I Am Worthy.

Chapter Three

Sa'ad won a contract he had been bidding for, so he decided to host a charity feast to show gratitude to his lord.

Preparations went on for the feast. As usual, Haniya was working hard alongside the maids while Minal supervised everything.

They were expecting big guests therefore she wanted everything to be perfect; including her granddaughters. She thought of the feast as an opportunity to present the little girls to prospective suitors and get them betrothed.

She also wanted to achieve the title of the most successful woman among her friends and in the community.

She already received a lot of respect from people because her son was the most educated in the neighbourhood. He was also very wealthy.

The thought of having granddaughters married into elite families and gaining more respect and honour made her ecstatic.

That morning, Minal made sure Mahira and Sana stayed within her sight. She made sure they had nothing for breakfast. She forced them to observe a fast.

She told them that the fast would help give meaning to their lives that day; in essence, it would help them get good spouses that would make their lives worthwhile.

She made it clear that the life of a woman needed the presence of a man for it to be meaningful. She added that irrespective of a woman's educational qualifications or anything she achieves in life, her life would still be worthless without a man.

She explained to them in detail how they needed to behave.

"Do not look at the guests directly. Lower your gaze. Do not greet anyone while standing, lower your height.

Do not frown your face, make sure to smile. Do not fight with each other about anything. Do not play with other children. Just stand and do not move until I tell you to. If you disobey me, Allah will punish you with fire".

She instilled fear in the minds of the little girls to get them to do what she wanted. She pictured how perfectly she wanted everything to go that day.

I must become the most respected elderly woman in this community, she thought to herself.

Sana made sure she listened carefully to her grandmother. She had learned in Islamic school that obedience to elders was a virtuous act.

Unfortunately, she was too little to know what religious blackmail was. Mahira on the other hand was starving, so she paid no attention to her grandmother.

She only stood mute and imagined her favourite dancer giving her food after greeting her with excellent dance moves.

But her eyes were affixed towards her grandmother, therefore, it was assumed that she could hear.

Haniya went looking for her daughters as she did not see them since she woke them up.

When she discovered that they were with Minal, she said a prayer for them and left peacefully.

Already she felt ill and tired physically, emotionally and mentally, so she was not ready to bring more problems to herself.

She thought about her son but she knew he would be with his father; Sa'ad did a good job taking care of the little boy whose name is Adnan.

The feast commenced before noon. Haniya completed all the remaining tasks she had, then she went to freshen up.

She had almost finished getting dressed when she noticed that Sa'ad stood behind her in the mirror. She turned over in shock.

"Oh! I did not see you there", she said as she looked around in worry.

She was checking out for Minal. She thought she was in trouble.

"I did not see Mother here. I know you are not allowed to come into this bedroom except for Mother's instructions. Have I done something wrong"?

"No dear you have not". He smiled and stretched out his upper limbs.

"Come here". He embraced her warmly.

Immediately, Haniya started to weep. She felt a sense of safety in the arms of Sa'ad.

She had been so broken and tired and she was in dire need of warmth. Sa'ad made her feel safe and reassured her that everything would be fine.

He apologized for all the cruel treatment she had been put through by his mother and assured her that he would find a solution to it all.

He noticed a very bad smell in her hair, so he promised her that he would take her to a rejuvenation spa the following day.

He gave her a new lafaaya and jewellery for the feast. Then he bade her goodbye.

As he turned to leave the room, he heard Haniya shriek in pain. He turned and saw her holding her left arm.

"What is wrong"?

"Nothing. I am fine. I just need some rest".

"You do not look fine".

"I am. Thank you".

"Okay. I will go now. Get dressed and come downstairs soon. The guests would love to meet you".

"Okay. Where is Adnan"?

"He is dressed and playing with the other kids downstairs".

"Okay. Take care of the girls too".

"I will do so".

The feast continued to go well. Everyone was dressed their best that day. Children ran around the hall making playful noises.

Balloons and ribbons danced around the hall pillars where they hung.

Haniya served guests alongside the maid but she looked outstanding because of the new lafaaya she wore.

Minal was so engrossed in jealousy and anger. She was vexed that Haniya dressed up nicely for the feast without her permission and she planned to disgrace her publicly.

Though, she thought of a way to carefully do it so that she would not be seen as a wicked woman. She did not want to risk the reputation she was trying so hard to build.