It was the time of February, in Islamabad. On that night, it was chilling cold outside. As it was the weekend so I with some of my friends made a plan to go out and enjoy some fast food. We went to a restaurant popular for burgers. We ate our meal and as we were leaving the restaurant one of my friend asked us to wait as he needed some things from the nearby grocery shop. While waiting I was enjoying the weather, the colorful lights of the market was reflecting from rain droplets on the road. People were wandering around. I was looking around for my friends when suddenly my eyes witnessed something heartbreaking. I was stunned. A moment earlier, I was enjoying my time, thankful for everything, observing people and the next moment I felt like someone has grabbed my heart in my chest and squeezed it really hard. Everything around me felt changed and heavy. It was a little girl of age around 10-12 years in her school uniform with a star on her face which was probably drawn by her teacher for good performance. She was siting on the footpath with balloons in one hand, shivering from cold but then she was also feeling sleepy as one could easily observe here twitching. She was probably tired from approaching people for selling balloon. It was her age to play with them but the life had made things opposite for her. It was not like the first time I had seen a child vendors but something was different about her. I just kept staring her for around five minutes than I gathered courage to reach her. I sat beside her and asked about her name and house and why she was doing it. Her words put me in deeper despair and sadness as I observed the inequality of the society from this close. She told me that her father was dead and her mother was heart patient and was on bed rest. She told me that she often come here after school. Because her family is poor and they cannot pay her fee. I could not even imagine sitting there whole day after my university and this 10 year old girl was telling me that it's part of her routine. Shocked from her words I handed her over some money and asked for cell number of someone of her family. Luckily she knew her mother's.
After some days I gave her a call intending to help this family through a student club I had made after joining university. A lady picked up the call, it was an aged voice. I introduced myself and offered her my help. She hesitated initially. She thought I was some media person who wanted to cast their lives on his show. But after assuring her, she told me the real inside story of their lives that was even dreadful and it forced me think what a cruel world it is. She told me that Dua was her youngest daughter (whom I met) and she was the only one in her family who thought that her father was dead. Actually he had abandoned his family 8 years ago further she added that she had two sons and three daughters. Her eldest son and daughter, tired of the poverty and providing their big family left them last year and now the family was cut to a daughter of around 16, a son of 13, another daughter of 10 with an ill and weak mother. She told me that they were very respectful among their neighbors and they can not ask for their help. No one in their neighborhood knew that the children living next to them are street vendors as it is a shameful thing in our community. They only knew that the woman runs some tissue paper business. I had not seen any one this helpless and pitiful my whole life. I promised her that I will try my best to change the course of their lives. I shared the story with many of my friends who assured me of their help to take this family out of the dark pits of sadness and poverty. After few day I tried to reach them but the only thing I could hear was the ringing bell. No one picked up the phone. Though, I tried many times but every time I got just one thing and that was disappointment. I don't know what made them not to pick my call. I don’t know what happened to the family? How they are facing the harshness and miseries, life has brought to them. I still sometimes feel sorry for not helping them on the right time.
