Selected Poetry / Избранное (англ.)

Once in a while my mother would interject a remark: «No way! We don’t have any children to spare!»

To which the stranger, uncle Badretdin, responded with: «So you’re saying �No way, you didn’t have the right’ to hold someone else’s child… I’m going to take the issue before the village constable. We’ve been looking for the child all this time, but it turns out you had him all along. I’ll drag you through the courts!»

It’s not hard to frighten village people with such words and my poor parents caved in.

A little later, my usually headstrong mother said: «All right, dear, we’ll have to let go of him. Looks like we can’t have him as our child… Allah forbid that you should get into trouble!» – As she said this, she broke into tears.

Soon afterwards, like the sea that can’t calm down after a storm, my father, too, conceded at the end of the fizzling out dispute.

Giving me my old knee-length coat and worn-out felt boots to wear, they brought me immediately out of the house, and put me on the cart.

Weeping bitterly, my mother and father saw me off all the way to the field gates.

Mother cried out: «Don’t forget us! Don’t forget! If you do, you’ll become a hot ember in hell!» These were the last words I heard from her as we drove out of the village.

Since the situation regarding my departure was decided practically within a half hour or so, I couldn’t say goodbye to any of my village friends and acquaintances.

Evening fell and dusk was already descending as soon as we left the village.

Along the way, we stopped in Uchile village to visit my grandfather. They treated us to some tea at his place.

Nothing much changed in this family except for the fact that Sazhida apa got married.

After we had our tea, we drove past Verkhniye Aty, Nizhniye Aty and Sredniye Aty until at midnight we finally reached my native village – Kushlavych.

Along the road, I must have been bounced around pretty badly in the back of the cart, because in uncle Badri’s house, I instantly fell asleep like a log.

After waking up, I saw that I was in a black hut without any chimney. There was no furniture here at all, nothing but bowls, cups, spoons, a scoop, a clamp, a breast collar, and other things of that sort.

We drank some tea.