I bare witness
It was midnight, a scream wakes me up and left me wondering. It was monsoon 2022 and rain continued for more than 4 days. Yeah it was tough time for villagers like me who have to live in mud houses, use to work in fields and rely on livestock farming to meet daily life and upbringing of our children.
Before going to bed I was thinking about my filed and goats that rain have ruined my rice field and sheds, how am I going to feed my children and old parents if rain did not stopped and ruined everything.
Screams
But that scream replaced all my thoughts with the scare of how am I going to save my family as the flood reaches my house. My wife was carrying our 10 months old girl and 4 years old boy with her, I made a replica of baby carrier with bedsheet to carry my old parents. With clock ticking the level of water keeps getting higher and speed getting faster. We barely managed to get out house a moment before its collapse and we were carrying cherish and swimming along with our neighbors to find a piece of dry land to save our lives.
Rising Sun
Time passes and our bodies were getting tired of swimming and walking in thousands of cusec running water. Meantime sun started showing its face the dark was getting turned into a light which made me stop for a while and look around. As I looked around, I just saw flowing water, some people who are still trying to swim or walk to find a dry piece of land. I could not control myself and my tears began to flow from the eyes. I was looking in the direction of my village where I just saw some remaining of our belongings. I had a thought that no one can feel this pain of not even being able to locate your home and your fields. All my efforts and hopes were got vanished in just a few minuet. The rising sun took all my life and rewards of my hardships.
The Cherish, the Love, the Mother,
But now all my worries and tears are worthless despite of keep moving and trying to find some rays of life. Meanwhile my mother whom I was carrying on my back in a bedsheet carrier might have seen a couple of tears in my eyes, I don’t know what have God made all the mothers of, she wiped my tears and asked me if I am tired, I could not reply her, she keeps on asking and at the end she asked me to leave her because of her being on my back she thought I have got tired and she wanted me to save my kids instead of her. That got me shocked and gave more courage to move with all my energy at the same time.
In search of Life
After a huge struggle we eventually won the war and we somehow managed to get to the dry part, people can say we survived but the actual battle of survival have just started. We were looking back where we have come from and lost everything we had. Now the problem is to manage a shelter to save ourselves from rain, to arrange something to collect rain water to drink, to look after the injured, to arrange food and medicine but, no one was there to help us. Every one of us was praying and even my little boy was crying and praying some of people were asking why us? And nobody was able to answer them.
Found my identity changed
Somehow we managed for many hours and then we saw a ray of life, some help was on the way to us that we were hoping and praying for. They came, treated injured, gave us tents, food, medicine, water and the answer to that question we were thinking and asking about, why us? Volunteers told us that you are not the only, infect you are just few of the Flood Victims. More than 70 Million people in 80 districts of Gillgit Baltistan, Kybar Pakhtoon Khwa, Punjab, Sind and Baluchistan. I was in a shock, a moments earlier I was thinking about losing everything along with my identity but now, 70 million people, lost their belongings, identities and loved ones.
Rays of Hope
Losing everything is painful but, what if all the 70 million people lost their faith in humanity? What if they lost their hope? What if they lost believe in rehabilitation? We all have to think, to work together, and to contribute to keep their hopes, faith and believes alive. It could be anyone. Rising sun can steal anyone’s shelter, food, loved ones, hope and even identity, this time it is me, but is it last disaster?
