Author's Note: This work of fiction contains depictions of war violence. Reader discretion is advised.
Life as a widowed mother was harsh. Every
morning before dawn broke, Min placed her toddler in a sling tied to her back
and traversed nearby mountains looking for medicinal plants. She would then
sell the collected plants to the local apothecary for money. On a lucky day,
Min would find a rare herb that netted her some decent money. On most days,
however, she would only find (after some 14 hours of work) some generic herbs
that worth no more than a few pennies. On those days, she would deprive herself
of food, leaving her portion to her child. Min would rather die than to see her
son cry in hunger.
Watching you grow makes
me proud.
Hearing your voice
makes me smile.
Having your company
makes my day.
As harsh as their lives were, neither the mother nor the son
once lamented their fate. They lived contentedly in poverty, earning praises
from neighbors and friends.
When Min's son turned 17, their country was in turmoil.
Bandits had grown in numbers and were becoming increasingly violent. A
traveling salesman, who recently returned to town, told stories of bandits
ransacking villages and murdering innocent people.
"These thugs are well-armed and extremely bold. They
burn houses, kidnap young women and mercilessly kill anyone who dares to stand
up to them. Even the authorities are wary of them."
The news brought fear to Min's village. Some people left the
town for safer areas near the country's capital. Those stayed behind formed a
civilian force, made up of able men who took turn patrolling the village.
Though only 17, Min's son volunteered to join the patrol. Min did not want her
child to participate in such a dangerous venture, but could not overcome his
resolve. This was his decision and she respected it.
Not one time since her son joined the patrol had Min had a
good night of sleep. She would often stay up until early morning to see her son
returning home from his night patrol. Her feelings were conflicted. Although
she was proud of her son for protecting the village, she was also fearful of
what could happen to her only child -- the sole reason she was still living to
this day. Alas, her worst fear would come true.
Min remembered that fateful day well. The widowed mother
woke up early as usual to prepare breakfast for her son. Several hours passed,
her son still had not returned home.
"He is unusually late today. What could be keeping
him?"
The more she thought about it the more anxiety she felt. Her
fear augmented with each passing hour. Min went to the neighbors, asking them
if their family members had returned from the patrol. Only two had come home so
far. Her fear was shared by many mothers in the village.
Midday came but Min's son was still not home. Heaven knows
how many cups of tea the distressed mother consumed through morning. Her
anxiety had reached a breaking point. The door of her home suddenly swung open.
Her close friend and neighbor charged into the house with tears in her eyes.
"Your son.....He has been captured. They will execute
him in the town square."
When Min heard the bad news, her whole body froze for a
moment. The teapot she was holding slipped from her hand and crashed onto the
floor. The hot liquid splashed and spilled on her bare feet. But she felt no
pain, because nothing would be more painful than the loss of a mother's child.
Min nearly fainted from grief, but was able to gather herself with her friend's
aid. She hastily left her house, heading toward the town square.
When she got there, her son had already been executed. His
severed head lay in a pool of blood.
I don't condemn you
for killing my son,
because he died for
his ideals.
But why couldn't
you leave his body whole
and not leave a mother
in agony?
A stray dog was seen near her son's head. At that instant,
Min pushed through the crowd to reach her son and covered his dismembered body
with her ragged scarf. The dog barked loudly at her as though to protest that
she had stolen his prey. She turned to the dog and their eyes met. He saw in
her eyes a mother tiger, fiercely protecting her young. The dog trembled in
fear, momentarily unable to move. He would proceed to hastily retreat from the
town square.
"What do you think you're doing?" one of the bandits shouted.
A group of seven men, armed with AK-47 assault rifles,
surrounded Min. When she refused to reply to the earlier shout, the men started
kicking the son's lifeless body. Min hurled herself over her son to protect him
from the brutal hits. Even though she could not protect him when he was alive,
she wanted to protect him in death.
Min's head was struck by a rifle; blood was streaming out
like violent flood waters. One of the men in the group, who appeared to be the
leader, took out his pistol and pointed it at her head.
"Since you love your son so much, I might as well send
you to join him in the netherworld."
Just when he was about to pull the trigger, there was a loud
noise coming from the sky. A military aircraft was seen circling overhead. The
bandit leader's facial expression turned pale. He withdrew his gun and
frantically fled the scene. His comrades would follow suit, dispersing from the
square like cowardly rats looking for holes to hide.
Dark clouds suddenly amassed over the village and heavy
rains started to fall. Min looked up to the sky briefly, as though to offer
thanks. She then began to gather her son's remains. Using a friend’s farm cart,
Min was able to transport the remains back to her house.
Min spent that night sewing the dismembered parts back
together. She wanted to give her son a dignified death. Heaven knows how many tears
the grieving mother shed that day bemoaning her son's cruel fate. Meanwhile,
heavy downpours continued outside as though the Higher Being sympathized with
her plight.
Two years later...
The unrest in Min's country had reached at a boiling point.
All the anti-government factions, including most of the bandit groups, came
together and formed a movement called The Resistance. As part of their
propaganda to win the people's hearts and minds, the group imposed new codes of
conduct which prohibited its members from raiding villages and killing civilians
indiscriminately.
The new strategy appeared to work in The Resistance's favor.
They were making significant territorial gains against the government. Min's
village was one of the towns that were taken over by the rebel group.
Two years after her son's passing, Min had not gotten over
his death. She still shed tears every time she passed by his picture on the
altar. She had lived these last two years without a purpose, because the two
most important people in her life had left her. Everyone in the village was
concerned about her. They would take turn checking on her to make sure she would
not do something regrettable.
Min's life continued in a state of malaise until one fateful
night. She was sleeping in her room when she heard a sound coming from the
kitchen. Thinking it may have been caused by the neighbor’s cat, she went into
the kitchen to check things out. What she discovered was quite shocking. A
young girl was eating the leftovers in her kitchen. Her clothes were dirty and her
body was full of scratches and bruises. In her eyes, she saw a hungry and
terrified girl. Min came up beside her and gave her a warm embrace. The girl's
fear dissipated and her eyes were overcome with tears.
Min prepared a hot meal for her. The way the girl ate
reminded her of her son. How I wish you were still here, she thought. During
this whole time, the girl did not speak a word. When Min asked what happened to
her, her face turned pale displaying a frightened look. Min refrained from
pressing further, not wanting to agonize her. That night, the two shared a bed
like a mother and her daughter. Seeing the little girl soundly asleep brought
joys to Min's heart. She had not felt this way since her son's death.
The next morning, there was a thunderous knocking at the
door. Min told the girl to hide in the kitchen before proceeding to open the
door. Two armed men, wearing armbands of The Resistance, charged into the
house.
"What is your business here?" Min asked.
"One of the regime's dogs escaped from her cell last
night. Have you seen anyone suspicious?"
"I did not see anyone last night, but feel free to
search the house.”
The two men were about to conduct a search of the house, but
decided against it at the last minute.
"If you see any suspicious person, report to us at
once."
The two men turned toward the exit door to take their leave.
At that moment, they heard a sound coming from the kitchen. The two turned around and moved to the sound’s direction.
When they entered the kitchen, they saw the young girl
trying to escape through the window. One of the men aimed his gun at her and
was about to shoot when Min rushed in and attempted to grab the gun from him.
He tried to shrug her off but she refused to let go his hand. His comrade came
to his aid. He knocked her down with his rifle.
Three gunshots were fired. The bullets pierced though Min's
body; blood infiltrated her garment. Even as she was in her last breath, she
took a peek at the window and saw the girl safely through. At this, she smiled.
"I was not able to save my son then, but today I found
redemption. I can finally die in peace."
~~~~~
~~~~~
