Once upon a time there was a
girl named Maham. She was a very hard working and intelligent student and she
always scored good grades. Her dream was to get inducted in the Pakistan Air
Force and become a pilot. Unfortunately, she belonged to a very conservative
family and her parents didn’t approve of her becoming a pilot and working with
other men. Maham also had an elder brother who had no such interest in studies.
He used to waste his time smoking, out in the streets and playing all the time
with his friends. He could not pass his Fsc examination and had to repeat Fsc
part II. So he became Maham’s class fellow since Maham was a year younger than
her brother, Ali. Irony is that when Ali failed the examshis father was like;
“No problem Ali dear, you can easily repeat a class and be with Maham. In this
way she will be able to help you in your studies”. Maham was, as usual, willing
to help her brother but Ali refused to take any help from her by saying, “I
don’t need help from a dumb little girl”. Maham felt very sad and when her
result was announced, she was exhilarated to find that she had scored highest
marks in her class. Her score was second highest in the Federal Board as well.
Ali didn’t congratulate her at all and when she told her parents her father
merely nodded his head while her mother laughed and said; “What good are your
grades to us? After all you have to marry and live somewhere else”. Maham cried
in protest and said that she wanted to join Pakistan Air Force, but she was
severely snubbed by her mother. A few days later she got an admission letter and
a scholarship from a university in Massachusetts. Her parents were shocked to
hear this from their daughter because they had plans of her marriage in their
minds.Maham was told that the only option for her was that she can have a degree
of B.A from an open university as a private candidate. In the mean while her
fiancé to-be will complete his education and they’ll get married. In contrast,
Maham’s parents were preparing to send their son abroad for higher education on
self-finance. Maham felt helpless and used to cry during the nights because she
could not achieve her long cherished dreams and was being forced into an
arranged marriage with a guy she didn’t even know. Time passed and the day of
Maham’s marriage came. She was happy, apparently, but somewhere deep within her
heart twitched when she thought of her unfulfilled desire to become a working
woman. It was as if her plea was answered by God because her husband turned out
to be very liberal. He allowed her to continue her education and establish
herself as a talented, well-groomed and well-educated lady. Now Maham is serving
her nation as a CSS officer and is an ideal example of a good wife, mother and a
professional.