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Chapter 21: When the heart made its mind

13th August 2020

I have missed this story and all of you so, so much! Thank you for your patience and your beautiful and kind comments. I pray Allah rewards all of you abundantly! Happy reading, my lovely readers <3

"And Allah is kind to [His] servants."

[Surah Baqarah, 207]

Chapter 21:

When the heart made its mind 

"Bhaiya, it seems like this patch needs a second coat."

"No Baji, it's fine."

"Bhaiya, from this angle under this lighting, this spot looks as if somebody with freshly oiled hair reclined against the wall and left a blotch."

Laughing at his current supervisor's specifications, the painter replied, "Okay Baji, I'll apply a fresh coat of paint, don't worry."

"Good," Rufaida smiled, walking into the kitchen to inspect the job of the carpenter who was fixing the overhead cabinets.

When Asma and Rufaida bought their new home, they had spent every last penny in purchasing the house alone and had nothing left to do the interiors. An old house with a solid structure, its tiles were murky with years of use, the kitchen had no shelves or boxes, and all of their cookware and utensils were placed on a temporary wooden stand. The only furniture they owned was below basic stuff bought from the thrift store, and Rufaida had waited patiently for an opportunity to make it their dream home, to execute all those ideas and plans the mother-daughter would discuss back when they'd silently bear Mubeena's torture and taunts.

So when Rufaida finally received her provident fund and holiday pay, a cheque that was due since the time she left the hospital job, she had been ecstatic to realize the amount was more than what she had calculated.

Although Asma wanted her daughter to invest it in purchasing jewelry for a wedding she hoped could take place in the near future, Rufaida insisted on using this extra money to refurbish their new home, to complete her mother's dream. They weren't going for any form of extravagance, but even the little things gave them unexplainable joy. The last few days were spent in selecting the color of paint for the walls, the texture of the flooring, and a theme around which they wanted to play around in the house. They eventually settled for white with tones of pastel green, matching the soft furnishing of their home with it. Their days consisted of finishing their professional duties until early evening, followed by returning home, and either supervising the activities there or researching places with the best bargains and going shopping.

Rufaida and Asma had thoroughly enjoyed shopping for curtains, colorful throw pillows, and other items that would brighten the ambiance. The most cherished article of their thrift store find was a majestic rosewood deewan, which with its dusty torn cushions and tattered cover, had enabled them to bag it at a cheap price from the seller. They had got it home, hired a craftsman to do the upholstery, selected a royal floral wrap for it, and now it looked like it belonged in a mansion. If rags to riches had a face, it would be this chaise lounge.

By the end of the week when their home was set up, everything nice and neat, Asma and Rufaida couldn't stop giggling like excited little girls, of everything they had accomplished, by Allah's help.

Their house was small in terms of area, and if a stranger would walk in, he'd find it neat and basic, nothing to swoon over, a decent middle-class home, and yet for the mother-daughter, it was the reason for bowing to Allah in gratitude, thanking him for blessings that cloaked their heart in happiness.