It is a shanty house in a mint tinge, whose plaster has been shredded like a torn cloth and it has a rusted tin door with a tin roof. She is standing outside in the freezing wind with a Santa cap squeezed in her hands. Her eyes are damp with broken dreams and scared reality. Her eyes are not looking at that poor house but replaying the day, when Rashid was wrapped in a white shroud, with <italic>ittar</italic> and rose petals and four people were taking his cadaver on their shoulders. It has been a year today. It was Christmas, as mournful cries from her home were mixed with the carols coming from the church nearby.Today is again Christmas, Jesus was born today and people having his faith believes that 25th December is the most auspicious day for humankind. But not for Riza, her life was flipped that day.Streets are adorned, dazzling with Chinese lights. People are celebrating Christmas. But at her home everyone is sobbing, young children of <italic>Madarsa</italic>, sloppily wearing caps are running their fingers through the <italic>surahs</italic> of Quran. As they are not concerned with the peace of the soul, they have only come for the juicy <italic>Jalebis</italic> which will be distributed afterwards as <italic>sinni</italic>.Nobody is at peace, neither terrorist nor priests, neither politicians nor voters, and Riza too. She is not at peace since last year. Khalid was also not at peace, the man who stabbed her father. He is in jail now. That day he asked her father for his wallet, but he refused, then he threatened him to kill, but he did not obeyed, as he always taught Riza to never fear from a mortal being, he used to say “Believe in <italic>Khuda</italic>, fear from Him only”. So he stabbed him brutally, police said Khalid was high on cocaine. Police also said that Rashid, her father had a Santa cap in his hands which she had asked him to bring that day. She has not touched that cap until today. She took it and ran from her home, leaving all mourners behind and went to the house of Khalid.At last she goes inside that shanty house and give that Santa cap to Khalid’s toddler son and her eye meets with his wife, and they exchange condolences. Riza forgives Khalid and sets herself free, free from the hatred for that man lumped in her heart from the last one year. She bursts into tears and madly runs towards her home.Last Christmas taught her the lesson of Mortality, this one has taught her, Forgiveness.</sec></body></article></article></body></html>

mot

Motifs : A Peer Reviewed International Journal of English Studies

2454-17452454-1753

Sophia Girls College

mot-9-1-016

10.5958/2454-1753

10.5958/2454-1753.2023.00016.8

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Santa Cap

Naaz

Shagufta

M.A. English Final, Research Scholar, Sophia Girls’ College, Ajmer, Rajasthan, India

Email id: shaguftanaaz0202@gmail.com

Online Published on 26 February, 2024.

261-122023

91127128

2023

IndianJournals.com

It is a shanty house in a mint tinge, whose plaster has been shredded like a torn cloth and it has a rusted tin door with a tin roof. She is standing outside in the freezing wind with a Santa cap squeezed in her hands. Her eyes are damp with broken dreams and scared reality. Her eyes are not looking at that poor house but replaying the day, when Rashid was wrapped in a white shroud, with <italic>ittar</italic> and rose petals and four people were taking his cadaver on their shoulders. It has been a year today. It was Christmas, as mournful cries from her home were mixed with the carols coming from the church nearby.Today is again Christmas, Jesus was born today and people having his faith believes that 25th December is the most auspicious day for humankind. But not for Riza, her life was flipped that day.Streets are adorned, dazzling with Chinese lights. People are celebrating Christmas. But at her home everyone is sobbing, young children of <italic>Madarsa</italic>, sloppily wearing caps are running their fingers through the <italic>surahs</italic> of Quran. As they are not concerned with the peace of the soul, they have only come for the juicy <italic>Jalebis</italic> which will be distributed afterwards as <italic>sinni</italic>.Nobody is at peace, neither terrorist nor priests, neither politicians nor voters, and Riza too. She is not at peace since last year. Khalid was also not at peace, the man who stabbed her father. He is in jail now. That day he asked her father for his wallet, but he refused, then he threatened him to kill, but he did not obeyed, as he always taught Riza to never fear from a mortal being, he used to say “Believe in <italic>Khuda</italic>, fear from Him only”. So he stabbed him brutally, police said Khalid was high on cocaine. Police also said that Rashid, her father had a Santa cap in his hands which she had asked him to bring that day. She has not touched that cap until today. She took it and ran from her home, leaving all mourners behind and went to the house of Khalid.At last she goes inside that shanty house and give that Santa cap to Khalid’s toddler son and her eye meets with his wife, and they exchange condolences. Riza forgives Khalid and sets herself free, free from the hatred for that man lumped in her heart from the last one year. She bursts into tears and madly runs towards her home.Last Christmas taught her the lesson of Mortality, this one has taught her, Forgiveness.</sec></body></article></article></body></html>