Page 37 - A Woman Is No Man

celebrations, when she and her sisters would sit at home, knowing there was
no one coming to visit them on the most important holiday. Her classmates
would boast about the festivities they attended, the family members who

gave them gifts and money, while Deya smiled, pretending that she and her
sisters did those things, too. That they had uncles and aunts and people who
loved them. That they had a family. But they didn’t know what it meant to
have a family. All they had were grandparents who raised them out of
obligation, and each other.
“Nasser would make a fine husband,” Fareeda said. “He’ll be a doctor
someday. He’ll be able to give you everything you need. You’d be a fool to

turn him down. Proposals like this don’t come around every day.”
“But I’m only eighteen, Teta. I’m not ready to get married.”
“You act like I’m selling you off to slavery! Every mother I know is
preparing her daughter for marriage. Tell me, do you know anyone whose
mother isn’t doing exactly the same thing?”
Deya sighed. Her grandmother was right. Most of her classmates sat

with a handful of men every month, yet none of them seemed to mind. They
slicked on makeup and plucked their brows, as though eagerly waiting for a
man to scoop them away. Some were already engaged, wrapping up their
final year of high school as if by force. As if they’d found something in the
prospect of marriage so fulfilling that no amount of education could
compare. Deya would often look at them and wonder: Isn’t there more you
want to do? There must be more. But then her thoughts would shift, and

uncertainty would kick in. She’d start to think maybe they had it right after
all. Maybe marriage was the answer.
Fareeda moved closer, shaking her head. “Why are you making this so
difficult? What more do you want?”
Deya met her eyes. “I already told you! I want to go to college!”
“Ya Allah.” She drew out her words. “Not this again. How many times

do I have to tell you? You’re not going to college in this house. If your
husband allows you to get an education after marriage, that’s his decision.
But my job is to secure your future by making sure you and your sisters are
married off to good men.”
“But why can’t you secure my future by letting me go to college? Why
are you letting some strange man control my fate? What if he turns out like
Baba? What if—”