when the memory becomes a treasure..

On the gloomy morning of December 27th, I lost my grandmother.

My grandmother, Rahma (= mercy), whose name couldn't describe her better, was like no other.

She raised 8 kids on her own, slept at night with all of them tucked in around her, while my grandfather went on from one business trip to another to build a future for them. He'd finally become a rich businessman, but she never changed from her same old simple, down-to-earth self. She didn't want to leave her 25-year-old house and move into a much bigger one in a newer district, but she eventually gave in.

She lost a kid because a nurse didn't do her job right and she got through it. She was a fighter. So strong, yet the kindest person you could have ever met. Two traits Mom definitely got from her.

She was extremely opinionated, but she was also always right. You would've been stupid not to take her word.

Her favorite color was red. Almost all her dresses ranged in color between crimson red and maroon.

Her garden was the most important part of the house to her, and you'd always find some fresh basil tucked in behind her ear when she came back inside.

The fact that she looked much older than my grandfather always pissed her off, to the point that some people thought he was her son. That made her furious and him happy.

She sympathized with everyone, even people she didn't know and people on TV shows. She had that genuine sad look on her face whenever she heard of something bad happened to someone she had never met. She wouldn't forget that easily.

She loved my Dad, her son-in-law, so much, you would've thought he was her own son. She would never let anyone speak bad of him. When he got sick, she would get sick too.

She was disappointed when I was born. She was hoping for the son who was yet to come (and who finally did 3 years later). But soon enough I became one of her favorite grandchildren. She thought I was perfect. And that no man deserved me. I could see how big I was in her eyes, how she always proudly introduced me as a doctor whenever I was out with her, and how I was the "good example" to everyone, even to my aunt sometimes.

Whenever she saw me study, she would pray for me and then jokingly tell me how she'd missed her college days.

Now she's gone. After years of a hard battle with liver cirrhosis, she left us all. She's in a better place now, I'm sure. She can finally rest. That's what makes us feel a little bit better..

I will always miss her. I will always wish she was still here with us. I will always want to hug her one more time. But I'm hoping to meet her again in Heaven.

اللهم ارحمها واغفر لها واجمعنا بها في جنتك

PS. I've been putting off writing this for a few days now. It was very hard. But I did it because I thought it was the tiniest least I could do for such a great woman as my grandmother. Please pray for her whenever she crosses your mind ♥