Scarred For Life

Chapter 31

*

"Halima, it's Maimuna."

"Where is Afrah?"

"She's right here with me, but she's not ready to talk to you yet," she said, staring at Afrah who was sleeping soundly, although her breath kept catching.

"Damn it!" Halima swore loudly. "What is wrong with this girl?"

"I've just spoken with her, and she's told me everything," she said. "To be honest, you shouldn't have done what you did."

"Fahad's mother suggested the proposal," Halima said. "What was I supposed to do? Should I refuse and tell her that her son is not good enough?"

"You should have told Afrah about it first," she replied calmly. "She has a right to know. You can't force her to do what she doesn't want to do."

"Fahad is a decent man," Halima said. "As far as I can tell, he has no faults whatsoever. He's the best option for her. I can't keep watching her like this. I feel like I've failed as a mother if I cannot get a decent man for her."

"First of all, you are not a failed mother,Halima" Maimuna said. "You have three beautiful children, and none of them have grown up to be wayward. Allah has given you a peaceful home, and you should be thankful for that. Alhamdulillah, you have married off Amina peacefully. Afrah will get married one day, but you don't have to force her. The pinnacle of a good mother is not achieved by her marrying off her children; rather it is achieved when she knows that she has raised her children to the best of her ability, and she is comfortable enough to let them make their own decisions knowing that they would always make the right choice due to her upbringing."

Afrah stirred then, and Maimuna had to leave the room so she wouldn't wake her. There was still over three hour left until Zuhr, so she would let her rest.

"Did she tell you to say that?" Halima laughed unenthusiastically.

"No, she didn't," Maimuna said. "And frankly, I'm offended that you think she did. I would assume that I should be able to give advice on these things even though I have no child of my own."

"I didn't mean it like that," Halima said quickly. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," she sighed. "But to be frank with you, what you are planning to do could ruin her life if you go through with it. Ask yourself, how did you feel when you were told that you had to marry Aminu?"

Halima fell silent, the memory surging forward from the deep recess of her mind where she had buried it.

"Exactly," Maimuna said. "Do not make her go through what you went through."

"Fahad is not like her father," she said quietly. "He'll treat her well."

"And if he doesn't?"

The question hung in the air, dangling between them like the sword of an executioner.

"Do the right thing, Halima," Maimuna said. "Give your daughter the happiness you wanted, but couldn't have."

Long after she hung up, Halima kept repeating the sentence in her head over and over again. She thought about her daughter, and imagined her going through what she had gone through. It wouldn't be fair, she realized. The fact that she was doing exactly what her own mother had done shook her to the core. History was repeating itself, in the most ironic way possible.

Halima sat in front of her mirror and stared calmly at her reflection. The woman before her tried to smile, but her facial muscles refused to comply. Instead, a grimace flashed at her, and she was reminded of how beautiful she used to be. Age was truly the bane of beauty.