Thatched House

I know exactly where the sun rises. The sky turns yellow over the mountain, then the sun appears in between the guava tree and the thatch house. Wait for minute, now, it is in front of the house. It is time for breakfast. I washed my face and took my pot home. As the water in the kettle started to sing, I have finished cleaning rice. I replaced the kettle from the fire place with the rice pot and added some firewood. With a cup of strong tea, I went round my house, strolling leisurely as I thought of what I'll do today. Hmmm... I'll check if the water channel to the paddy field is functioning. Then I'll dig fish holes and weave a new net at the outlet. On my way back, I must remember to collect some dry woods and mushrooms. Whistling my favourite tunes, I packed my Tiffin and walked down towards the paddy field. It is a long two hours walk. The paddy field is on the river bank. After my day's work, I got some extra time and I did some fishing in the river and took ...

She breathed a sigh of relief. She said to herself, "Now that I have finally got rid of the problem, I will forget and leave behind whatever has happened and start a new life. And yes, I will be careful in the future. But well, no one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. It’s is not a big deal. But as she lies down to sleep that night, it all came back: Flashes of light, the nurse standing by her side, and the doctor scraping out the content of her womb. "I made the right decision, it could have been worse", she reassured herself. Her parents have made it very clear what will happen to her reputation and family’s prestige if she will not do it. They have been a tower of strength and support and even accompanied her to the clinic. The next day, and from then on, nobody in the family mentions a word about it anymore. Everybody has moved on and so has she; well, in a big way externally, though deep inside, life has never been the same; something’s not quite right....