The Blind Man's Garden by Nadeem Aslam

Author:Nadeem Aslam [Aslam, Nadeem]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: General Fiction, (¯`'•.¸//(*_*)\\¸.•'´¯)
ISBN: 0571287913
Publisher: Knopf
Published: 2013-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

‘What happened?’ Tara asks Naheed, coming into the house to help her prepare lunch.

‘Major Kyra wants us to vacate the house.’

Tara utters the verse of the Koran one is supposed to upon receiving bad news.

‘Basie asked him to leave.’

‘We have to be careful, they are dangerous people.’ Tara looks towards Rohan’s room. ‘He signed every piece of paper they put in front of him. Now he sits in there stroking his deceived beard.’

‘No one deceived him, Mother.’

‘Yes, they did. He was half mad after Sofia’s death. You could have made him do anything.’ Tara brings the basket of green gourds to Naheed. ‘But I don’t want you to worry about the house. I’ll go to the mosque and ask the cleric to give me a talisman and we’ll pray …’

‘Pray,’ Naheed mutters. ‘Who listens to our prayers?’

‘How dare you talk in this manner? One or two prayers going unheard doesn’t mean none will ever be heard.’

‘One or two?’

‘Be quiet. It was praying to Allah that got me through my time in prison.’

‘It was Allah and His laws that put you there in the first place.’

Tara takes a step towards her. ‘Be quiet! Don’t you ever utter anything like that again.’

Naheed gives her a look of fury, her eyes swimming at her entrapment and yearning, and turns away.

‘Did you hear what I said?’

‘Yes.’

As they work in the kitchen both remain locked in their anger, both silent, though Tara’s lips move in soundless recital of Koranic verses.

After a quarter of an hour, and without looking up from the gourds she is cutting into wedges, Naheed asks, ‘What did Sharif Sharif want when he came to visit Father that day?’

‘Nothing,’ Tara says, though not immediately. ‘I told you it was just a neighbourly visit. Asking about Rohan’s eyes.’

‘Mother, please.’

‘He asked for your hand in marriage.’

Naheed puts down the knife.

‘He offered to pay for his eye operation in return.’

After minutes of further silence Naheed takes the bowl full of green and white pieces of gourd to the other side of the kitchen. Turning on the tap she submerges the pieces in water, to remain fresh until cooked. ‘One more thing,’ she says quietly from there.

‘Yes?’

‘Father says you’ve found someone for me.’

‘I have a boy in mind.’ And not having received a reaction from Naheed, she adds, ‘It’s the only way.’

Naheed smiles tensely, her eyes on the point of igniting. ‘It’s not the only way, Mother. There are a thousand other ways. I am tired of being afraid all the time –’

‘The world is a dangerous place.’

‘Let me finish, Mother. It was wrong of you to frighten me into destroying my child. It was wrong of you to frighten Mikal away. I don’t care what you have been through, but you should never ever frighten those younger than you with your own fears. Caution is one thing, but you filled me with terror. Just leave me alone please. Just take this world of yours and go away with it somewhere and leave us alone. All of you.

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