Corpus Civilization

Bangladesh

"Keep going! We already have this row almost fully planted, Nadia!"

The taller girl shouted to the younger across murky rice water, waving her arms to cheer the other girl up. Nadia had a bad habit of getting down on herself in the middle of planting, losing motivation when the sun became too hot overhead. Lowset, wide straw hats settled against each of their low buns for that reason, to ward off the sun's hot rays.

"Yeah! I'm trying, Shashi. Just tired."

Nadia made a face across from the rice row, a sure sign of her depleting energy. Shashi sighed as the girl turned away from her, bending low to plant more seeds in the fertile mud. Together, they were trying to help their grandmother plant her backyard rice field. As cousins, Nadia and Shashi agreed to take on the task with a few other family members, eager to commit their ability to a noble cause. Every year that passed, their grandmother grew increasingly feeble, making it difficult for her to get out in the field and work.

"You need anything? Water?" Shashi called out. The younger girl wiped her face on a sleeve, glancing dubiously at the house settled nearby.

"Hmm...a snack?" Nadia lifted her brows in expectation.

"You know we can't eat until we finish. That's our motivation!"

Nadia tilted her head up to the sky in indignation. With muddy hands, she circled the air around her stomach, crinkling her face up in pain.

"How am I supposed to work without food in my stomach! If I don't have energy for rice-planting..."

Shashi rolled her eyes. Of course the younger ones were going to complain more than the older ones. Perhaps this one time she could give in and get Nadia a snack, if only to silence her whines.

"Okay, sure. I'll grab a snack for you. But only something little!"

Shashi waded through the muddy water in her rubber boots towards the green house. The old, dilapidated home was on the rough side for wear, but Shashi loved it nonetheless. It was the house where her mother had grown up, the same place where she'd once toiled under the sweltering sun years ago. Shashi's appreciation for the home grew as she thought of its vast history. Three generations had passed through this home. The building, as well as its owner, was so special to her.

"Oh...? What is that?"

Shashi paused as something caught her eye in the water close to the home. Bending down, she drew a glimmering silver hair piece out of a pile of mud, wiping it off on her damp shirt to remove most of the grime.

"Woah..."

The silver ornament looked expensive, and somehow, she recognized it. Where...where had she seen this before? Shashi spun around, staring at all the people working hard in the fields. This couldn't belong to any of the men working out there. Nadia? No...what would a twelve year old be doing in possession of such a treasure?

Shrugging, Shashi pocketed the sparkling barrette. She commenced striding through shin-high water towards the house, wiping sweat droplets off her face. At midday, it was stifling out here. She felt as if she could chug liters of water to cool herself down and still wouldn't quench her thirst.

As she began the ascent up the stairs leading to the house, she heard something. At first, she brushed it off as a loud bird squawk and continued on. However, the repetitive, swooping nature of those cries was not birdlike in the least. Startled, Shashi turned around, peering at the rice fields. The sound was emanating from that direction, from the row of rice that hadn't been fully finished...there! That shrieking was coming from Nadia!

"Nadia?"

Shashi watched as the young girl swung her arms around, moving about the rows of rice desperately. Water sloshed up as she progressed, lapping against the sides of her legs. Shashi jogged back to the fields, alarmed by her younger cousin's behavior.

"Nadia! What's wrong?"

The young girl whipped her head up at Shashi's question, her eyes wider than full saucers. "Uh, um...nothing?"

Shashi studied the young girl. It definitely wasn't nothing. Nadia's breathing had increased, and her shoulders were raised in defense. Something was wrong, but what? There was nothing out here but rice water, the hot sun, and the active imaginations of all the workers as they tried to ease their boredom.

"Did you think of something? Is your mind bothering you...another scary movie replaying in your mind?"

Nadia shook her head harshly before pausing, rethinking her choice, and nodding. Her eyes skimmed the waterline intensely.

"Oh, yes! That's it! Just a scary thought, that's what was bothering me. Go and fetch a snack now, Shashi. I'm fine, promise."

Slowly, something began to dawn on Shashi.

"Were you...looking for something?"

Nadia bit her lip, shaking her head adamantly. She forced her eyes off of the water, focusing on the top of Shashi's hat.

"No. I wasn't."

Shashi knew she hit gold, but didn't understand Nadia's behavior. If she lost the silver hair pin, wouldn't she want everyone to know it was missing so more people could help with the search? Unless...unless she wasn't supposed to have it.

That's when the image popped into her head, the visualization of her grandmother in a wedding gown from an old picture, toting a beautiful golden dress and...silver hairpiece. That's where she recognized it from!

"Nadia."

"What?" The younger girl didn't make eye contact.

"You shouldn't steal from the mouth that feeds you." Shashi sighed, pulling the hair piece out of her pocket. "Is this what you were searching for?"

Nadia gasped at the sparkling sight of the ornament. She said nothing, only gaping at the sight of it in Shashi's hand. That was all the affirmation Shashi needed.

"You know, I never expected you would try to steal from Grandmother. And why would you bring it out on the rice field? That was a poor decision. What if you lost it forever?"

Shashi's face heated up even more as she yelled at Nadia. After a deep breath, her face relaxed. She thought about what her grandmother would do in this situation. Yelling wasn't the best option in fixing bad behavior...and according to her grandmother's values, forgiveness was key.

"Nadia...I'm disappointed in you, but I'll make you a deal. I won't get you that snack you asked for. I won't even get you water. But if you can finish planting the next few rows, I'll give you the hair piece back. I expect you to put it back where you stole it from, and move on. If you can meet those demands, I won't tell a soul about what I found. Alright?"

Nadia swayed on her feet. If she accepted the deal, she was openly admitting to stealing the silver barrette...yet she had no other choice. It was Shashi's word against hers. Grandmother would believe the eldest cousin in a heartbeat.

"Okay..." Nadia sighed. "I'll get to work."

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By Izzy