OH LIFE “I MUST SURVIVE” (EPISODE SIX)

STORY SERIES

…“You promised not to cry.”

“That was a foolish promise, mother,” Tesa said as she cried. “How do you know you are going to die?”

“I told you it was going to rain the other time.” answered Jarin. “And it rained. Did it not?”

Tesa did not answer. She simply asked, “How do people die? You mean you’ll lie down there and never get up? Then what will happen to me?”

“Just keep quiet my child and I’ll tell you,” her mother said. “I am going to die. That is certain and soon too. Someone will take you up and look after you.”

“Who is it mother? who is going to look after me? I can’t have another mother. And no one is going to be sweet like you,” Tesa went on and on.

Jarin remained quiet. She listened to Tesa as she sobbed. She couldn’t speak much. The little she said had made her weak and tired. She drew Tesa near her. Tesa remained there close to her.

Tesa, Tesa! “Jarin cried with her last effort.

Tesa looked at her and saw her slowly falling down from her sitting position on to the mat. Tesa jumped up and ran wild. She didn’t know what to do. She ran here and there. She ran to a man leaning on a big shinning car. The man was richly dressed and was speaking to a woman. Tesa held the man’s hand.

“Help me! She cried. “My mother is dying.”

“Who is your mother?” the man asked.

Tesa pointed to her mother now lying on the mat.

“That beggar? Your mother?” the man asked. “Get away from here. Take your dirty hand from me.” He shook his dress as if Tesa had had put much dust on it.

 The woman who was standing by the man also said, “Go away, you are disturbing us.”

Tesa ran to another woman. This time she had some hope of getting help. The woman was in the nurse’s uniform. Tesa knew who a nurse was.

“Help me! Help me! My mother,” She cried.

“What’s wrong with your mother?” the nurse asked. “She is dying, Tesa answered pointing to her mother. “How do you know she is dying?” the nurse asked.

“Many of them pretend in order to get money. And what does it matter if a beggar dies? What does she live for anyway? Call a taxi and take her to the hospital.” The nurse having said that entered her car and drove away.

Tesa still ran about. She ran into the stalls nearby. The first was empty. She went to two women in the second one.

“Help me!” she cried, “my mother is dying.” They knew Tesa and they knew her mother.

“We are no doctors,” they answered. “Send for a doctor. You and your mother have always been sleeping in our stall without permission. You have stolen many things a number of times. If she dies, we’ll have less trouble. Beggars die everyday”

Tesa could not answer them. She knew they had lied. She and her mother had never stolen anything anywhere but she was too sad to answer them.

She turned to go away and saw that the woman who had the first stall had come back.

“Help me! Help me! My mother is dying,” Tesa said…to be continued on Tuesday.

Story series is published every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Don’t miss it!!

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