I heard the blaring of the horn intermingled with the bleating of the goats. Bhai had arrived.
Our mother had put up an elaborate feast that I knew we could not afford and I had been helping her for days to decorate the house and have it ready. One look at Bhai told me that he already belonged to the city and his visit would be as uncomfortable as the suit he wore.
That was when I decided that it was up to me to look after the farm and my aging parents. It would be against tradition but there was no other choice.
*Bhai is elder brother in Urdu
This story has been written for the Friday Fictioneers. For details see the link below:
http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2014/05/14/16-may-2014/
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That is a lovely take on the prompt and one that shows how complex and fragile relationships can be. Nicely done.
Thanks for taking time to read and comment.
Sometimes one must. What a brave little feller.
The “feller” is the younger sister. It’s against tradition that the daughter looks after the lands and the parents if there is a son to do that.
Thanks very much for reading!
I could feel the sacrifice. I liked this one. Well-done!
– Matthew
Thank you Matthew!
Wonderful writing.
Thank you Amy!
I really like your story! Entertaining! Nan 🙂
Thank you so much Nan.
Dear Zainab,
Well done story of culture and breaking tradition. You said much in few words.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Thank you Rochelle!
as uncomfortable as the suit he wore – what a perfect line. Your story was so well told there was no need to explain that Bhai means older brother, but thank you anyway. Cheers!
Thank you so much Alicia.
such simple storyline yet so thought provoking … kudos
Thank you! 🙂
Zainab, Good story that demonstrates how much tradition means in the East. My brother-in-law couldn”t understand why my husband, the oldest brother, couldn’t look after their mother. My husband tried to explain that we were taking care of my mother because my brother had his mother-in-law to take care of. Things are often different in the West. People understand what they want to understand in some cases. Well done. 🙂 —Susan
Thank you Susan. Even though it’s traditional that the son looks after his parents, this job often falls into the hands of the daughters. I have seen this often in my own family. I commend the husbands who support their wives to do this.