Last time when I talked to Waheeda, she was proudly telling me about her three daughters, how she was educating them and inspiring them to be someone in this world. Today I was talking to her youngest daughter Humera. She told me she cannot come to class tomorrow as her mother is in hospital. She requested if I could send her the class recordings.

Waheeda has been in hospital since last Wednesday. Her lungs are filled with water, one of the kidneys has failed and her blood count is falling to precariously low levels. The doctors are struggling to keep her stable. She is in ICU costing Rs7,000 per day. They have already spent Rs 60,000 till date. Her husband is a cab driver and his earnings are Rs 80,000 in a year. They are well beyond their capacity to sustain. They had to move her to a cheaper hospital with limited facilities, so compromises are already being made.

Humera asked me to pray for her mother. She told me she is not crying at all. Instead, she is telling her elder sisters to be strong. She is only 11.