I was walking down the street one cloudy night. I was limping and my head was dizzy from all the crying, What can be worse? The Restaurant owner threw me out when he spotted that all the eyes of his customers were glued at me with surprise.
I got divorced by my Husband a week ago, And to refresh my mind, I chose to eat out alone in a new Chinese Restaurant near my apartment. What happened was, I was happily eating my Boiled Rice with White Sauce and out of nowhere, There were flashbacks of old memories of my Ex Husband crossing through my mind. What could have happened? I broke in tears and started howling like a hyena. What happened next, Well, You can very well imagine.
Anyways, On my way back, I noticed that the street was clear and the shops had the shutters on, The pavement gave quite a creepy look, If you ask me.
Must be midnight, I thought. And with that, My swollen red eyes noticed that a Myriad of colors was bobbing up and down ahead of me, And some childlike footsteps were running beneath them. I smiled to myself thinking, A balloon seller kid.
As I came nearer, I saw that the 10 year old had stopped and was spreading a torn mantle on the pavement. I slowed my pace down to notice him, He then picked up a stone from his bruised hands and tied the balloons with it, And kept the stone on the mantle. As if unaware of my presence, He took out a piece of bread from his pocket and sat on the mantle himself, I noticed he had no shoes. I forgot that I was standing and staring at him all the time, And he looked at me. Our eyes met and I looked away, I do not know why a pang of guilt hit my chest, I had not even ever met this kid.
I looked at him again and he smiled meekly. Then he picked up his hands, Closed his eyes, and set them up in a 'Praying' Pose. I heard him say aloud 'Ya Allah, Thanks for the meal you awarded me with. May all the people of this area sleep with a full stomach like I will. Ameen'
He opened his eyes and saw me staring at him, He got up, Broke the bread up in two halves and walked to me. 'Your palm' He said and I gave him my palm. He kept the half piece of bread in my palm and said 'Eat. It's okay there is enough space on the mantle you can eat and sit with me'
My eyes filled up with tears and I was paralyzed in the spiral of feelings inside me. All I could say was 'Come'.
- And here I am, Sitting in my Bungalow, Writing this. Here I am, An old woman aged 63 years old living with a Son she adopted at the age of 33. Here I am, Having a Son who opened up Charity Centers for all the souls who dwell at empty pavements at night when the others are asleep in their beds.
Oh, Asking the old lady for a wise saying? Yeah, I can only say 'Humanity is very much like the air. It can be found Everywhere and Nowhere; In places like Empty Pavements and Chinese Restaurants'
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P.S: Thank you very much for the read. I would appreciate if you leave your feedbacks, All types of criticism will be much welcomed because that is how we learn and grow.