Posted to Sister Zeph’s Journal
By Sister Zeph
On 21 July, 2014
After completing her matriculation she was not allowed by her brothers to go to the college, so she had to stop her studies although she obtained very good marks in her matriculation exams, she had so many dreams but she was helpless. Then one day about five years before she came to learn English to my center, I welcomed her, she was allowed by her family to join my center because it provides free education to all. While she was doing her course of English language I got success to convince her family to allow her to continue her studies, I told her mother that I will help Saima to provide books and everything. So she did her intermediate in 2012 and in 2014 she gave her exams for Bachelors degree, thanks to my friend Amby Doolan from Australia who paid her fee to give private exams by University of the Punjab. She was very sure that she will pass her exams with very good position so before the result of bachelors’ exams. She told me that she wanted to do Masters in English literature, it was good news for me so I bought her two books I could buy two only and though that when she will finished these two, I will buy rest of the syllabus for her. She was my favorite student, she took responsibly of the center and I gave her charge, so she was the leader of volunteers at Zephaniah Free Education, she was very good in math, so children were very happy with her, I always tried to give her extra time for study, she was intelligent and more important thing about her , was that she had so much self respect, she always wanted to return me whatever I did for her, so she gave time to our students as a teacher very honestly. But one day when she went to home, once again she was ordered that this much education was enough and she did not need to study more because she does not have to do a job, the girls of good families do not go out they stay at home and she will have to do the same. She sent back both books to me , It was a very sad news for me, I had given her five years of my life and I wanted her to live a successful life but I could not make it possible for her . I did every possible thing for her no matter I was tired or I was sick, or I was hungry but I never took a breaking from teaching her. Then one day I heard horrible news, her elder sister was married just one and a half years before, she had a six months old baby girl and is pregnant again. Her husband was died in a road accident and right after his funeral the wife was asked to leave the house of in-laws. Because her husband was died so she had nothing to do there now it was said by her in-laws, so she came back to her mother’s home, her brothers kept her at their home and they did not allow her to do any work because it will be against their honor if their sister will do any work among men, but they humiliated them for giving small things. Her mother is getting very sick, widow sister is also sick and hopeless for her future, by knowing her condition I came to know that why women feel hopeless and helpless without a man in society because they depend on men for everything, from home to food and cloths and for identity in the society . But yesterday Saimaa came to my home she was very weak, but strong in her determination , she told me that she wants to do a job for her sister and for her children, I asked her if her sister does know any skill ? she told me that she can do stitching, so I offered her to bring her sister as a stitching center’s teacher here and Saima can be a computer teacher, in morning time she can do a job in a private school as a teacher and in evening she can teach computer at our center I will pay her 50$ a month and she will get salary from school too, and I will ask people in our surrounding to get their cloths stitched by her widow sister, I saw a light in her eyes , she was happy because I gave her a way to keep going and to keep dreaming, although this is not enough they deserve and need much more. But there was a problem that her brothers will not allowed them for a job, but this time Saima says, I am educated and I am not going to do anything bad, I am going to do a job for my family and I will do it , I have enough guts to convince my brothers for this, I will tell them that we will not be any more burden on them . I will give them an example of my sister Zeph that a woman can do anything without crossing her limits and boundaries set by the society. And I thought I did something good, because of my center four lives are going to be safe.