The girl who died

Parvathyamma's daughter died the other day. No one knows what the real problem was, though Parvathyamma says it was pneumonia. She and her husband had taken the kid to a nearby hospital; the doctors there refused to take her in and asked them to try St Johns. By the time they reached St Johns in the rain, it was too late.

This is a strange tale, this daughter's. I don't know her name - I don't think Parvathyamma ever called her by name when she was alive. Parvathyamma used to tell her various employers that the kid wasn't really hers, she was dark, she was someone else's, she was unwanted. I wonder how she feels now, after the child's death. The lady appears to be all right though, continuing to sweep and swab floors as before.

I don't know how I feel about this. Sad? Yes. Sad in many ways - for the child, for the parents, for her siblings and also sad for the girl-child in general. It's a tough life.