(This short story reflects a painful reality in which an old father is forced to live a life of loneliness, neglect, and helplessness within his own home.)
It was Sunday evening, May 20. Gulzar was sitting in the veranda of his house, quietly sipping a cup of herbal tea, when Sahil hurried inside. There was an unusual anxiety on his face, and his eyes looked moist.
“What happened, Sahil? Is everything alright?” Gulzar asked with concern.
Sahil sat down silently. For a few moments, he said nothing. Then, in a heavy voice, he spoke:
“Gulzar… today, I witnessed a reality of life that shook me to my core. It felt as if the sky had come crashing down over my head.”
Gulzar looked at him in surprise. “What happened?”
Sahil took a deep breath and began:
“Today, I went to visit a friend’s house to inquire about his son’s health. While I was there, I thought I should also ask about his elderly father. But when I asked about him, the family members tried to avoid answering. Someone casually said that he might have gone to his daughter’s house. Yet, when I insisted again and again, one person quietly said: ‘Perhaps he is in the inner room…’”
Sahil paused for a moment, as though the scene had returned before his eyes.
“I slowly opened the door of that room… and what I saw there is something I may never forget for the rest of my life.”
Gulzar kept staring at him silently.
“The room was filled with such a terrible stench that breathing became difficult. It seemed as if it had not been cleaned for years. The mud floor had turned damp and sticky like clay. The old mats spread across it had merged into the dirt itself. Torn and filthy clothes hung from nails on the walls. In one corner stood a broken cot with a worn-out mattress, but no one was lying on it.”
Sahil’s voice trembled.
“In a dark corner of the room, leaning against the wall with old quilts and clothes behind him for support, sat an old man… It was Bilal, known to everyone as Boo Lala.”
Gulzar asked softly, “What did you say to him?”
“I walked closer and asked, ‘Boo Lala, how are you?’ He looked at me with eyes filled with years of loneliness and helplessness. Then he replied slowly: ‘Son, how can I be fine? No one comes near me. My daughter-in-law only leaves a cup of tea near the door and walks away.’”
Sahil’s eyes filled with tears as he continued.
“I asked his daughter-in-law why he was being kept in such a miserable condition. Helplessly, she replied: ‘The room smells terribly bad. I get infections, so I do not go inside. Sometimes his daughter comes and cleans the room…’”
For a few moments, silence filled the air. Then Gulzar quietly asked, “Doesn’t Boo Lala have children of his own?”
“Of course he does,” Sahil replied immediately. “He has four sons and two daughters. One son has passed away, but the other three are earning well. Two are government employees and one runs a business. They all have families, children, comfortable homes… yet none of them has time for their own father.”
Sahil fell silent for a moment before speaking again in a low voice:
“Gulzar, you may not believe this, but Boo Lala was once known throughout the area for his strength, courage, and hard work. In his younger days, he used to bring firewood and coal from the forests and sell them. Alongside farming, he worked tirelessly as a laborer. From morning till evening, he struggled to provide for his family. After years of hardship and sacrifice, he managed to build a decent life for his children. People used to speak of his physical strength and determination with admiration. But time has reduced that same strong man into a helpless figure, abandoned within his own home.”
Gulzar lowered his head in sorrow.
Sahil continued:
“Sometimes, Gulzar, a person witnesses scenes in life that do not merely wound the eyes — they wound the soul. Changing times may have brought people closer to material comforts, but they have also weakened the warmth of relationships and human compassion. Parents who spend their entire lives sacrificing for the happiness of their children are often left alone, helpless, and neglected in old age.”
His voice choked with emotion.
“If people today cannot take care of their own parents, then what hope can we have that they will ever stand beside the poor, the helpless, or those crushed by suffering?”
Both friends fell silent. A heavy stillness spread through the atmosphere. Perhaps hidden within that silence was a question… A question that demands an answer from society itself.
Author is former District Information Officer. He can be reached at yousufmir555@gmail.
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