In the name of love

‘Why are you smiling so broadly?’ I asked, perplexed.‘It’s your friend’s story that’s making me smile.’ He replied.‘My friend’s story? How can you possibly smile at such a tragedy?’ I demanded.‘It’s not really the contents of the story that’s making me smile, no that part is truly unfortunate. What’s making me smile is the fact […]

‘Why are you smiling so broadly?’ I asked, perplexed.
‘It’s your friend’s story that’s making me smile.’ He replied.
‘My friend’s story? How can you possibly smile at such a tragedy?’ I demanded.
‘It’s not really the contents of the story that’s making me smile, no that part is truly unfortunate. What’s making me smile is the fact that Hajiya Kulu just got her deserved recompense.’ Tahir explained, sounding mysterious.
‘Her deserved recompense’ I echoed, ‘how can you possibly believe that any woman deserves to go through what this poor woman did? Her husband was having an affair with a young devil who lived right next door to them and almost everyone on the street knew and you still claim that she got what she deserved? Where is your conscience, where is your sense of morality? Or is your solidarity with her husband so strong that you can’t even blame him for this outrage?’ I raved.
‘No, my sense of everything is intact Bint dearest, but before you allow blind loyalty to your friend to make you condemn me, let me remind you that this same woman tried to come between us when we were neighbours.’ He declared.
‘Hajiya Kulu tried to come between us?’ I asked incredulously. ‘You must be confusing her with someone else. She was an exemplary neighbour whose friendship I treasure, both then and now.’ I defended.
‘I see, so who was it that came here the very day you returned from that course you attended abroad, five years ago, and told you that well-dressed young women had been trooping in and out of your home since you travelled? Was it not this same Kulu? Though you so ably defended me by saying that both my younger sister and yours who came to stay with the children had friends who were always visiting them, it didn’t stop you from coming into this room and demanding an explanation on the issue. That was how effective she was as a rumour-monger.’ Tahir ended, heatedly.
‘Well, you have a point there but I didn’t come here to demand an explanation over what Kulu said because I believed her, I did so because I wanted to check up on you. She wasn’t really as effective a rumour-monger as you think. I deliberately cornered you here to show that I cared what you did whether I was here or not.’ I explained.
‘No Bint, that woman was very effective in getting you to lose your head. I remember you distinctly accused me of indiscretion and of being so uncaring about what our kids and sisters thought, by allowing women to visit me here. I had to try hard to convince you that none of the women your beloved neighbor saw was here because of me. Still you weren’t convinced until our sisters confirmed to you that indeed their friends had been coming to see them and that I was always returning from work just before Magrib, after those friends had left; and that even on weekends I always went out with them and our kids before you believed me.’ He argued.
‘Ok Tahir, I’m very sorry about that but it was all in the name of love. I did what I did because I couldn’t bear the thought of you using my absence to let other women into your life. I hated the idea of losing you to some daring young women who could even go out of their way to visit you at home. That was why I demanded to know who they were.’ I said.
‘For someone who didn’t believe what Kulu said, you were particularly aggressive. Tell me, why did you tell her you believe the visiting young women were our sisters’ friends only to turn back and attack me on the same issue?’ Tahir demanded.
‘But I’ve already told you, I was just checking to see if I was wrong and you were really having female visitors in my absence.’ I replied.
‘That says a lot about what you think of me Bint. I mean imagine me asking other women to visit me at home, in the day time, in a house full of my family and house helps, just because you were not around; does that sound like me? I have always been a decent human being with respect for my religious and cultural values. I could never do a thing like that. But because your neighbour was so convincing, you ended up swallowing it all. Well thank God we now know who is capable of such indiscretion, her husband. And the best part of it all was that he chose someone on their street, right next door to her, literally doing it under her very nose. That is nemesis for you.’ He concluded, triumphantly.
‘Really Tahir, I never knew you had such an evil streak in you. How can you possibly be celebrating my friend’s misfortune?’ I protested.
‘Because she had wanted to create my own misfortune when she had the chance. It was through God’s mercy that she was unable to succeed. But as is usual with all those who seek the fault of others in order to cause them troubles, she failed to notice what was happening inside her very own home. How can a husband, a day-time office worker have work to do every night? Even politicians, who are known to be nocturnal because of their desperate pursuits, don’t go out every night. They reserve time for their families some nights. But her own husband had to go out daily and she still believed his outings were work-related. And do you know why she didn’t even want to suspect that he was up to something? It’s because she didn’t want to disturb the peace in her home. She shelved her suspicions aside because she wanted to let sleeping dogs lie. That’s how much she wanted to maintain her family’s peace and harmony. But she didn’t want the same for you. No it’s obvious she didn’t wish you the same, if she did, she wouldn’t have come here the very day you returned from a four-week long trip to instigate you against me.’ Tahir accused.
‘I suppose you are right. I just didn’t see it that way.’ I answered, reflectively. ‘But all this happened five years ago, we have to let bygones be bygones and concentrate on the problem at hand. We have to help them solve this problem and save their marriage……’
‘We Bint? DId you say we? You better count me out. I have no wish to get involved in the problems of the women who attempted to create mine. To me she just got what she deserved. As for her husband, we were never really close even when we were neighbours. I’d always found him rather exotic for my taste. Now I know why he is always looking like a man about to model some fashion item, he is obsessed with his looks because he is a womanizer. Anyway, best of luck to you in helping them out but I won’t get involved.’ He ended, rising up to pick his toothbrush. ‘I am going to brush my teeth, make my night wudhu and go to bed early. Thanks to my beloved daughter, I already had my dinner while you were out there serving undeserving friends.’ He chided.
‘Have mercy Tahir, we might need such marital assistance from friends some day.’ I cautioned.
‘No, I doubt if I’ll ever go skirt-chasing in my life. But if I did, it won’t certainly be in this neighbourhood.‘ He answered, walking away.
‘You mean you will consider doing it elsewhere?’ I jumped from the edge of the bed to grab his arm.
‘No, just joking darling Bint. I will never, ever be an immoral skirt-chaser. I promise you that.’ He pledged, smiling.