Short Story Family – THE STARVING
Photo credit: wallyir from morguefile.com
Father was already out sheltering the broken roof while the cruel rain was on and fiercing the city. ‘I am starving’ said my younger sister glimpsing her eyes towards me as if I was her last hope in the whole world, be patient fater is already repearing the shed and will get you something as soon he get it done, I was more hoping than meaning to calm her.
‘Sheer, I got you some stuff ‘, said my elder sister as she entered the house with some edible in her hand to younger one, passing her a day aged chapati and an onion with a pickle, which she get when Mr. Kareem, for whom she works as a maid finds himself kind or the are occasions of festivle or any family fuction at there residence.
‘Why this to me’, cried aloud my younger brother, ‘you always feed her while I am alwys left, this is not fair, I will also have a chapati’, said to my elder sister.
‘She is younger than you zain, she needs more nutrition than you, she has not been fed up by two days and is only on our localities tap water, see she has become soo weak’, said my elder sister trying to convince him not to cry for food.
But I felt that his cries were right and he should also be given at least something to eat, he is also hungry for more than three days and what can you expect from a 7 yrs old child. Soon my thoughts began to quirrel and dazzle with my destiny and the conditions through which we are livng, but my father’s voice calling out loud entered in my ears and my thoughts fainted away by father’s scolds saying, ‘What a mess in my home, can’t you people see I am repairing the shed, you all have sucked up my life, let me live in peace, why don’t you all get sink in the river, so many do that’.
And told us to shut up although there was not even the sound of clock’s second hand at that time, no one spoke after that all the things seemed to fall in the great well of darkness and silence.
I wanted to tell my father that he is equaly or more is responsible for our live’s verdict, but could’nt. Things were always difficult for us but after my mother’s death it has been worsen up and my father is always in a hurry to end his life out of our tension to feed us. He also has become very weak and hence it enhances the chance of him to not get a job, who would hier a man who breathes asthamatic in moving a table from one place to other. My elder sister Hena, works for Mr. kareem whose kindness can be judged by the aged chapati and onion, she has to work all day from cleaning to washing to cooking…,and if something left would also be burdened to her for the penny of salary which is only enough to fulfil two to three days recruirement of Mr. Kareem’s five yrs old son, even with that we survive but added to that the penalties that are charged to her at every little mistakes which often makes half or even one third of her labour of a month. And so of these conditions we suffer.
In the beginning of my life’s chapter i was treated like a saviour which God has mercerized upon my family and it was thought that I would end the sufferings and pains of life of family , and I was well cared by them. I was also sent to a school by my families efforts but soon my father had severe sickness for years and my mother crushed between the father’s health and earning living could not stand the burden, she died. Off course, I had to quit school although I liked to study and wanted to but could’nt, after that I had been working in different tea shops and in dhabas to help my family sustain. Not only to survive, I also wanted to teach my younger siblings and I gave it my best but still all my blood and sweat efforts collapsed like the cards castle every time. Sometime I feel that my own destiny is squezing my neck as if destiny itself does’nt want to serve me.
Adding more to our disastrous life was the two weeks before incident of my boss firing me from job, though little but working in a dhaba provide you with some food kind of stuff which I usually saved for my younger ones. My boss that day found a half loaf of bread which I had from the customer’s leftover in my pack and straight away verdicted me a theif . Instead of my knealing apologies and explanations he seemed to be no affected and fired me. Since the very moment I had been begging for job in the whole city but the city does’nt seems to be kind enough to employ a really needy child.
In these thoughts I was sitting in a corner of house, rain had stopped by then, when Zain came up to me and said ‘bhai I am very hungry please get me something’, I told him not to worry and stood up to get food to feed him in confidence although I knew that I would return empty handed. After failing efforts to arrange food I went to the river side and watched the flow of river’s water, it always gave me pleasure not just because it was beautiful but because it was al least the thing which all people can have equally, no rich can take it away and no poor can be restricted to it. I did’nt wanted to go home empty handed so I sat there only even after it was too late. A part of my mind said ‘family would be worrying about you’ another conflicted ‘they know why are’nt you home yet’. My second brain was right they knew why I am not home yet.
Why I had to suffer all these things right from my birth, may be I had a quarrel with God right before my birth who made me to live in this punishment kind of life,I said to myself as I was looking at a couple buying icecream for their not more than one and a half years child, Will there ever come the so called good days of life for us ? Will our suffering ever end ? Will we ever out of vain ? Will we ever live a comfortable life ? Will we ever have a proper three time meal ? Will ever ‘I’, ‘Zain’ and ‘Sheer’ will get education ? Will we ever become able to not curse destiny ? NO, NEVER, was the answer echoing in my head, I stood up to go back home as I moved my hands to the eyes to clear the tears which I thought could have come out of my emotional burst , but failed to find any, my life had already dried them off.
As I entered the house, I saw Zain and Sheer asleep, I relaxed for a moment and sat to which my elder sister asked ‘Where were you?’,
‘You know it’ was the anwer and silence echoed around. Breaking the silence I said,’ Did you gave something to zain’. ‘Yes’, she repied,
‘What’ I asked,
‘A glucose biscuit’,’
where did you find that ?’, I asked as if it was not a biscuit it was a treasure full of jewls and gold.’There was a party in Verma ji’s house , I went to clear up the left over’.She passed me too a biscuit,
‘Did everyone had it ? I quiried,
‘Yesss, I got a whole pack’, I took it ,I had it , there was a deep relax and comfort in my mind. I thought in mind how a person in so much of life’s pain could be satisfied by a glucose biscuit and went to sleep with my thoughts.
Pain still waving , suffering still not ending, our conditions still worsening, God still not caring, we are STARVING, we are STARVING, yet we are SURVIVING.
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