Azerbaijani Literature - Ismayil Shikhli

Aunt Maleyka (1988)
by Ismayil Shikhli (1922-1995)

A Short Story
Translated by Aynura Huseinova and edited by Betty Blair

From Azerbaijan International, Spring 2004 (AI 12.1)
This magazine which contains the English translations of 26 Azerbaijani writers may be ordered at AZER.com - AI STORE

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At first, the dogs started barking on the upper end of the village, then the purr of a car could be heard. The sound grew louder in the silence of the night, then faded to low, faint drone. Already uneasy, Aunt Maleyka, who lay in bed staring at the ceiling, became startled. She was trying to figure out where the car would turn according to the scrunching sound it made on the rough village road, which was covered with ice. It had been four years since she had been living with such uneasy, tense nights. She had been waiting all these four years-so alert to any sound or light tapping-longing for one of those rare coming cars to stop in front of her house, and for footsteps to come near her door. Even sometimes she would wake up suddenly and run out to the road barefoot and bare headed.

She became startled again. Again, she was about to toss off the blanket and run outside. But, suddenly, she stiffened and trembled like an arrow, and her whole body ached from top to bottom. She couldn't figure out whether the car had made a turn and stopped outside her yard. She couldn't hear the footsteps coming toward the door.

Her son was her guest for three days. He made his mother happy for those three days. He warmed up to his mother's breath, but only for three days. And his mother warmed up to his breath for those three days. During those days, Aunt Maleyka forgot what resting felt like. She served food to those who visited her son during the daytime. At night, she would make a bed on the couch for him and she would press herself up tightly against him, putting her arm under his head and watch him all night long.

Her child had totally changed: black dots had appeared on his face. There was a strong wheeze coming from his chest. As soon as he fell asleep, he would start raving, wrapping himself in the blanket as if he were trying to hide from somebody. At first, he would scream from the high fever, then moan.

His mother wanted to shake him gently to awaken him up so that he would calm down. But then the opposite happened. As soon as she touched him, he would become startled and he would jump up, dumbstruck, and then the wheezing would again come from his chest. Poor son could hardly breath. It was as if he had grown older: his face was wrinkled, his head terribly hot from fever.

When he had left for military service, he had only been 17. Having graduated from Teachers' Training, he had just started to teach at the village school. He had been able to buy clothes for himself and his mother on his first salary. He had just started to earn money and to feel the joy of it. His heart had just started to experience some joy as well. His mother liked one of the girls in the neighborhood (one which she was considering as a potential bride for her son). That girl always wore a white silk kerchief with a green border and every time she passed by their house to draw water, she would take a quick glance inside.

Many times, her eyes had followed the new teacher all the way to the school. Aunt Maleyka watched. She noticed that when her son would come across that girl, he would lose himself and and not be able to walk straight. She sensed that they liked each other. All they would have to do would be to get the girl's permission and send their people to visit the girl's family.

There's an expression: it's true. It goes: "What man proposes, God disposes." One day, they received a letter. Her son had been drafted into the military. Actually, his mother couldn't believe that they would take such a fellow to war who had not even started to shave his face, or who had never cut off the head of a chicken, and never hurt anyone. His mind and soul were so pure. He had never held the hand of a girl, his breath had never felt the breath of a female. Was it not unfair for someone like him to have to hold a gun against his cheek, instead of the cheek of a pure girl. His hands would stroke a gun, instead of the breast of a girl. Was it not unfair for him to have to spend the young years of his life at war? Did he not rather deserve to live these years in deep love and passion?

Aunt Maleyka could not accept the fact that they would take her only son away. But they did. Moreover, she herself had made a bag for him, and had put food and warm clothes, wool socks and gloves in it. She didn't leave him alone to go to the city. When she saw that people had gathered in front of Voenkom [Military Commissariat], it somehow consoled her. She calmed herself by saying, "The trouble which happens to all the people is a holiday."1

She joined the others who had been called up and went to the train station, stayed overnight there together with the others who had come to see their sons off. Towards dawn, she headed home. But she didn't succeed in getting back home for two days. Her home was covered with ice, the windows were covered with a thick frost. The sun in the sky, the fire-everything was covered in ice. When she entered, she became icy cold. It seemed to Aunt Maleyka that there was some big emptiness at home. This emptiness was constantly raging in her heart and mind. She could not find any warmth or any consolation in her heart in her own home.

Time passed. Letters started to come. Her son's voice was heard in this lonely house. Once this voice came from Dagistan; another time from Topazes. Sometimes the voice was heard from Krosnodar, sometimes from Taman. Once the voice came all the way from Kerch. But then, the voice suddenly got cut off after Kerch.

The woman kept waiting anxiously with her hand on her heart, always glancing towards the road, waiting for her son. She would go out to check the road, and go to the post office three times a day. Every time she would see the postman, her body would tremble, her eyes fixed on his hands, as he would take the three-cornered letters2 out of his old briefcase. She didn't dare to move.

Every time the postman would hang his head, and she understood that there was no news from her son. She waited and waited. Still there was no news. Nobody knew whether he was dead or alive. Some of the soldiers who had been drafted along with him had already returned, but she didn't dare to go see them. "May God strike me speechless if something happenswhat if May all these pessimistic thoughts turn out to be wrong. Mighty God, bless my son."

When she was alone at home, she would lock the door and burst into tears. She would stare at the ceiling all night long and not get a moment of sleep. She would pray: "You are my only hope, Mighty God, save my only son, the "apple of my eye", give him back to me. Let him be an invalid-never mind, I can accept that. Just save him and give him back to me. Bless him."

Months and years passed this way. The ones, who had survived, returned. Their families held wedding parties. But there was no news from Aunt Maleyka's only son. The number of returning soldiers diminished. Although the woman didn't say so, she had totally lost all hope.

One night again she prepared her bed. She did not light the oil lamp, she did not make a fire, She wrapped herself in a blanket and laid down on the bed. The wind was howling outside. The bare branches of the trees were bending and creating strange shadows on the window. Tiles fell off the roof, crashing to the ground and breaking into pieces.

A door was squeaking. It was as if a hungry wolf had crept right into the middle of the village, and was being hunted by everyone and had started to howl bitterly in front of this lonely house. Aunt Maleyka, who had lived alone for years, had never been afraid. But that night she was seized with fear-deep in her bones. She was trembling as if she had high fever, hallucinations appeared right in front of her eyes in the dark corners of her home, under the bed, inside the fireplace. Suddenly, a knock came at the door. She nearly screamed out of fear and almost jumped out of the window. She wondered whether she was having illusions. She said "kalmeyi shahadat"3. When the voice came again, she pulled the blanket down from over her head and listened. She could hear clearly: somebody was calling her.

No sooner had she thrown off the blanket that she appeared at the door. She didn't ask anything. She turned the lock and stood face to face with a man dressed in military uniform.
When she came to her senses, she found herself in bed. Someone had lit the lamp and started the fire. Someone was sitting beside her, massaging her hands. She gave him a blank look. The soldier realized that his mother had not yet recognized him.

"It's me, Mom. I'm back."

This deep voice took Aunt Maleyka far away. But she couldn't recall it. She didn't know who this voice belonged to or where she had heard it before. It didn't sound familiar. It was the first time she was hearing this deep voice.

"Mother, this is me. Why you are looking that way? Don't you recognize your own son?
Aunt Maleyka rose. She got out of the bed and with her hand felt his face, then she moved her hand down over his shoulders and body. She took his hands in hers and stroked his fingers, one by one, and suddenly she pressed his head against her chest and burst into tears.

Somehow they passed two days. On the third day, the son had gone to bed very early.

"Mother, I'm afraid, I've caught cold. I'm cold."

Aunt Maleyka replied, "My dear, stay in bed. Rest. Do you want me to put cupping glasses on your back?"

Her son mumbled, "Cupping glasses won't help."

He covered his head with the blanket. The woman winced, but didn't ask anything. She covered him with another blanket and brought in all the firewood that they had, and put it in the fireplace. She sat beside her son until morning. Sometimes, she served him tea; sometimes, water. She would place her cold handkerchief on his forehead, which was burning with fever. She would massage his feet. His back. Sometimes she would pull the blanket away and hug her son and stroke his thick hair.

"What happened to your curly hair, my dear?" she whispered. "Why do you have such a high fever, dear "apple of my eye". May all your troubles come to me, I beseech you, don't frighten me so. What is your illness that you are mourning so bad? May my dead body be carried to the cemetery on your shoulders4. May God sacrifice me for you, why don't you open your eyes? Tell me, just talk to me, what does your heart desire? May God strike me dead at your feet, don't make me anxious.

The more the woman mourned, the less the son talked. He tossed and turned all night long in his bed. After midnight, his fever went up even higher. It nearly burned his mother's hands. Towards morning, he broke out in a heavy sweat and somehow became more comfortable. His mother also took a deep breath and became more calm.

The next morning she found her son's cold body. There were blood stains here and there on the pillow.

"May you become subject to the worst troubles, devil," she screamed, pulling out her hair. She scratched her face with in her fingernails, hair hung from her fingers.

The door shook, the lock jiggled, the door frame almost came off its hinges. Aunt Maleyka had heard this shaking for quite a while, but couldn't figure out whether it was real or imaginary. She listened again. It was as if the wall shook along with the door this time. This time she clearly heard footsteps and people talking. She asked in an anxious, trembling voice:

"Who's there?"

"Open the door!" came the reply.

Aunt Maleyka pulled off the blanket. She slipped into her clothes. Intuitively, she found her shoes that she had put at the lower end of her bed. She tried to light the lamp with a match that she always carried-days and nights. Again, she heard the knock at the door.

"Are you ignoring us? Don't you hear us?!"

"Just a second, I beg you. Let me light the lamp."

"No need for that!"

She went close the door. No sooner had she unlocked the door that it was flung wide open. Those who rushed in turned on their flashlights. The beams of light searched in the corners, danced on the walls, crossed each other like swords and cut off each other, and slipped towards the bed, moving over the blanket.

Shocked, Aunt Maleyka froze in front of the door. She couldn't figure out who it was who had come, and she didn't dare ask. When the lights crossed one more time and dug into the corners, she could hold back no longer.

"My son, let me turn on the light."

"We told you there's no need for that."

"Let her do it."

Aunt Maleyka lifted the globe off the lamp and lit the wick. A dim light spread throughout the room.
The visitors wore long coats and high boots. Two of them stood in front of the door holding guns. The others entered the room. It was as if they had come to arrest someone. It had been the same way before, too. They had knocked on the door in the middle of night, pulled him out of bed and taken him away. He didn't even have a chance to say goodbye to his family. They didn't let him say a word to his wife. Maybe he had something to tell her, or some message to tell someone else.

He only had time to say: "Don't worry, I'll come back tomorrow. I've done nothing wrong. It must be a mistake". But it turned to be the last time he would ever be at home. Nobody ever heard of the poor man again. Aunt Maleyka had been left alone in that lonely home, together with his son.

Suddenly, the woman's body filled with fear. She wondered: "Who have they come for this time?" She collapsed beside the bed.

One of those who had come, pulled up a chair and sat down. He took out a cigarette. He softened and lit it and lost himself in deep thought. He inhaled the smoke then released it through his nose. The smoke rose in the dim light of the house. His thoughtful eyes, with their tired looks, glanced through the house, searching for something. Then he fixed his eyes on the woman.

"Where is your son?"

It was as if a heavy mist had come over the house which was already so dark. Aunt Maleyka trembled. She was sobbing inside.

"Why don't you answer?"

"What should I say?"

"Tell us where he is."

"Military service."

"Didn't he come back?"

"He did. But he left again."

"Where?"

"Underground."

The intruders turned and looked at each other. They couldn't figure out whether she was telling them the truth or lying. One of the young officers raised his voice. "Hey woman, don't fool us. Tell us, where is you son?"

He wanted to approach Aunt Maleyka and insult her. But the old man, sitting on the chair, yelled and stopped him.

"My sister, we didn't come here on our own will. Someone ordered us to come here. We're just doing our job. We need to know where he is. If he is hiding here at home, we'll find him anyway, there's no use of hiding."

"Search and find. I have no objection."

Aunt Maleyka rose. She folded her arms on her chest and stood still. It was as if she was paralyzed. Her tears stopped. Her heart turned to ice.

The old man, sitting on the chair, continued to smoke, nonstop. Nobody broke the silence for a long time. The old man suddenly felt that the woman had became numb, like a stranger. Her eyes glassed over. If it were up to him, he wouldn't have asked anything, he would have left long ago. But they couldn't return with nothing in hand.

Again the young officer broke the silence:

"Do you know where you son came from?"

"Of course, I do. From military service."

"No. From prison."

Aunt Maleyka's patience drove this young officer mad. He hissed at the woman like a snake. The woman became startled as if a snake had poisoned her. It was if this poison had become thin and moved through her veins and its pain was penetrating her heart.

"Now I understand why the "apple of my eye" had changed so much. Why he wasn't in his right senses at all. Now I understand why he didn't say a single word to his mother after coming back, Why he had not raised his head and looked into his mother's face. My poor son, the only thing was left of his health was his breath. He came here to die. The Motherland attracted him all the way back here!" She wanted to cry. But the tears didn't come. She wanted to scream, but her voice didn't come. Her body became cold.

"I sent him to military service."

"But he was captured. He's an "Enemy of the People."5

It was as if the woman had awakened. She moved nearer to the officer.

"Watch your mouth. You're 'The Enemy of the People.'"

"Hey woman, don't bother us. Tell us, where your son is."

They almost started fighting. Again that old man came to the rescue.

"Don't get angry, sister, I told you, we have to know where he is.

"You asked and I told you. Why don't you believe me?"

The old man rose. He walked back and forth in the room for awhile. Again, he lit a cigarette, again layers of bluish smoke grew thick in the room. Again silence fell. "When did he pass away?

The calmness in the man's voice eased the woman.

"It's been a month and a half, today."

Again silence. The cigarette smoke became thicker. The old man seemed to struggling with himself inside. He wanted to say something, but didn't dare to ask. He was afraid to bring up such a painful subject and hurt the woman again.

They prepared to leave. At the doorway, the young officer stopped and turned. No sooner had he reached for his gun, than he rushed to pull off the blanket. His voice filled the room.

"Comrade Colonel, just look here!"

The soldiers reached for their guns. The Colonel calmly approached the bed. He couldn't believe his eyes. It was as if a person in soldier's uniform had gone to sleep without taking off his shoes, his coat or hat. The old man became dazed. If the young officer's voice hadn't interrupted him, he would have been afraid and reached for his gun.

"See? Everything turned out exactly as I said. The woman is lying. Her son is here. Here are his clothes."
As soon as he had finished talking, he bent and checked under the bed with the flashlight in his hand. A pair of light sparkled in the depth of the darkness. The young officer held back. A black cat jumped and flattened itself in a corner.

"What should we do now?"

"Nothing," the colonel inhaled on his cigarette till the end and then threw the butt on the ground. Let's go."

"Then, let's take his clothes with us."

The colonel's face hardened.

"Why do you need them?"

"For proof."

He didn't answer. He took a deep breath and looked at the mother, who stood motionless in the center of the room. He knew that the mother had intentionally put the clothes belonging to her son under the blanket. She didn't consider him dead. She hugged that overcoat at nights, pressed her cheek against his hat that she had laid on the bed. She touched the buttons of his clothes. She smelled his overcoat, his trousers and clothes. In this way, she consoled herself that her son had not gone anywhere, that he was at home, lying in the bed next to his mother.

Son and mother embraced each other and slept. These clothes were her only consolation. If they took them away from her, she might have a heart attack. He turned back, headed towards the door with deliberate steps. He took his colleagues out. He gave a harsh look at the young man that was still standing next to the bed and ordered him to leave the room. Only after that did he stretch out his hand to the door handle. Turning to the woman, he asked: "Where did you bury him?"

"Is there any other place? In the cemetery."

Suddenly, the woman startled. "Why do you ask?"

"Nothing, I didn't mean anything."

The young man's ears perked up and he heard. Two days later, it snowed in the village. The water in the channel was covered with ice. The roads and paths were covered with snow. The branches of the trees were heavily laden with snow. The smoke from the chimneys lay thick over the village. Sparrows and starlings began to rummage on the threshing floor and haystacks.

Aunt Maleyka appeared in the middle of the village with a large bundle under her arm. She didn't pay any attention to the children, who were rushing off to school, warming their hands by blowing their breath on them. There were young fellows watering the horses in the channel, girls going for water, carrying water jars on their shoulders and leaving their footprints in the snow.

She happily greeted those she passed. When they asked, she said, "I'm taking clothes for my son. It snowed early, probably my dear son is cold".

The people were surprised and shrugged their shoulders. They didn't understand what was wrong with her. But they couldn't stop her. She headed directly to the cemetery at the edge of the village. Everywhere was covered with snow. Old, tall gravestones were lined up straight as soldiers. The graves, which had sunk or which didn't yet have a gravestone, were covered over, sleeping under a white blanket of snow.
Aunt Maleyka stopped by a new gravestone, which was lying at the very end of the cemetery. She noticed that the stones had been moved, and some cast aside. The soil had been pushed around. There were footprints resembling those of an animal on the fresh snow. The woman bent forward in horror. She gathered the soil with her hands, put the stones back in their places, and smoothed the snow over the grave. She laid the large overcoat on the grave. She put the pair of shoes together at the foot of the grave. She hung the hat on a stick at the head of the grave. She wrapped herself in shawl, took a stick in her hand and sat down right beside it.

Someone called her. She didn't hear. That person came close and took her by her arm. She didn't respond. When the person asked, "What are you doing here?" she didn't look at her neighbor. She answered in a low voice, "I'm watching over my son. I can't leave him alone here. It seems some hyena has appeared in the cemetery. If I go, it will eat my son". The neighbor took her by her arm and stood up, urging her to return home. But she wouldn't leave.

Some days later they said that Aunt Maleyka had gone mad.

End Notes:

1 "The trouble which happens to all people is a holiday." is an Azeri expression "Ella galan bala toy-bayramdir." It means that everybody is suffering in the same way. You're not an exception.

2 During World War II, it was customary for letters to be sent from the military in triangular-shaped envelopes.

3 "Kalmeyi shahadat" refers to the Muslim expression, "There is one God and Mohammad is His prophet." Traditionally, if Muslims sense that death is near, they are supposed to repeat these words.

4 May my body be carried to the cemetery. It is a traditional practice for the sons in the family to carry the coffin to the grave. In other words, that the children outlive their parents and not the parents preceding their children in death.

5 During World War II, when Soviet soldiers were captured, they were viewed as "enemies of the people", implying that they should rather have died for their country, than allowed themselves to be captured. Upon return to the Soviet Union, many of these soldiers were either killed or exiled.