A 70 year old lady would
often say to me, love is to sacrifice. If one isn’t missing out on anything for
their love, they probably don’t love that person enough. Missing out on sleep for
her partner was one of her favourite things! Love, could sometimes appear as
selfish too, she warned, because when death visits, none of us can deny its
entry. Yet, the greatest lesson love teaches us, is that of patience. She
realized this when she could see glimpses of her love in her children. She soon
discovered that her love truly never died, it just widened its horizons. She
then, understood the reason why she was never able to say a goodbye to her
husband for the final time. She did not ever shed tears all night, longing for
her love because she knew that her love lied deep within her own soul; so how
could they be ever separated.
Stitching
clothes for a living whilst singing hymns, she could feel her love grow even
deeper. She did all she could to give the best of everything to her kids. She was
content for all that she achieved, for all she didn’t, she never complained. She
was proud to see a bit of her love instilled in her children. Time passed, her
eyes grew weaker to sew clothes, her house got bigger as her kids started to
earn, but the sad part was that the hearts grew smaller. The most important
thing in the old lady’s life became the least significant in her kids. ‘Times
have changed, mother. And so should you’, her kids would say. Turning deaf to
her kids, she would go inside her room and think what went wrong on her part.
An era of
selfless love took a break and a slightly more selfish love splashed in. Her
kids got married to the women they loved, bore two children. The kids
found solace in their grandma’s company. Her continuous blabber became words of
wisdom for them. The grandkids would often turn their backs to the grandma in
the evenings when the parents drove home. ‘Did your granny say something about
me?’ was what the mum would ask her kids. The little kid would always wonder why
her mother finds the old lady so much of a pain.
She could now pretty much see the end nearing, not because
of physical illness but because at this phase of life all she needed was a bit
of love from those who were too busy living their dreams of lavish lifestyles.
She could now feel the emptiness within her. There were cars in the house yet
she had to walk down the road all by herself to get her medicines. Then, the
evening would be followed by arguments on why the laundry wasn’t done properly
when the widow had nothing else to do for the whole time. During those nights
she would cry herself to sleep, thinking of her lost love. One rainy day when
she was shedding tears whilst cooking, her grandson came running, wiped away
the tears and hugged her. That was love, in the form of protection and care.
Then came one sunny morning, when the old lady slept and
never woke up. Her kids cried at her funeral, people prayed to Almighty for the
soul of an empowered woman. Her grandson stood at a corner, watching his granny
lie in peace, he smiled looking at the sky. Not always does a disease kill
people, sometimes it is just the pain accumulated within that makes the heart
stop functioning.
