew you would lead my sister to destroy her life in one way or another by using your name for blackmail. But I couldn't see my sister finishing her life like that, so I wanted to save herself most of all from you. Unfortunately, my sister won't have any father or brother from now on. As my last wish, the fifty million you took with yourself, please give it to Ayesha so that you may be able to compensate for some of the damage you have done on her'.
Letter to his Ayesha was written as:
"I am sorry for my father, but you must know not all brothers are the same. Your Kaka always loved you, and you were my sister. Unfortunately, I was not available initially; otherwise, I wouldn't have let you suffer this much. I am not with you, but I will always be in your prayers. Although suicide is not allowed in our religion, suicide is definitely a smaller sin than killing someone or finishing someone's life in a way like it was intended for my sister. You know you are my sister and Brothers are always Brothers. I am leaving something for you. The father will give it to you. You must take it as your right and spend your life in a way you deserve." With love, Kaka."
Father of Ayesha sits on the ground, crying heavily and repeatedly trying to control his breath. Because he was told he was not allowed to touch the body of his dead son. Rashid was sitting there like a statue, unable to react. However, Ayesha went towards the dead body of his beloved Kaka, closed his eyes, and started crying over his brother's face, who showed what it means to love someone.
Life without a roof
My relations with my Dad were never ideal. We used to fight on everything and always wanted to intrigue in my personal life. Our conflict started when I tried to pursue sciences like my friend Eric. But he said just no; we argued on this for a while, but he clearly said he could not afford my education in sciences and must have pursued either arts or computers if I want to have any education after high school. He even intrigued me in my personal life as he stopped me from joining Eric's father café as a waiter for earning any part-time money. He was always against my opinions. He wasn't even supporting my friendship with Eric, and even once, he scolded Eric in front of me. At that time, I don't know how I managed to control my father's anger, but I knew that I could not contain my expenses. Until the date I worked my costs, I will depend on my father since I couldn't afford to live independently. It also significantly impacted my friendship with Eric as our relations were not the same after that incident. I apologized to him again and again, but he made new friends, and he was not the same as Eric after that. It was a big blow for a 15year old boy, and I had to suffer all this only because of my father.
With time, our conflicts also grew more prominent, and I even stopped talking to him. He tried talking to me, but my response became strictly cold towards him. When I was 18, I left my home and started living with Mickey, the boy who became my friend after Eric as his roommate. At that time, I had just started living on my own. I was working as a salesman in my uncle Mathew's shoe store, and I was making almost enough money so that I could manage my expenses. Mathew uncle was a friend of my father and was very kind to me. He never shouted at me or never deducted my salary if I had to take a leave. Even on holidays, I was provided with an additional bonus, unlike other employees, so that I could enjoy my festival season better than other employees. I stopped trying to contact my father, and I stopped going home as well. The only contact I had with my family was through some random calls with my brother Rony. He used to call me on regular days and sometimes I used to call my mother, whenever I felt sad on holidays because I was not visiting my home even on holidays because of my stiff with my father. Uncle was my only family other than Mickey, and I only these two was the persons I used to share my personal feelings sometimes and the only two people in the world who had my trust.
Life started going at its pace. I completed my masters in computer education, and soon I got selected by a reputed organization. II met Laura, and soon we decided to marry. Only Rony and mom were invited to my family. I was still in touch with uncle Mathew who supported me a lot during my education, both financially and emotionally. and After a year, Laura made me a father of a beautiful boy. With my baby in my arms for the first time, I promised my son I will never be a father to you like my father and named my son Bill on the name of my favourite personality, Bill gates. My life was going as beautiful as it could go, and soon, I broke all of my ties with my father, and I gave a serious request to Rony that if he ever talked about Dad, I will stop talking to him, and I only want to talk to him or my mother. I hadn't visited my home for ages, and I almost forgot my father's face, but I couldn't forget the trauma he gave to me when I was a child. And I spent most of my time with the two angels of my life Laura and Rony, who were enough for me to spend my life. I even didn't attend Rony's wedding because I didn't want to cross paths with my father. Even Laura had suggested that I go to my father and resolve our issues, but my mind was never ready for this. But when my son grew four, he came to me and asked," Papa! Where is grandpa?". I don't know what answer should I give to my son. As Laura's father was dead, my son had a grandma, but he never had a grandpa. I had my grandpa when I was four, and I knew how much love grandpas have for their grandchildren. As they say, interest is sweeter than real money, so grandparents love you even more than your parents. But how unfortunate my son was that he never had a grandpa? I got depressed for a while, and this depression grew even more when Mickey lost his father. I went to the funeral of Mickey's Dad, and when I tried to console him, he said only one thing I just lost my roof. I couldn't understand what he was saying. I knew his father was as strict as mine, and he told me how his father even used to give him strict punishments when he was a child. His father used to insult him if he made any mistake in business as he was doing his family business with his father. I was surprised that he was still so much close to his father and never talked about his father in a bad way as I used to talk about my father. I said," You shouldn't be this much sad. I know fathers mean a lot, but you shouldn't be this much sad. "." He was my roof, my friend. He was the roof on me because whenever I made any mistake when I was young or even now in business, I always knew I had a roof on me. Even though my father will insult me or even punish me as a child, he will clean my mess and save me from anything that comes to me. Don't you know what it's like to lose a shadow from your head, my friend? "Mickey replied softly. I never thought about my father like this. I remembered how many times my father saved me from embarrassing situations. Still, then I thought where was my father when I left my home, and only Uncle Mathew was there to protect me, and if there is any person in the world I should be obliged to, it should be uncle Mathew. But I still couldn't overcome my depression, and somewhere in my mind, I started to think that now I should forget my father and normal my relations with my father, but maybe it was my ego that didn't allow me to go to my father to amend things. After some time, I came out from this depression as Laura was pregnant for the second time, and I knew I need to make her happy for my kid, so I shifted all my attention towards him. When I took her to the hospital, I immediately took her to the hospital as she started having labour pains. This time things were not as good as they were last time. when she went inside the labour room, I came out of the hospital as I could not handle the stress of the situation, and I started smoking a cigarette outside the hospital. Unintentionally my attention moved towards the other hospital where I saw my brother coming out from the ambulance. After my brother< an older man was seen going to the hospital on a stretcher. I couldn't recognize the old man; I immediately went near the stretcher and couldn't believe my eyes that my father had grown this much old and this much weak. This was not the person who used to insult me or stop me from doing my favourite things; I never thought my father could be that much old in my life that he was lying unconscious in front of me. I immediately forgot all my hate towards my father, and I knew I had to meet him once he is okay. For the first time in a decade, I asked Rony about their father, who told me his father suffered a big heart attack six months ago, which caused him to lose all his health and today, once again, he got a heart attack once again. This was big news for me, and I knew that I even couldn't say to him to tell him because I was the one who forced him not to talk about his father. I immediately went to Laura's hospital, but things were not fine in Lora's hospital as well. I left Bill with her grandma and immediately went to uncle Mathew to ask for some support. I never faced this much tough situation in my life, and when I reached to shoe store of Uncle Mathew, he immediately took me towards his cabin, and I immediately started crying
"Please tell me what happened, son?" Uncle Mathew is sad softly.
"The life of both my wife and my father is in danger, and I cannot do anything. The thing which is hurting me even more that
Why should I worry about the person who stopped me at every point of my life and who wasn't even there for me when I needed him the most?"
"And how he damaged your life?" This time the tone felt sarcastic
And when I told him, he said,
"You are sad because your father forced you to go for computers rather than sciences because don't you think he knew you better and about your interest in computers so he stopped you from following your friend blindly and do what you can do good in your life.
You are sad because he stopped you from joining Eric's father restaurant because he knew that his father was doing illegal businesses on the face of his restaurant, and if you entered that restaurant, you also might have to suffer in future
He stopped you from being friends with Eric and ended your friendship with him because he knew that the boy is infected by bad company, and he wanted to save his son."
It was a big revelation for me.
"And who do you think gave your guarantee when you came to me to ask for the job?
Who requested me to talk to his son gently and pay him special bonuses?
Who supported you financially? You think I was economically capable of helping you that much; it was always your father, my son? They are not like mothers because they always have to maintain a strict face so that their children to protect their children and make them successful like you got successful in your life. Everyone loves the sky, but when it rains, everyone looks for the shade, and in everyone's life, the father is the shade who spent all of his life to protect his children, but never get half of the love like a mother, but still, he keeps on making efforts for his children till his last breath."
I couldn't believe what I was listening to. My father spent all of his life protecting me. Support me, love me, and all I had for him was hate. I immediately wanted to see him. Say sorry to him. I love him the way he needs to be loved. I forget everything, my son, Laura, everything. All I wanted at that time was to meet my father.
I immediately went to my Dad's hospital, and I saw my family crying heavily. I immediately asked my brother:" Tell me what happened. Please tell me. Why is everyone crying? Please advise. How's Dad?"
"He's no more". I only could listen to this from all of what my brother said. My father, who spent all his life loving me, couldn't get the time to receive his share of life and all of his life. He kept burning himself to give me the shade.
Till his last breath, my roof kept on protecting me from everything, but he couldn't get anything from me. I kept on crying, but then I thought, now it is time for me to become the role model like my father was for me, and now it was time for me to become the roof. I immediately went to Laura's hospital, where I heard the good news that everything is fine. I hold my new baby in my arms, and this time the promise was Although I could never be as much good as my Dad, I promise you I will love you all through my life like ma Dad was to me, and I will try to be a roof for you. Saying this, I shed tears.