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WEEKLY
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| An endless struggle for survival |
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Monday, September 01, 2008
by Saadia Khalid
Islamabad
Lost in deep thoughts with signs of depression and pain prominent on her face, 73-year-old Mariam Bibi counted money for paying monthly rent of her room. She was waiting for customers on a footpath at the busy Aabpara Market with not more than two dozen glasses.
For Mariam Bibi, the phrase ‘peace of mind’ is an alien concept as she has not experienced it in its true sense throughout her life and found herself surrounded with an ocean of miseries and troubles since her childhood.
“It seems as if God has sent me in this world for the sake of bearing difficulties and problems,” said Mariam helplessly. Selling glasses, including those for eyesight and protection from the sun, on a footpath is difficult for a woman. According to Mariam, it was the cheapest business that she could have adopted in a minimum amount of money.
“I started this business 12 years ago after the death of my husband who died due to kidney failure, leaving me and four children at the mercy of this cruel world,” she said with tears rolling down her cheeks.
She said that she used to sell glasses in Raja Bazaar but the profit margin there was very low. So she decided to set up a stall at the Aabpara Market in the hope of having better sale and good profit.
“I sell two or three glasses every day giving me a profit of Rs100,” she said. She added that the money she earns is just peanuts as it is not enough to arrange for two-time meal for her children.
Mariam is living in a room in Muslim Town for the monthly rent of Rs3,000, which is obviously quite high for her to pay from her meagre income. “Only I and Allah know how difficult it is for me to arrange money for rent,” she said.
When asked about the education of her children, she said, it was her dream to educate her kids but it remained unfulfilled due to her circumstances. “I told my husband after the birth of my first baby that I would educate him so that he could become an officer in future but it was not the will of God,” she said with disappointment.
“I know it is my fate and I have to lead my life like this, but I am worried about my kids. Who would look after my children after me?” she said. Mariam Bibi holds a grudge against politicians. She said that she had witnessed many political governments and leaders but nobody brought any change in her life.
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ISSN 1563-9479 
