The journey from the island to our home is not an easy one. Still every weekday I pass with a hope that on Thursday a miracle will happen though it will last for a few hours. I am enjoying these repeated miracles for the last few weeks.
On this Thursday (17 February 2022) we have crossed the river by Rubel’s boat. Like almost all other instances Rubel’s brother did not maintain the time, and we had to wait almost for an hour at the bank of the river. Losing an hour standing at the bank of the river is not an easy thing because for me every minute is precious during the miracle session. Every time he misses time, part of me wants to become angry with him, but after seeing him and his associate I cannot.
However, at last, he showed up with one more man, two full-size cows (maybe sick), and a calf. After showing up one hour late from the time he gave, they have spent more than thirty minutes struggling to get the cows, calf, and a van on the boat. Once everyone was on board I have boarded on the boat with Sohel though there was hardly any space for us to sit. I managed to sit on the opposite end of the boatman.
After almost a hectic hour we have reached the other side of the river where our car was waiting. Without wasting any time we have started our journey home and reached safely at around 7 PM. As usual, Arwaa was waiting at the door with all her excitement getting outright from her eyes. Aliyah was excited too, and she expressed her excitement by calling me ‘Abbu’ loudly. I was not feeling well as I was suffering from fever and headache. But in minutes I was relieved from all fever and headache, and soon Arwaa started impressing me with her accumulated stories and complaints of the past week.
The night passed too quickly so as the morning, and at around 12 PM our car arrived. Arwaa has started understanding. She now knows that her father needs to leave, and she must not be unhappy. Aliyah is yet to understand anything, but probably she also feels that her father needs to go. And unlike Arwaa at the age of 2/3, Aliyah does not cry. I am not sure, what she thinks or what she feels!
Well, despite all our feelings either revealed or not revealed we respect and follow rules. And therefore I had to return to my place after an eventful and joyous seventeen hours long miracle. Since our first miracle, every time I had returned to my workplace, I felt the same as the mouse. However, happy to know that our days are going to be over soon in this rugged place. Soon we all will return to our home and these miracles will not be required anymore.
