A Gidana Ta Girma Book One Complete Hausa Novel
A Gidana Ta Girma Book One Complete Hausa Novel is a touching Hausa story about grief, family cruelty, sisterhood, separation, and survival. This English translation follows Zarah and Husnah as they face hardship after the death of their mother and struggle to remain strong in a home where love has disappeared.
A Gidana Ta Girma Book One Complete Hausa Novel English Translation
The man said, “May Allah have mercy on you, Hinde. You were truly a good woman. Honestly, a great loss has occurred. Hinde’s death has left a gap that will be very difficult to fill. O Allah, have mercy on her.”
He turned his gaze toward Zahra’s father and said, “I will take Zahra and keep her with my children until the time of her marriage. Amina has also said she will take Husnah.”
Suddenly, with tears flowing uncontrollably, Malka crawled forward in front of the people and began saying, “Please, for Allah’s sake, do not separate me from my children. By Allah, I love them. I will take care of them with trust and honesty.”
She kept crying as she held the old man’s leg, lying there in tears.
Everyone looked at her, while Zarah and Husnah stared in shock, their mouths open. They were watching Malka’s new style of deceit.
The old man shook his head and said, “I know you can keep them with you, Malka. It is not that you cannot, especially because of their father. But honestly, please be patient. I will not take them now. I will wait until the condolence period is over, although from what I am seeing, it is as if the condolences have already ended. Just one day after someone dies, everyone has scattered, as if people were waiting for her to die.”
No one among Malka and Husnah’s father said a word.
The relatives only shook their heads, feeling pained by the wicked character of the people in that house.
As for Malka, when she heard what the old man said, she sat up and began forcing out tears so he would pity her. But he turned his eyes away and looked at Zarah and Husnah, feeling even more pity for them.
The Decision Is Made
They prayed, then stood up.
The old man said, “Sa’idu, you have heard the decision I have made as your elder brother. Do not let me hear or see anything against it, even by mistake. May Allah have mercy on her and give you patience to bear her loss.”
He then looked at Zarah and Husnah and said, “We are leaving now, but we will return. Be patient, and continue praying for your mother. Do you hear me? Your prayers can reach her.”
They nodded.
They escorted them out and waited until they left before returning inside the house. When they came back, they found Malka raining insults on their father.
She was saying, “This is humiliation, by Allah. Just because someone is older than you, does that give him the right to make decisions over you and your family? It is as if he gave birth to you. Even if he was the one who gave birth to you, I do not think you should be unable to say anything to him. By Allah, Mallam, you have disgraced me.”
She continued, “Your children are girls. Do you even know what he has planned in his heart concerning them? I do not trust his style at all.”
Husnah’s father stood up and left the house, leaving her there. He could not argue with his elder brother. He could not even maintain eye contact with him, let alone challenge him.
Malka watched him go, held her chin, and said, “Subhanallah. So as long as it concerns that elder brother of his, Mallam cannot do anything. Someone has swallowed everyone in his family just because he has more money than them. By Allah, if I am Malka, I will make sure these girls never enjoy life.”
Husnah and Zarah only looked at her, and she also looked at them, yet she refused to stop saying what she was saying in their presence.
Life Under Malka
The girls simply picked up buckets and went out to fetch water.
When they returned, Malka was still shouting and had not stopped. Her own children sat lazily with one leg crossed over the other, enjoying themselves.
Zarah and Husnah dropped the water and gathered the dirty dishes. Zarah washed them while Husnah rinsed. After finishing, they started cooking. Then they performed ablution and headed to their room.
Malka continued insulting them and said harshly, “You useless hypocrites, who are you trying to show that you are Muslims? Even your mother was not what you think she was. She only pretended after she was brought into this house, but I know what I saw.”
Her cruel words entered their hearts deeply, especially Zarah, who was only fifteen years old. Tears kept falling from her eyes as she wiped them away until they finished praying.
Husnah’s Anger
Husnah said, “Aunty, stop crying because of this wicked woman. By Allah, when I get money, I will repay all the wickedness she has done to us and all the insults she throws at our mother. We will never forgive her.”
Zarah smiled sadly and touched her younger sister’s face.
Then she remembered that they were about to be separated. Fresh tears burst from her eyes, and she cried again.
She said, “Death exposes many things. Today, because we have lost our mother, they want to separate me from my younger sister. O Allah, give us patience. O Allah, protect us wherever we find ourselves. O Allah, do not let any oppressor succeed over us. O Allah, You know that we no longer have anyone to correct us if we make mistakes. O Allah, guide Your orphans to the right path. O Allah, do not leave us to our own helplessness.”
Husnah cried and said, “Ameen, O Allah. Aunty, you too will not die and leave me like our mother left us, right?”
They were called outside, so they went. They were sent to grind grains and buy foodstuffs. Husnah was the one pounding, while Zarah cooked.
Three Weeks After Their Mother’s Death
That was how their life continued until three weeks passed after their mother’s death.
Zarah was bent over, washing clothes for Malka and her children, while Husnah kept going to fetch water for her. Both of them were exhausted.
Their father sat nearby listening to the radio. Malka’s three children, Ashiru, Nafi, and Indo, sat eating food. They had no work except to eat and relax.
Malka stood over Zarah and Husnah, insulting them with all her strength.
She shouted that Zarah was not washing the clothes properly and that she was not scrubbing them well enough.
Then a greeting was heard, and some people entered the house. It was Alhaji Audu, Mallam Sa’idu’s elder brother, along with some other relatives, including women. They were about five in number.
They looked at Zarah and Husnah, who were sweating from the tiredness of washing clothes, the heat of the sun, and hunger.
They shook their heads sadly, then looked at Malka’s children who were eating comfortably near their father.
They moved further into the house.
Malka became frightened. Her lies had ended that day. She felt as if she would die sitting there because she had not expected that the matter of taking Zarah and Husnah away was still alive. She had almost forgotten about it.
Zarah Is Taken Away
Alhaji Audu looked at his younger brother and said, “We have seen everything clearly. Zarah, gather your things. We are leaving. Amina will come tomorrow to take Husnah.”
Zarah and Husnah broke into painful tears.
They cried bitterly, but in the end, they were separated, and Zarah was taken away.
Husnah became extremely pitiful. Now she truly felt like an orphan. She had lost her mother, and now she had lost her elder sister too. The saddest part was that there was no one to draw her close and comfort her.
The entire house became silent because Malka was now deeply worried. She had realized that the girls might move forward in life. But she had already sworn to make their lives miserable until their suffering became an example for others.
As for their father, he behaved as if he was not even present.
About A Gidana Ta Girma Book One Complete Hausa Novel
A Gidana Ta Girma Book One Complete Hausa Novel continues the painful story of Zarah and Husnah after the death of their mother, Hinde. Their relatives decide to separate them for their own protection, but the decision brings fresh pain to the two sisters.
This part of A Gidana Ta Girma Book One Complete Hausa Novel shows cruelty, family betrayal, orphanhood, emotional abuse, and the heartbreaking separation of two sisters who only had each other after losing their mother.