Along the path to Rwisumwi’s place and right in the backyard of the house, a lush, vibrant taro (thaso) garden has grown abundantly. It looks as though someone from the house intentionally cultivated a taro plantation. The leaves are remarkably large and broad. Suddenly, on a stretch of the road, people caught in an unexpected downpour pulled these leaves out, held them over their heads as umbrellas, and went on their way. In this way, they managed to save their heads from getting drenched in the rain. Clusters of taro flowers are blooming in full force. Raisumai had already plucked some a couple of days ago, cooked a dish out of them, and eaten. The villagers have also been plucking and taking them away.
Today in the morning, Urmila and Mwnabili from the village came to pluck taro flowers. At that same time, Raisumai, carrying her little daughter Denkhou, was cutting down the taro stalks to boil them for the pigs.
Rwisumwi said to Mwnabili:
“Are we really going to eat taro flower curry in this scorching heat? Is it even a good idea to eat taro flower curry when the sun is so hot?”
Hearing this, Urmila chimed in:
“When the sun is hot, it leaves a strong odor when you relieve yourself, dear. If you eat taro flower curry, wherever you pee, it smells quite bad.”
“That is why one should only eat taro flower curry when it rains.”
Monabili replied:
“Our boys are terrified of going far out in the dark to relieve themselves at night. They just pee right there in the corner porch (usung). They absolutely detest the strong smell left behind after eating taro flower curry. When morning comes, we have to pour pots of water over it to clean it up.”
Rwisumwi spoke up again:
“Exactly, that’s why we only eat taro flower curry when it rains. Even if they pee on the porch, the rainwater just washes everything completely away.”
Rqisumwi then chopped up a whole sackful of taro stalks that she had cut down, intending to boil them. She knew that feeding boiled taro to the pigs makes them grow big very quickly. She had been raising pigs this way for a long time.
After having her lunch, Rwisumwi was resting outside under the shade of a tree near her house. Swibasi and Mwnabili from the village came over to join her and rest for a little while. Taking advantage of the casual atmosphere as they shared their joys and sorrows, Saibasi asked:
“Is Roji not at home?”
Rwisumwi replied:
“She is home. She hasn’t been back from school for very long. She just finished eating her meal; I wonder if she went inside the room to rest or do something?”
Swibasi said:
“Sister, it looks like Roji has fallen in love. The boy is from Hathimara village, and he is a complete wanderer/good-for-nothing. I wonder how she could fall for a boy like that…”
Upon hearing these words, Rwisumwi instantly flared up with burning anger.
She thought to herself, “Oh no, this girl is definitely going to bring shame upon her parents (cut off our noses). The slight changes I noticed in her behavior lately must really be true. She hasn’t paid any attention to my advice and warnings at all…”
Rwisumwi felt absolutely no peace in her heart. After Swibasi and the others left, Rwisumwi pulled her daughter close to her and questioned her.
“I have heard a piece of news. Is it true or not?”
Rajia couldn’t figure out what her mother had heard. She grew deeply anxious wondering what kind of rumors were spreading. Still, feeling gripped by fear as her face turned pale, she asked back:
“What did you hear, mother?”
“It seems you have someone you love? And they say the boy is a complete good-for-nothing. Are you planning to get married too, just when you’ve barely reached class ten?”
Terrified, Roji tried to lie.
“There is no love or anything, who told you such a lie?”
“How shameful, it seems everyone already knows about it completely. Just a moment ago, Aunt Swibasi herself came and told me everything. So it’s quite a famous matter then? Why are you trying to hide it, isn’t he from Hathimara village?”
Rajia’s body started shivering. Thinking her mother might instantly slap her across the face, she proactively covered her cheeks with her hands to shield herself.
Her mother stood up firmly and demanded in a very loud, sharp voice:
“Tell me the truth quickly, daughter, is it true or not? What on earth am I hearing? How long has this love affair been going on?”
“Yes, it’s true. We have been in love for a month now.”
“It has already been a whole month? Don’t you feel any shame, daughter? What did you say your goal was after finishing your studies?”
“A college professor.”
“What on earth is a professor?”
“A college teacher.”
“Did you only learn how to romance in school, daughter? Why didn’t you put your mind into becoming a college teacher? Why did you put so much of your heart into this love affair instead? Did sending you to school to get an education just turn into sending you to romance? Can you become a college teacher like this? Is it that easy to become a college teacher? At this very age, ruining your mind with a love affair, bringing infamy and disgrace, and becoming the gossip of the village—can you easily become a college teacher like that?”
Roji thought deeply for a moment. Shivering with intense fear of her mother, she spoke in a trembling, broken voice:
“No (I can’t).”
Furious, her mother resolved to beat her daughter, searched for a stick, brought it back, and struck her hard across her thigh. Roji burst into tears upon being hit so forcefully. Her younger brother and sister stood a little distance away, watching closely.
“Aren’t you ashamed, daughter? Are you going to leave that good-for-nothing boy or not?”
Rajia said while crying bitterly:
“I will leave him.”
“When will you leave him?”
“Tomorrow!”
“What do you mean tomorrow? You must leave him this very day!”
Roji’s younger brother and sister stared blankly as their elder sister was beaten…
Seeing them staring, Rwisumwi shouted out to them as well:
“You two better stay alert and mindful as well! If you ever step into this kind of romance or do foolish things while you are supposed to be studying, you already know what’s coming. I will use the stick on you guys too!”
Roji felt deeply ashamed and kept crying inside the room. With what heart could she possibly leave that boy? She had planned to get married right after passing her Matriculation (Class 10) exams. She had thought that even if her parents didn’t give consent, she would elope with him. The boy had also told her, “Even if your mother and father don’t accept you as their daughter-in-law, the two of us will run away together somewhere far. Love fears no one and listens to no one. Since we are in love, we must definitely get married.”
Weighing the pros and cons of her situation, Roji began to reflect on focusing entirely on her education. Whatever happens later can happen, but first, it is essential to focus on her personal goals. There is so much work to be done for her own community, country, and society. If she doesn’t focus on her studies now and starts a family at such a young age, life will become incredibly difficult. It will only lead to greater struggles in educating and raising the next generation. “I will leave him,” she resolved.
As evening approached, Roji sat down but found herself completely unable to study her books. She had a lot of writing assignments to complete, but she couldn’t focus on writing them either. Finally, to break off things with the boy she loved, she sat down and wrote a letter:
Jaikhlong,
I have become terrified of my family members.
Upon finding out about our love affair, my mother beat me today. The harsh words she used to scold and threaten me have become permanently etched in my heart.
That is why I have made up my mind to leave you.
Please forgive me.
…If you think I am unfaithful, think whatever you want, it is your choice.
If it is not in our destiny, something else will happen in the future.
— Roji
After finishing the letter, Roji read it over and cried silently for a while. The next day, she brought the letter to school and sent it to him through a friend.
Upon receiving the letter, the boy flared up with burning anger. He wanted to confront Roji right there at school and land a heavy blow on her. He wanted to curse her out, calling her unfaithful. However, Roji didn’t give him any opportunity to meet her. She made sure she wasn’t left alone and stayed surrounded by her best friends today. Because her friends were always around, Jaikhlong couldn’t even get close to her.
The next day passed in exactly the same way.
And the day after that went on just the same.
Jaikhlong’s anger slowly began to cool down. Roji completely erased Jaikhlong’s face and memory from her heart, channeling all her focus into reading and writing. Out of sheer spite, just four days later, Jaikhlong started dating another girl. He intentionally made the new girl sit on the double-carrier of his bicycle, riding around to make Roji jealous. Yet, even after seeing them together, Roji didn’t let it affect her at all. Roji thought to herself, “True love is not like this. You don’t just start loving someone new the moment you get dumped by someone. That is just killing time and throwing away precious, valuable moments for nothing. It turned out for the best that I managed to leave Jaikhlong.”
Right in front of Raoji, Jaikhlong put on a big show—wearing brand new clothes, strolling around with his new love, and laughing loudly. He did everything he could to make Rajia desperately jealous. But Roji, staying true to her resolve, looked at them as if she didn’t see a thing…
…she kept ignoring him. Even if she had something to say, she didn’t care to say it, nor did she feel any desire to speak. She continued to completely devote her mind and energy toward her reading and writing.
Around that time, a leader from the All Bodo Students’ Union (ABSU) visited their school one day, and she found the guidance and advice he shared to be deeply profoundly moving. The leader spoke specifically about the issues surrounding early marriage (child marriage).
“Marrying at an early age is a punishable offense. It is a crime in the eyes of society, and it is equally a crime in the eyes of the government. When people marry at a tender age, it sets up their future generations on a path of fragility and weakness. Their capacity for critical thinking, understanding, and achieving a healthy, fully-formed physique becomes severely compromised. Even their lifespan is cut short. Therefore, one must step forward into marriage only after deeply contemplating and securing their future. Just as it is only the fully ripened fruit that yields the best seeds, similarly, it is the stable, educated, mature, and self-reliant parents standing firmly on their own two feet whose children truly thrive.”