A story of suffering and patience behind the laughter of an Egyptian home
In one of the neighborhoods of ancient Egypt, where good spirits mixed with the scents of tea and fresh bread, lived a young girl named Maryam. Maryam was sixteen years old, and she lived with her mother and younger sister in a modest house. The neighborhood was full of colors and laughter, but behind those laughs there were stories of suffering and patience that not everyone saw.
Her mother worked as a street vendor selling vegetables in the markets, and Maryam would help her after school. Maryam was a smart girl, and her dreams were bigger than the neighborhood’s narrow neighborhoods. She dreamed of becoming a doctor to help the people of her neighborhood heal from their diseases that extended across generations.
One day, while Maryam was returning from school, she noticed a large gathering in front of the market. She ran to the place and saw her mother lying on the ground, suddenly sick. Her mother had not cared about her health before due to her difficult situation and many problems. Her mother was taken to hospital, but doctors told Maryam that the condition was serious and that she would need expensive treatment and a long recovery time.
Maryam began looking for additional work so that she could collect the money needed to treat her mother, but what kind of work could raise money so quickly? She was working hard and trying her best to provide her mother with treatment and bear responsibility for her younger sister at the same time. But the income was small and the days passed heavy and filled with despair.
One day, while Maryam was working in a high-end house as a maid, she heard a conversation between the owner of the house and one of his friends, talking about a campaign to collect donations for the children’s hospital. Maryam had the idea to write a touching letter about her condition and her mother's condition, asking for help.
Maryam gathered all her courage, wrote the letter in her own hand, and put it in the large donation box in the market. Several days later, Maryam received a call from one of the people who read her message and were affected by it. They decided to help her and pay for her mother's treatment.
But it was too late. Her mother's condition deteriorated rapidly and doctors were unable to save her. Maryam and her sister sat next to their mother’s bed in the hospital, and all they had left were memories, faded pictures, and endless tears.
Maryam returned to the neighborhood carrying with her the burden of separation, but also an important lesson that support and love can come in the most unexpected moments. Maryam became strong and learned to keep her dream of becoming a doctor, not only to fulfill an old desire, but also to keep the memory of her mother alive in her heart, and to save the lives of others, just as she wished to save her mother’s life one day.