Precious Children of India: Giving Voice to Destitute Children of the World by Elizabeth Ann Carpenter

Precious Children of India: Giving Voice to Destitute Children of the World by Elizabeth Ann Carpenter

Author:Elizabeth Ann Carpenter [Carpenter, Elizabeth Ann]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781622452019
Publisher: LIFE SENTENCE Publishing
Published: 2014-10-23T17:00:00+00:00


Age Eight

Baba and Aaie are fighting again. Kishan, Rani, and Amogh are not home. Shreya and I were helping Aaie cook dinner when Baba came home drunk. The fight is bad and Aaie is not backing down. She is yelling at Baba for drinking and taking food from their children. Baba has her backed against the shack wall and is yelling that he will do what he pleases. Shreya and I are against the opposite wall not moving. I hope Baba doesn’t hit Aaie. I can’t stand it when he hits her, or us. He scares me when he is this mad and drunk.

The fight is not ending and Baba is saying he should just kill Aaie. Aaie yells at him to go ahead and do it, and end this life. Baba picks up the cooking gas, and says he’ll throw it on her, and burn her to death. Aaie is yelling back at him. Shreya and I are not moving. We both know this fight is the worst one we’ve ever seen. Baba takes the cooking gas and throws it all over Aaie. Aaie puts her arms over her face and starts yelling for help. Baba takes a match and lights it. Baba holds the match, yelling, “Is this what you want, for me to end this miserable life?” I can’t scream or move. Shreya is shaking next to me. It happened so fast but almost in slow motion at the same time. The match went from Baba’s hand and lit Aaie on fire. She ran screaming on fire out of our shack as the fire spread all over her. Aaie was screaming, “Please save me, please save me, please save me!” She lay in the street on fire as people gathered around watching. She was rolled until the fire was out. She was burned all over and I could hardly recognize Aaie. The smell was awful. Someone ran for help.

Baba told us, over and over, that we were to tell the police it was a cooking accident. He kept saying Aaie made him do this horrible thing, and we must say it was a cooking accident. Then Baba went and was talking to Aaie in the street. The police came and Aaie was taken to the hospital burn unit. Baba took Shreya and me with him to the hospital. We waited a long time to see a doctor. The doctor told Baba that Aaie had burns over 90% of her body. He asked how this happened as Aaie would not say. Baba said it was a cooking accident. Shreya and I stayed quiet. We were finally allowed to see Aaie. She had tubes all over her and was covered. She could barely talk and I don’t think she even knew we were there. I heard Baba telling her that she had better say it was an accident to save her daughters.



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