THE PARK

There was a strange calm in the park. The creaking sound from the swings, the chatter of the birds
and the splash of water in the fountain all set a rhythm which made her thoughts wonder. The
evening sun was retreating in to the western horizon and the huge trees in the park left mighty
shadows on the ground. She was sitting on a bench facing towards the road adjacent to the park.
The fast cars on the road made her look like a silent spectator of the grand show of life. There were
several kids grouped around the concrete slide, waiting for their turn to slide. She was staring at a
nest set up high in the Sheesam tree. A bald baby bird was having a 'bird's eye' view of the park and
on seeing the baby bird she shifted her gaze towards the slide. She had her eyes only for a dark
haired child who was now sliding down the slide. The laugh on the child's face made her smile.
Salman was now running towards the bench where his mother Naheed was sitting with a smile on
her kind face. “Did you see me slide?” he said. “Oh yes my dear”, Naheed replied. She hugged him
and made him sit beside her on the bench. Now both mother and son watched the big bird fly into
the nest and feed the bald baby bird.
In the evenings, Rumi Park was filled with families from the surrounding areas. As the time would
near four in the evening Naheed would give a bath to Salman, comb his hair and apply talcum
powder on his neck. Wearing her embroidered shawl, both mother and son walked towards the
park. Salman held his mother's finger while with his other hand he made imaginary toys in the air.
The only real toys he had was a set of five dinky cars. He would crash them on the kitchen table as his
mother fed him 'paratha' in the morning. After breakfast his mother would take him to the
Combined Military Hospital (CMH) where she worked as a nurse. For the whole day till two in the
afternoon, Naheed worked while Salman played with his dinky cars under the reception desk of the
hospital. So after a busy day in the hospital, both of them would go to the park. On reaching the park
Naheed would choose a bench from where she could keep an eye on Salman while he played with
the other kids.
Today as she watched him play, she was rolling the beads of her shawl in her fingers and she
remembered her husband who had passed away when Salman was three. From that day onwards
every single day had been a struggle to raise Salman. Last November, Salman had pneumonia and
during a chest scan doctors had discovered a small hole in Salman's heart. They recommended
surgery. The surgery was scheduled three days from now. Doctors had warned her about the risks,
because the surgery would involve complicated surgical maneuvers on Salman's little heart.
Naheed had decided to go ahead with the surgery and she had sold all her wedding jewelry except
her ring. This would be their last visit to the park before the surgery. Gazing on the birds nest set up
on a big branch of the old Sheesam tree, she saw the mother bird holding her baby in her beak and
moving on the branch. This would be the first flying lesson for the baby bird that Salman had named
“Biloo”. As she closely looked at Biloo, she discovered that his left wing was distorted but still his
mother was teaching him how to fly. Observing the mother bird, she was determined to get her “Salman” back to normal health.
Qasim had been a gatekeeper at Rumi Park for the last ten years. He was sipping his evening tea and
wondered that Naheed and Salman had not come to the park for a fortnight. Upon entering the
park, Salman used to give Qasim a huge smile and shake his hand vigorously. Today Qasim missed
that smile and handshake and wondered whether Salman was alright after the surgery? He was
settling in his chair with his cup of tea for the evening shift when he saw a small boy running with
arms spread out like wings. The jet black hair were unmistakably Salman's, and the woman beside
him was his strong and courageous mother, Naheed. Salman hugged Qasim and went on towards
the slides while Naheed chose the same bench under the Sheesam tree. She looked up to the nest
and could see a small bird circling and chirping madly around the tree trunk. There was Salman's
Biloo flying in an enthusiastic manner and on the slides was Naheed's Salman, sliding down the slide
with his arms spread out and a huge smile etched upon his lovely face. Naheed smiled and thought
about the great life she would have with her son.