Majo Khala was my mom's second sister. My mom is in third place among sisters. My grandparents' maternal looks were very different. My grandma was a small, dark-skinned woman, and my grandpa was a tall, fair-skinned man. Mejo Khala was a small and dark-skinned woman, and my mom was fair and tall. My mom said that when people come to choose a bride, they often select my mom instead of mejo khala. It's a South Asian tradition that boys' parents visit the girl's home to see the girl, and if they like her, then the marriage proposal begins.
My older aunt (my mother's older sister) said mejo khala had a very cute face and dark curly hair, like a flower. But South Asian grooms like fair skin. So, my grandparents faced lots of problems for her marriage. So, when a rich family wanted to marry her, our grandparents became very happy and, like other parents, made a big mistake. They were pleased that they had got a groom from a big family, so didn't care to look for more information about the groom. So, in the end, my mejo khala suffered.
In South Asia, all families wanted their bride to work at home for everyone and take care of everything. They don't help her. They believe it's her duty, and she should be happy that she could become a bride of that family. People will be happy to see a mother holding a baby and doing work. No one will go and help her by holding the baby or doing the work.
Mejo khala had 2 sons and 2 daughters. Her daughters were twins. After having a baby, she couldn't find the time to care for her baby. She had to cook for the whole family. The babies used to cry all day. In the rain, they cry and try to crawl on mud to come to their mom. This is how one of my baby daughters became very sick and finally died.
My mejo khala couldn't take this anymore. She cried to her parents. Our grandparents took her back home. I must say they made a very strong decision about their daughter. In South Asia, parents never like to take their daughters back, no matter how much a girl suffers. She had to live with their in-laws.
Majo Khala started living with her parents, and no one in society liked that. Her own siblings also hurt her many times through words. But she was a quite nice lady by nature. She silently stayed and kept helping her parents and, many times, her siblings.
When I was born, my older sister became very sick. Doctors didn't have hope that she would be alive. My parents did everything that anyone suggested. In that situation, my mother didn't have time to look after me. So, my mojo khala came to our house and took care of me and the family. My mother said she couldn't save any of the girls if her sister didn't hold everything in strong hand and take care of me.
Later, she came to visit our house many times. She always brought homemade Bangladesh cake (Pitha) and fruits from her garden. Sometimes, she tried to make jokes with me, but I never understood them and became angry. I thought she was making fun of me.
She liked very spicy food. When she cooked, we had to remind her not to add spice.
When her older son started sending her money from Saudi Arabia, where he used to work, she became delighted. She started lending money to others. Everybody asked her to save money for her future.
She has been staying with her second son in the last few days. I pray to Allah to forgive her and give her Jannat, give her a peaceful after life.
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