Please click here to see the first installment of Kabrel’s adventures.
One day, Kabrel’s father went to his office as usual. At lunchtime, he left his watch in his office. When he was done eating, he went back home. Then in the evening, he realized that he had no watch on his left hand. He started asking his children if someone could know where that watch was. Responding to that question, all the kids shouted out the name of Kabrel, saying that he was the one who took it. Kabrel recalled the situation he was passing through in their home. For no reason apparent to him, Kabrel was blamed most of the time when things went wrong. Then the question was addressed to Kabrel himself, and he told his father that he was not the one who took the watch. However, his brothers and sisters kept on shouting that Kabrel was the one who took it. Since Kabrel’s adoptive father liked his watch too much, he ended up telling Kabrel, “Kabrel, if tonight you don’t bring back my watch, you will have to go to meet your parents at the graveyard”.
What could his father have meant? How could his parents be in the graveyard? That was a first hint to Kabrel that something was not right. Then Kabrel, full of tears, wondered, “How come my father can tell me such words? Is this meaning that they are not my biological parents? If that’s the case, then where are my parents?” No matter all those questions, he found no answer. Waiting for his mother to come back, he started turning around their living room crying and trying to imagine the case if those ones pretending to be his parents were not really his parents and the house he had called home since he was a baby boy wasn’t his home for real. What would he do ? Looking around again and again, he could not find any answer for he was so confused, and according to his age, the topic was beyond his thinking capacity. Later on in the evening, his mother—or he thought bitterly, the person he had thought was his mother—came back home. When Kabrel heard her voice he ran to the door and hugged her crying. His mother suddenly understood that Kabrel was having a problem. Then she asked him, “Kabrel my son, why are you crying? Please stop crying.
Then Kabrel replied, “My mother, I need to talk to you about the issue that is making me cry. Would you mind if we go out for a short conversation?” No matter how far she was tired, she couldn’t help but accept to go outside with Kabrel to listen to him.
When they were outside Kabrel took the floor and said, “My lovely mother, today you are going to tell me the truth about my parents, because today Daddy told me that I would have to meet my parents at the graveyards if I did not give back his lovely watch. The reason for all this is that he thinks that I am the one who stole his watch. Now, I need you to tell me where my mother as well as my father are.”
The wrinkles in Kabrel’s mother’s forehead deepened. Emboldened by her silence, Kabrel took a deep breath and continued: “The reason for this request is the way my father talked to me. I’m not the one who took the watch. However, thanks to this unfortunate situation I could hear that from the mouth of my father and this gave me the hint that there is a possibility for you not to be my biological parents. So please, tell me the truth because a real parent would never told me that, no matter the mistake I could have made.”
After listening to those deep words from Kabrel, his mother started crying because she couldn’t hide anything any longer. Kabrel watched her cry, both wanting her to speak and afraid of what she might say. After crying for five minutes, she was actually obliged to tell the truth to Kabrel.
She started telling Kabrel the story this way:
“Actually, we are not your biological parents. When your mother was giving birth to you, she couldn’t survive because of the disease she was suffering from. The doctor told her that when she gets pregnant, she will pass away. But your mother said that no matter what the doctor said, she needed to give birth to a boy who would be a great servant of God. This is why he decided to be pregnant with you; unfortunately, she passed away while giving birth to you. Since at that time I also had a baby, the family decided that I should be the one to take care of you. However, I am sorry because I didn’t tell you before because I thought that the right time would come. But that’s the truth about your parents.”
Both Kabrel and his adoptive mother fell into tears.
“However, I beg you to forgive your father because he wasn’t meaning what he said. We really love you and need you to stay with us because you are a great and smart boy. We love you too much and we cannot accept losing you.”
Kabrel’s mother said this to Kabrel because in her innermost she felt that Kabrel was likely to leave due to his mood that day. She had never seen him like that before. She realized that Kabrel was deeply concerned of being mistakenly judged by the ones he considered like close family member.
That night was the worst and longest night Kabrel had ever spent. Since he couldn’t sleep, he got up for a long time to think and rethink about his problem. Not only did Kabrel consider his parents’ lie as a betrayal, but he was also being judged mistakenly by his father as well as his brothers and sisters, who were all shouting at him because of something he had never done. What was the point of staying in this house? In this family? With people who lied to him and used him as their scape goat? He made up his mind to go to the graveyards to look for his real biological father. Perhaps, he thought bitterly, he would never come back.
To be continued . . .
27 September, 2023
