Tantalizing Hopes

2. The Language Of Silence

Striding in, Zahra had wished her and had found a chair to sit on, all the while observing the little girl who hadn't even seemed to have stirred from her place for a while. She didn't even respond to the greeting or even seemed to have heard it. Her face was ashen and her eyes fixed on the wall ahead. She was physically present, yes, but her mind was clearly somewhere else. Zahra did not say anything further choosing to observe for a moment in what way she could help.

Had it been other students, Zahra would have figured out what the problem was in an instant. She would have helped them cheer up and forget about all the depressing stuff within a short span of time. She would always give them a reasonable solution or tell them just what they needed to hear. Zahra knew them out and out. They had been here even before she had known of this place.

This girl however, wasn't the same as everyone else. She had just come in a day ago, hadn't even settled in yet. What could be the reason of her sadness? At first Zahra couldn't understand but soon enough chalked it up to her dislike of being left in this place - a boarding school for the orphans. That could be the only reason as far as she could see and from what Zahra had heard, the nine year old had been left here by her own mother. Zahra was unsure of how to start a conversation about it seeing that she herself was touchy on this subject. The thought of mothers leaving their kids never sat well with her. Mothers were supposed to stay with kids, not leave them fending for themselves.

Zahra observed the little girl. Once she had chalked up the reason, she could easily see the turmoil in the little girl's eyes, feel the pain and dejection in her demeanour. The little girl was floating in an endless ocean and she didn't have the strength to last for long. The tides would soon be high and before she knew she would soon be swept away. Zahra knew. She just knew because she had been there not long ago herself. She observed the girl giving her a bit more time.

Zahra was someone who never really expected much to turn out of her life. Her dreams, her longings had all left her along with the one who brought her into this world. Although she had dreamt of being a hundred different things in her childhood, after her mother left, she had packed up all her dreams along with her mother's things and had never thought of them again. She had had no idea where she was headed whatsoever. She had no clear destination in mind, knew nothing of what she'd be doing in the coming years and so, when her friends had urged her to join a centre they were starting together right after college, she had had no choice but to give in.

She remained there for a two consecutive years, teaching but never truly happy with what she was doing. Never truly content. Tutoring people who had no moral values, no civility and who were often unruly was never really part of her non existent plans. Not having the heart to break it to her friends and not wanting to break away from her friends, Zahra had stayed mum. She had bled internally during those two years not having a clear goal on her mind. Not knowing what she was doing with her life.

Later, when she had met Waseema aunty in a park with kids from the school she taught at, it proved to be a life changing incident for her. Bless the ball that a little girl from the school had thrown at her, her life was never really the same! After a few unexpected events fate had to present her with and after a lot of thought, so much of prayers, a bucket of tears, she left the center and joined the school, leaving her cocoon and spreading her wings in the process.

Oh, and how beautiful her wings had turned out to be! It wasn't any ordinary school she joined. It was a school for the kids dear to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and to the Lord Himself - it was a school for the orphans.

Including a hostel within the premises, a ground for kids to play in, it had all the things the kids would need during the duration of their stay. People from all over the state brought kids who had lost their fathers or both their parents to enroll them here. Sometimes relatives abandoned them here too but the teachers over here were chosen by the Lord Himself and they did their best to never let the kids feel forsaken or forlorn. They loved the kids with their all.