A Twist From "And The Mountain Echoed"

I am not a parent yet, I don't know how it feels to be a mother, to have a little creature grows inside my womb. I don’t know how cherished or how hard it is. However a twist from Khaled Hosseini’s book entitled “And The Mountain Echoed” has emotionally taken me to witnessing a heart breaking decision of parents to let go what they love most to save the other loves.

The bite of story from the book started by the conversation of father with his kids that want to be tucked. Then the father told them a fairytale. This is how that story goes………

Mount Rinjani, Lombok, Indonesia

In the far far away land that fully surrounded by ocean dusty plain and in which there was not enough water and food to survive, stood a village named Maidan Sabz where some families were struggling to survive. One of them is Baba Ayub. Baba Ayub lived with his five beloved kids and his wife. Everyday, when the sun rose Baba went to the field plowing the soil and planted pistachio trees.The sundown became the reminder that he had to go home. And every night he would fall sleep right after his cheeck the pillow. Life was always hard in Maidan Sabs for Baba Ayub and other villagers. Maidan Sabz set in the dry land and the hot wind blew. The worst, far behind the craggy mountain by Maidan Sabz lived a cold blooded giant and ginnies. But still Baba Ayub felt grateful and lucky because he was surrounded by a woman that he loved most and by his good sons that were always willing to help him. One day, Div the giant came to the village. The ground was shaking under his feet. All villagers fled into their house. The locked the doors and shutted the windows. They were praying in terrified, hoped that the beast just passing by. But soon the truth came. It told the opposite. Div stopped his step, stood in front of a house that looked tiny next to him. He knock the house with his little finger. In terrified Baba Ayub opened the door. He already knew what that beast wanted. He went back in, left the door ajar. Baba Ayub had no choice. He took five different stones, marked each them and then put them in a sack. He asked his wife to pick one of them. Her hand’s shaking as she put her hand inside the dusty brown sack. Picking up one of the stones was no different from drinking a posion. Both relized that to save four lives they had to let go one. As the picked stone out of the sack, both of them even fell deeper into the abyss of sad. They had to let go their youngest kid Qais. The kid that they fonded of most. Baba Ayub couldn’t do anything. He watched Div hold his apple of his eyes walked away. They were getting further and further and lost in the dark. Baba Ayub still stood wailed in despair and blamed himself. Several years passed, drought never stopped, the well was even getting lowered, the river was empty and the wind blew hotter. Maidan Sabz went down deeper. The worst some babies died thirsty. Maidan Sabz was getting gloomy, everyday Baba Ayub punished himself. “A real father would fought the beast ” “I should have died defending my family” He talked to himself while sitting in front of his house and wept. He didn’t work. He no loger used for his family. The eldest son replaced him to the field. And then one day Baba Ayub woke up before the dawn. He didn’t wake his wife and his sons up. He took some loaves of bread into his bag and set off to find Qais. He walked many days. When the fainted glow in the distance and night came, he slept in the cave or by the rivers under the tree. He ate his bread and anything he found. When he met passers by, he was asked where he would go. As his answer came out from his dry mouth, they laughed at him, they thought he had gone mad and some prayed for him. Baba Ayub kept his head dawn and walked. At last he reached the top of mountain and found him self stood before the massive gates. He threw stone againts the door. “Who dares?” Div’s voice thundered the air. “I am Baba Ayub from Maidan Sabz. I have come here to kill you” The massive gate craked open. Div and Baba Ayub faced each other. Div narrowed its eyes looking at Baba Ayub looked. “You must be far away. What’s again the name of the village you come from?” “I come to——” Before completing his sentence, Div’s voice rose. “Ya ya yaaa, you come here to kill me but I would love to grant you a wish before I slain you” “Thanks” Baba Ayub said. Div grinned. He was curious to know why Baba Ayub wanted to end his life. “What brougth you here? What evil I committed againts you? “You took my dearest son” Baba Ayub replied with full of anger. “I must say your courage rose my admiration” “You know nothing about courage” “I will grant your duel if you follow me” Both of them walked, Dive led Baba Ayub to an enormous room. Div pull the curtain open. Through the window Baba Ayub could see green trees, flowers, pool and fountain. What made Baba Ayub fell on his knees was the sight of the children running and playing happily. Among them, there was his youngest son Qais. Qais looked more than well. His hair grew longer than Baba Ayub remembered. “All those children have been cursed, fathered by a weak man—a coward who would see them all die rather than burden his own conscience. You say I know nothing about courage, but I see it in you. What you did, the burden you agreed to shoulder, took courage. For that I honour you. I will allow you to take him home with you. If you chose to, he can never return him” Baba Ayub thought about how little Qais and him would play together, hug and kiss his tender skin everyday…….yet he relized what sort of life awaited for Qais in Maidan Sabz. Ya, the hard life, a peasant life. Qais could have died in the early age because of the drought. Baba Ayub welled his eyes, wiped his tears with his dusty hand. He walked away. “You are a good father” said Div as Baba Ayub passed him by. Div handed him a dark liquid to drink during his journey back home. When Baba Ayub reached his house, he had forgotten that he went to the top of mountain, he saw the garden and that he met Div. When someone mentioned Qais, Baba Ayub blinked in puzzlement. At night Baba Ayub didn’t sleep well. He told his wife about the ringging bell that he heard everynight. “That bell is the liontin of Qais’necklace” Still Baba Ayub didn’t understand. But now he cameback to be who he was. He went to the field, plowing and planting the pistachios tree with his other sons. And that spring, great rain poured on Maidan Sabz. The wells filled, the river sang in its stream. When the rain stopped, the villagers worked to build irrigation cannals. That time Baba Ayub harvested plentiful crops of pistachious in his life and indeed after that year and the year following. No drought came to Maidan Sabz again. 

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Did you enjoy the story? I know there are more important questions than that. False love of parents could drag theor kids to meet their ends. What do you think about Indonesian parents, are they ready enough to be a parent? Do they have enough to raise their kids? Can they send their kids to the dream school? Do they understand what man needs to survive? Are they mature enough to be the paragon for their children. Will they make the same choice like Baba Ayub did or follow their selfishness? I clearly see, it took more than just love to be a parent.