Odyssey... {~} 22- Fleeing to West

Torn between doing what uncle Nabi asked her and staying a loyal wife, or mother to Hamid, she decide to put the house in the market. "I think about Hamid later." Nonetheless, she had to tell her sisters and brother about her plan since they knew about the ownership of the house. Hana begged them not to tell Hamid about it. The house was sold in less than two months with a price more than ten times higher what her father had paid for originally. Of course considering the outrageous inflation, the increased value of the house was equal to the accretion in cost of living. But that was not how it looked to Hasan, Sara's husband. He, who had never liked Hana, being a male chauvinist, and could not see a woman more educated and successful than him, and felt Hana was partially responsible for his wife's dead baby and her disease, which these days was much better and she had seldom attacks; was very angry since he had found out that the house was turned to Hana. He had had a big fight with his wife, Sara, about it. At the time, Sara had defended the matter genuinely and had tried to reason with her husband that Hana had paid the mortgage and she deserved to have it; but he had never accepted his wife's reasoning. When he had learned about it, he did not speak to his wife for six months. He had been outrageously angry with Sara for turning her share to her older sister without telling him. Now it was his turn for revenge. He could avenge his sister-in-law by telling Hamid about the house and smuggling.

They were staying at grandparents since the house and everything in it was sold. When Hamid questioned her why selling everything in the house, Hana simply said that they were going to start a business in a city by the Caspian Sea, and uncle Nabi was helping her to come up with ideas. For now, she said, grandparents did not mind them staying there. A week before the appointed time to flee, as uncle Nabi had set it up with the smuggler, Hamid learned everything from Hasan's mouth. When he confronted Hana, in the state of shock, she knew instinctively that it was her vindictive brother- in- law, who had betrayed her. After all, she did not like Hasan, either. Hana did not know what to say to Hamid; however, she took control of her irrational behavior and simply said:

"I wanted to surprise you."

Whether Hamid believed her or not, she would never know. He was overwhelmingly rapturous by the fact that they were leaving the country. Hana had to secretly pay more money to the smuggler for Hamid's share; and that was how four of them left Iran. Uncle Nabi was so hurt that in the last minute Hana had decided to take Hamid with her that he never spoke to her or said goodbye to her. Hana's explanation did not move him. He said she should have talked to him about Hasan's betraying her, (he did not like Hasan either) and he had Hamid arrested for his collection of gun that he had accumulated during revolution. Uncle Nabi died six years later of pneumonia.

They all immigrated while knowing they would face hardship, waiting, and lack of funds. The danger of smuggling was humongous; nevertheless, Hana's two sons, eleven and seven, found the journey amusing. It took ten days from Tehran to Istanbul and after that it took a whole year to get to America. What Hana learned throughout that journey was the realization that the world, the earth, and the nature might look unfamiliar in different countries; however, for her and for many others that their fortunes had been robbed, they were the same.

She had nothing left in the country she was born in, a country that had taken her father, mother, brother, job, and dignity. Where one sister was not allowed to see her, and the other was involved in her own life and some political activities which she would not stop even though she knew what happened to her older sister, and the only brother she had was busy with his life and family and was trying to use uncle Nabi as a role model to make money. She was homeless, without family, was blamed for mother's death by everyone and the Sara's still born baby and her unpredictable attacks; Behroz, her favorite uncle and best friend, was getting more depressed by the day and rarely even left his room and did not want to begin the friendship part of their relationship; and uncle Nabi's attitude was that it was his way always. Hana was pushed aside like the stubborn clouds dissipating by a strong wind.

~

In "THE RAIN STOPS IN TEXAS", the author of this book writes about the experience of her own smuggling from Iran. The book has been published in 1997 by Eakin Press. It is available in Amazon. com and by ordering it from book stores.

To Be Continued