My PRISONER

He was not an ordinary child at all. He did not emerge from his mother’s womb crying like other newborns. Rather, he emerged silent, looking at things in amazement, as if he was surprised by the existence of a planet other than the dark, narrow planet in which he lived... While the child was still in the hands of the midwife, his eyes fell on his mother, who was lying with her back on the ground and drenched in endless sweat. His slimy little body, stained with birth blood, twitched like a small ornamental fish that they had just taken out of its aquarium..His mother crawled on her backside with great difficulty until she leaned her back against the old clay wall, covered the bare edge of her breasts full of milk with the edge of the quilt, then raised her trembling hands in the air: - Let me see him - Jumana said - Is he in good health, Maria?! - He's fine - the midwife answered as she bent down to gently place him in his mother's hands and whispered: Look at his eyes, they are very similar to yours, Mrs. Jumana. When he was in his mother's hands, his little fingers reached for a strand of her soft hair, and he seized her with a strength not found in a child of his age, and while he was holding that strand of her hair, he contemplated silently and with the reverence of a monk in her hazel-colored eyes, as if at that moment he was... Read the beginning and the end..After a short time the midwife suggested - What do you think about me taking him to another room while you can rest for a while?! Only then did the child cry loudly as if to object - It's okay, leave him - Jumana said innocently - I don't feel tired Won't Mr. Bahr come to check on you and the child?! Jumana did not allow that question to spoil her joy about the new arrival: When his father finds time he will surely come - Have you thought about the name you will give him?! In fact, Jumana had decided earlier that no one would name him other than her husband; Therefore, she will continue to call him “the child” until his father returns from his absence and chooses a name for him.. She did not disclose her decision to the midwife; In order to avoid the consequences of many endless questions; However, midwife Maria asked as if she could read what was going on in her mistress’s mind: - Are you thinking of postponing his name until his father comes back and names him himself?! In a serious tone indicating her unwillingness to answer, she said: Maybe!! - Oh my God, many months have passed since Mr. Bahr has been absent, and there is no one He knows when he might come back... - It seems that you made an effort with me all day, Maria - Jumana politely interrupted the midwife’s chatter - Now that it is late, you can go home to take a rest and I will send you your wages tomorrow...She wanted to say that she would rather stay to help, but Jumana guessed that, so she preceded her by saying: Don't worry, if I need you later, I will find someone to send for you The midwife picked up the primitive birthing tools she had brought with her, then put them in a wide cloth bag that she carried over her shoulder after closing it tightly. She turned to Jumana and asked gently: - Do you want something else from me before I go?! As she ran her hand over her baby's soft head, Jumana asked her: - I want you to extinguish the lamps. The fire must be extinguished before sleeping You know!! It did not take long for the midwife, Maria, to extinguish all the flames emanating from the corroded lamps hanging on the walls of the house, so the house became dark except for a faint light that was quietly emanating from the window of the room in which Jumana was sitting with her son..Since there was nothing else to do, she headed toward the courtyard door, preparing to leave, but as soon as she opened the door, her heart beat violently and the cloth bag she was carrying over her shoulder fell from her hand. Her eyes widened in surprise. Behind the door, she saw something she had never expected. ..She saw in front of her the oldest fairy known to the people of the village of Al-Jasassah. It was a woman they called the Red Bird. Her real name was “Taj.” Everyone in the village was afraid of her and tried as much as possible to avoid her anger. Despite her advanced age, she still retained a great deal of beauty. He tells us That she was very charming when she was youngerSana has black gypsy hair interspersed with some gray strands, and tight white skin like the skin of a race horse, and has calm features that resemble the setting sun... Taj owned a rare red bird speckled with orange feathers. That bird was from the phoenix family, called “Wreath.” She stole it from his mother’s nest when he was still inside the egg, so she was able to tame him and make him her servantThen, because that red bird did not leave Taj’s side, and was just like her shadow, it went with her wherever she went, with time the people of the village of Al-Jasassah completely forgot her real name, and they began to call her the “red bird.” The midwife, Maria, said with great fear. - What brings you here?! - Learn not to stick your nose into matters that do not concern you, Maria... If you had not mentioned Bahar's absence a little while ago, Jumana would not have expelled you. The midwife was not very surprised that the red bird knew about this matter, as it was very natural for that fairy to know about the most secret things that go on behind closed doors..Maria tried to defend her dignity: - Mrs. Jumana did not expel me. She dismissed me because she felt tired - Yes, of course - said the red bird sarcastically - she must have felt it Tired of your endless chatter!! The midwife did not try to argue the matter further: - You are right, I am talkative and my talk never ends!! She said that and then ran away, and her fear made her forget that she was carrying the cloth bag with her from the ground... “A wreath,” she said, talking to her red bird. “Stay here until I come back.” Ikleel squealed as he fluttered his long wings in the air and said: No, I will not be late. I will accomplish what I came for and then we will leave quickly She walked briskly through the inner courtyard of the house, heading towards the room from which dim light was emanating from the window, and in which Jumana sat alone with her infant son.. And every time she walked next to an extinguished lamp hanging on the wall, the red bird would ignite immediately. In this way, she had barely reached that room until the whole house became illuminated again. She opened the door of the room, looked at the child, and said: - He seems to be in good health, Jumana!! Jumana turned towards the source of the sound in astonishment: “You, in particular, are not welcome here,” she whispered in a sharp tone. The red bird asked with a coldness that did not suit the sensitivity of the situation: - Can't I check on you even on a day like this?! - I don't want you to check on me. Then she added nervously: I warned you more than once not to try to get close to me!! When will you realize, you fool, that I will not harm you?! - But you may hurt me by coming here, because things will not go well if my husband knows the truth!! - Where is your husband, huh? - I asked angrily - Many months have passed since he disappeared!! With great disappointment, Jumana looked at the ground and whispered: But he may come at any moment!! What would happen if he knew the truth? Wouldn't you say that he loves you?! - Yes, he loves me, but I don't want him to discover, after all these long years that I spent with him, that I... I mean, we..I mean that you - she no longer knew what she should say, so she took a deep breath, then completed her sentence, saying: You know exactly what I want to say!! - Why are you ashamed?! No one is ashamed of the truth of his origin. Tell him that you... Jumana interrupted her before completing her sentence: - Why don't you tell me why you came here tonight?! “For him,” she said, pointing with her long-nailed finger at the sleeping child, then she added: Can I take a look at him, or will you spare Minnie from that as well?! Because she knew that the red bird would not harm her child and that she would not leave before achieving what she came for, she extended it towards her and said with surrender, without any doubt in her heart about the reality of what was coming. - Okay - and she added firmly but quickly!! She held it in her hands, smiling, looked at it a little and whispered: - Will you tell him when he grows up that he is different from the rest and that... I shouted at her, interrupting her speech before she could continue: - That's enough!! She realized that she had made Jumana very angry, so she said to change the subject: - Can I wish him in his ear to live a happy life?! This was one of the customs of childbirth in the village of Al-Jasassah, where the mother would choose the friend closest to her heart, and ask her to wish her newborn to live a happy life. The mother was very careful in choosing that friend because they believed that the misery and happiness of the newborn were linked to the goodness of the heart of the person who would wish. for him ...