A Big Sacrifice
“He's my hero, and without him, who knows where I'd be." It’s my grandfather, Abbu Ji He’s the kindest, most caring, and generous person I’ve ever met The most patient, giving, and loving person in the world, I bet It’s a ride through emotions, this story But in the end, you’ll be left with glee
He was born in a village, 1952 But today, it’s an underwater zoo
Years later to Army Burn Hall, a boarding school in Abbottabad he was sent While in Kuwait, his family went
My great grandfather, a man with eyes green like the sea Gave his best friend the power of attorney He trusted him with a big piece of land But he got greedy, that supposed best friend He went to the court and the land he claimed He put the land under his name
My great grandfather, with that sudden shock Took his family, leaving all his stock To Pakistan, they all flew Not knowing what to do
Then the worst thing happened Because of the impact That his brother like friend betrayed him, caused my great-grandfather a heart attack
Next to his father’s death bed, my grandpa sat beside The sadness inside, that his father had not survived The sudden surprise First came sadness then anger came by A child’s worst fear, a parent to die A parent dying at the age of 45 when their children are oh so young Alas, everyone’s time is yet to come
At the age of 16, my grandpa started working on ships From the sadness, his heart turning to stone brick
Soon he got over it and wanted a new life He wanted to have kids, marry and have a wife Then the year 1980 had come It was time to marry So he settled down, Abbu Ji And married beautiful (and bossy) woman, Bibi Tasleem They had 5 five kids, Nosika, Faiza, Bilal, Sham, and Danish
Nosika is the least flexible one, She didn’t listen to anyone She did whatever she thought was best, Even if it meant a lot of heft
Faiza is the one who could be strict or kind She used books to sharpen her mind And if you did something wrong, She’d stare at you wide her wide eyes for an hour-long
Danish is a generous, fun, and loving man But let me make this clear, I don’t get to see him much ‘Cuz he visits once every 3 years!
Bilal was the one who was a lot of fun But any chance he got, from home he’d run He is very handsome with that black hair of his A “nothing but friends” life he lives
Ehtisham is the youngest but the sweetest of all He’d take time out for me just to play ball We’re all a nice squad But his future wife and he are two peas in a pod
Back when my mom, Faiza was 7 and in grade one Abbu Ji left for America And that’s where the change had begun
He returned 8 years later when my mom was 15 My mom cried ecstatic tears, 8 years her dad she hadn’t seen
While Faiza lay sick in her bed She didn’t know the life ahead!
She recovered and the family traveled to my home, Virginia She married my dad, had four kids, Fatiha , me!) Taha, Haadiya, and Seerah.
That one huge sacrifice Abbu Ji had made All that money, time, he had paid,
Had changed the course of his family’s future, where his grandchildren will once turn one decade Where they’ll have a better education, life, and opportunities Where his sacrifice in our family will be remembered for all eternity