The story I am sharing is a real-life accounta narrative of my childhood and the harsh reality I have witnessed and felt deeply. It is the story of a woman whose entire life was consumed by sacrifices, pain, and relentless compromise.From as far back as I can remember, she never lived for herself. She endured every hardship, bore every burden, and sacrificed her own desires, happiness, and comforts for the sake of others—constantly choosing to endure in silence.
This is the real story of a woman who was born 46 years ago in a village in Gujarat. She was the only sister among four brothers, and after a few years, four younger brothers were also born, making her the only sister of eight brothers.
Like many young girls, she had dreams she wanted to fulfill. One of her biggest dreams was to become a doctor. She was extremely passionate about studying and worked very hard in her education. Because of her dedication and excellent academic performance, she achieved the highest marks and earned admission to Gujrat Medical College.
She moved into the hostel with hopes of beginning a bright future. However, only a short time after starting college, she was called back home because there was no one else to manage the household. Her mother could not handle all the responsibilities alone, so she was asked to return home and help with the family duties.
The girl spent most of her time at her grandmother’s house. If there was one person in this world who loved her unconditionally and beyond measure, it was her grandmother.
Among all her brothers, she was especially close to her second eldest brother and was his most beloved sister. She also continued her studies while living with him.
Her brother worked in the city in the same office as their cousin, who was their maternal aunt’s son. During those days, both of them lived together in a rented house.
Later, this brother made one of the most important decisions of her life. He truly believed that this decision would be good for his sister and would secure a better future for her sister.
However, he had no idea what his sister would have to endure in the years ahead. He could never imagine the pain, sacrifices, and hardships she would face every day, nor that she would eventually be forced to bury all her dreams and desires.
The girl’s father and brother asked for her consent regarding a marriage proposal from her cousin, who was her maternal aunt’s son. Trusting and respecting the decisions of her father and brother, the girl agreed.
Nearly 28 or 29 years ago, on 11th August, at just 16 years old, she got married to her cousin and moved to her in-laws’ house.
After arriving there, she gradually realized that things were not at all as they had appeared from the outside. Her elder sister-in-law, who had been a very close friend to her before marriage, changed her behavior toward her significantly after the wedding.
Her mother-in-law and father-in-law were kind, noble, and good-hearted people. They treated her with love and kindness, almost as if she were their own daughter.
However, the behavior of her three sisters-in-law was not pleasant, especially the eldest one. In addition, her husband’s aunt was extremely miserly and constantly interfered in every little matter.
This was especially painful because the girl came from a home where there had never been any shortage of comfort or necessities. Her family was generous, open-hearted, and never hesitated to spend on the people they loved.
But fate brought her to a place where she was neither truly valued nor appreciated.
At her in-laws’ house, the girl spent her entire day doing all the household chores alone. Meanwhile, her mother-in-law spent most of her day at the family farm, taking care of cows and buffaloes, feeding them, cleaning the area, and doing other related work for her own mother-in-law, who was also the girl’s husband’s aunt.
Out of her three sisters-in-law, not even one helped with the household responsibilities. The girl was left alone to manage all the work by herself.
Later, her brother reminded his brother-in-law of the promise he had made to take his sister to the city and keep her with him. He agreed, and eventually the girl moved to the city. After moving there, she completed a PTC teaching course. Soon after, she was offered a government teaching job in a village school, and she even received her official appointment letter.
Her senior teacher offered to arrange her posting in the city where she was living, which would have made it easier for her to continue both her career and family life.However, her husband refused to allow her to work.He believed that women who work outside the home eventually stop respecting their husbands, fail to care for their children properly, and that their children become neglected or poorly raised.
Her mother-in-law and father-in-law also tried very hard to convince their son to allow his wife to take the job. But he did not agree under any circumstances. And from that day onward, the girl buried everything within herself her own choices, her dreams, her self-respect, and all of her desires.
Later, the girl received heartbreaking news—news whose pain perhaps still remains somewhere deep inside her heart even today. The news was that the same brother who had arranged her marriage was traveling to Greece by boat. During the journey, a severe storm struck the sea, and the boat sank.After that day, everything changed.
No body was ever found, and there was never any proof confirming his death. People only said that he had drowned, but in reality, no one knew for certain what had happened to him or where he had gone.
The girl’s father consulted many spiritual elders and asked them about his missing son. They told him that his son was still alive somewhere. But where he was, no one knew. Even after all these years, there has never been any trace of him. For the girl, this loss was one of the greatest heartbreaks of her life and in many ways, it still remains one.
The girl’s family gradually stopped visiting her and rarely checked on her.Part of the reason was that her mother and other brothers had never agreed to this marriage in the first place.
In many ways, they too shared responsibility—just as much as her husband and in-laws for leaving her emotionally unsupported. Parents should always stay connected to their daughters after marriage. They should check on them, support them, and stand beside them so their daughters never feel forced to silently endure disrespect, mistreatment, or humiliation.
After some time, in July 1997, that girl gave birth to a son. Later, they went back to the village again for some time. That period was very difficult because the girl’s sisters-in-law would take her baby son outside with them, and meanwhile she had to do all the household work alone.
All the food and kitchen supplies were kept at her aunt-in-law’s place little far away from house so there was nothing available in the house. Whenever the girl cooked food, her sisters-in-law would take all of it to the dera, and nothing was left for her. She often stayed hungry. There was one very kind neighbor who secretly cooked food in her own house and gave it to the girl. In this way, the girl spent one month facing great hardship and difficulties. After that, they returned to the city.
The girl’s husband used to leave early in the morning and come back home late at night. He worked two jobs: one as a government civilian officer in the army, where he checked government machines and decided whether they passed or failed inspection, and the second job was at a clinic.
Whenever the girl went to the village, her sisters-in-law would always want the new things she was wearing. No matter how much she liked her clothes or belongings, they would make her take them off and give them away. Her husband never objected and would simply say, “Give it to them, we will buy more later."Sometimes, even during winter, her sisters-in-law would make her take off her sweaters as well, and she would have to return home in the cold.
After two years, in August 1999, the woman gave birth to a baby girl. Then, after three years, in December 2002, she had another son. She used to take her children to school herself and also bring them back, while continuing to do all the household work on her own.
After another three years, in March 2005, she gave birth to another daughter. When she went to the village, her husband grandmother did not like it and said, “Earlier there were already one girl , and now another girl has come.” The child’s father became angry and left for the city, upset. Later, his grandmother tried to stop him and then everything settled down.
As the eldest daughter grew older, whenever she went to the village, the children of the woman’s sisters-in-law would take her belongings without permission.
The woman’s husband always supported his grandmother and sisters; he always considered them right. Even when he cared for his wife, later he would become angry and say hurtful things, emotionally hurting her. He always made her feel inferior in front of his sisters and grandmother and would get into arguments with her because he trusted his sisters and grandmother more.
As time passed, the four children two sons and two daughters grew up while witnessing their father’s anger and constantly seeing him arguing with their mother.
After so many years, that woman is still tolerating her husband’s wrong behavior, unnecessary humiliation, and insults only for the sake of her children. When the children were young, their father could not give them time because of his job, and during whatever time he spent with them, anger was always involved he would get angry, then reconcile, then get angry again. This continued for many years, and now his anger has increased even more. Now he does not even like his own children. He believes that no children in the world are good and that none of them listen to him, even though his children spent their entire lives fearing him and obeying every command.
Their father provided all facilities, educated them, and that is indeed a great favor. At times, when he shows concern, it feels good, but along with that, he says things he should never say. His words directly hurt deeply. His biggest issue is that he thinks he is the only wise person in the world and that everyone else including his wife and children is foolish. He believes his family has no sense and that everything they do is wrong, while he himself is always correct and can never be wrong. And even if he is wrong, he does not accept it and instead blames his wife.
There is much more painful things in this story that I do not have the courage to write. I had heard that if a father wants his children to respect him, he should respect their mother, because her respect automatically increases in their eyes. But in this story, it is completely the opposite.
A woman whether she is a mother, sister, or daughter is always worthy of respect. A real man is one who respects women. In Islam, both men and women have rights equally. If a man humiliates his wife in front of everyone and then later only says a simple “sorry” at home, does that one word erase all the humiliation? Can those words spoken in anger be taken back? No, never.
The same is happening with the woman in this story, and many women in this world go through the same situation, even if we are not aware of it. Not all men are the same some are caring but there are also men who show care for a while and then suddenly become angry, insult, and hurt women with their words. In my view, a person who cannot respect a woman does not deserve to be called a man.
"A man who respects women shows his strength, not weakness.
Words matter the most." You may say something in anger and move on, but you do not know that your harsh words stay in someone’s heart like arrows. Before speaking, one should always think so that no one gets hurt.
Children who grow up seeing constant fights between parents become mentally affected. They live their lives, but they are never truly able to enjoy life. That is why parents should avoid fighting. Even if one parent is arguing, it still negatively affects the children’s minds.
Parents should give time to their children instead of calling them lazy, useless, foolish, or disobedient. Sometimes parents compare their children with others by saying that other children are good in studies, achieve good grades, are obedient, while saying to their own child, “You are useless,” “You get low marks,” or “You are nothing.” Parents need to understand that they should never compare their children with others. Every child has their own abilities. It is possible that one child is excellent in one field, while your own child may be more talented in another area or may be more respectful and well-mannered in different ways. But often, parents fail to realize this. Constant comparison with others destroys a child physically, emotionally, and mentally. It can damage their confidence, self-esteem, and inner strength. Such comparisons slowly destroy all their abilities, talent, and courage. Eventually, the child starts believing, “I can’t do anything,” and “I will never succeed.” Comparison destroys people from within. Parents should sit with them, listen to them, try to understand them. Then the child would not seem bad at all. Parents say that Gen Z is very lazy and always on mobile phones but have they ever given them time or tried to understand their problems? If they had, then today these children would not be seeking comfort and escape through their phones and AI to share their sadness.
Parents should give their children so much space and confidence that they never feel the need to hide their problems. When a child shares their worries with their parents, nothing should be more important than listening to them. For a child, nothing is more important than their parents.
"A child who is neglected and constantly criticized does not stop loving their parents; they stop loving themselves."
The most important things you can give to another person are respect, time, loyalty, kindness, and care. If a person treats others badly, they should think about how they would feel if the same was done to them. Then they would never hurt anyone.
"Some pain never leaves the heart; it only learns how to stay silent."
“Tears are not always seen, but they are always felt deeply inside.”
“Not every broken heart makes a sound—some simply stop hoping.”
“The hardest battles are the ones no one knows you are fighting.”
“Words can fade, but the pain they cause can last a lifetime.”
“A quiet heart often carries the loudest pain.”
“Not all wounds are visible; some live inside the soul forever.”
Life is very short. Be happy, and let others be happy too.
