Sailing by the sea, I had come across a miraculous view of nature. The brackish sea had completely mesmerized me. My thoughts convinced me to bow down before the descending sun that had devoted itself to the work assigned by Almighty Allah. Having worked hard, its rays were gradually melting before the awning sky. A heavenly picture had been painted which displayed skillful tones of colours. However, those colours gradually diminished as they acquiesced to the hungry sky. In no time, the sun disappeared.
I shut my eyes to capture the scene. I was dejected for not having had the chance to share this sentimental event. I lay quiet with my thoughts pondering over the darkness that had fallen. I felt stiff and cold. I shut my eyes even harder. Fortunately, my body started to drift back and forth. “Was someone trying to give me a shock?” I asked myself. I forcefully opened my eyes. It was an appalling moment. I was moving back and forth. And then I was astonished to find myself in my bedroom. Everything seemed so abrupt. My bed was trembling. With great effort I looked at the other side of the bed. I examined my room and was horrified. I wanted to scream, but something held my tongue tight. My heart beat harder and harder.
I noticed the cracks on the walls and ceiling. There were cracks in the mirror too. The creaky doors and vibrating windows were scaring the life out of me. Trying not to pay attention, I tried to turn a deaf ear to things, but the sound of shattered glass proved quite ear-splitting. My wardrobe opened throwing up all my clothes on the floor. I raised my hand to get hold of a glass of water usually lying on the corner table, but it had already been smashed to smithereens. Cold sweat poured off my neck. I decided to get up.
My body, which was still numb, resisted to act. In spite of all that, I vigorously ran for my life. I rushed towards the door. As I turned the knob, I felt the tremor right underneath my feet! I looked down. The rug was creased by cracks on the floor. I lost my balance and fell. It was already too late. Trying to get hold of myself, I held the corner of the rug. The crack on the floor opened wide to swallow me. I had lost the battle. I screamed. My heart nearly exploded when I abruptly fell unconscious on some hard surface. I don’t know when I returned to my senses. When I did, I had entered a new world. Every inch of my body was in misery. I felt something trickle down my cheeks. It was blood. I lay silently in the dark jungle. Feeling extremely weak and thirsty, I could barely breathe. I tried to move, but my left leg and right arm couldn’t bear the pressure. My back was stiff. I tried to move my left arm. My fingers touched a rough surface. It was the rug in which I had somehow rolled myself. With great effort, I pulled my hand out. To my right, I felt a cracked wall that was barely standing. There was a piece of wood on my left. If I moved an inch I would be buried alive.
I tried to part my lips. The pain added to the torture that I was going through. It appeared that my end was nigh. Tears trickled down my eyes. I felt the loneliness of my inner self just as I had dreamt. I shut my eyes and waited for something I didn’t even know. Consequently my soul quivered with the thought of my family. I pictured my son and husband everywhere. I cried aloud in dismay. “What if something has happened to them too?” I prayed to Allah for the protection of my loved ones and forgiveness of my sins. I preferred being buried alive to putting the lives of my loved ones in danger.
I decided to end this chapter. I shut my tearful eyes, trying to get hold of the piece of wood on my left. I slowly opened my eyes to give that “one last look”. But to my utmost surprise, I saw a dim light coming from the corner. “Where is this coming from? Am I dead? Am I dreaming? Is this a miracle?” A sudden wave of thoughts surrounded me. It gave me hope.
I think I had fallen asleep with a hope inside me. When I woke up, I found myself being hit by something. I panicked and searched for that ray of hope. It was gone. I was extremely appalled.
The next moment, I heard feeble sounds coming from above. I cried out for help. No one could hear me. I shouted harder. All my strength had been lost. “What if they leave without finding me?” I decided to take the risk. With great pain, I looked for something with my hand. I found a stone. With all the energy and effort left, I banged the stone on the wood. All of a sudden I was being buried under the debris. I had blown it. All I heard was the tumbling of the rubble from above. My head was severely wounded. I felt like fainting. I was getting suffocated. I knew that I had lost it. However, to my utter surprise, I soon felt someone touch my stiff hand. The next moment I felt that the rubble was being removed from my face. I heard someone say: “We’ve found one.” With painstaking effort, I was pulled out. They quickly took me to an ambulance. All I remember was the oxygen mask over my face and to my utmost relief the sound of my loved ones calling me out. I became unconscious.
The end was so near but yet so far. I was one of the survivors of a quake, thanks to Almighty Allah. I had remained under debris for nearly 72 hours. Allah had given me a new life. This unforgettable event has completely altered me and my ways of living. I have understood life in a better way now. I have understood the transient nature of existence.
