New Realities

Razia said it was strange that in the two months since her husband passed away, he'd never appeared once in her dreams. I said anxiety must be playing on her mind. She said then it was all the more reason for him to appear and ask her how she was managing all alone. I said we hardly remember most of our dreams. She said if he had appeared, she would remember.

Razia is illiterate. She was cursing her mother that she gave birth to children one after the other and didn't let her study. I said it's time she started learning the alphabets. She didn't give me any assurance. But she wants me to take her to the bank and show her what to do. She said her husband, though he loved her, never taught her any of these things; he was worried that she would run away with someone. She said it was unfair on his part to leave her halfway and go off like that.