Once, there were two sisters: Mehreen and Rumaisa. They lived in Lahore with their parents. Mehreen, 14, had big hazel eyes with a fair complexion, while Rumaisa, 12, with dark brown eyes, had a dusky complexion. Mehreen, the older sister, was 14 years old, and Rumaisa was 12. They loved each other so much that even when their parents scolded one child, the other also began crying.
On a hot summer day, they were playing in the garden with water guns when their father came from the office. He gave them the news that they were going to move to Islamabad after two days because of his transfer. When they moved to Islamabad, their neighbours came to meet them and went into Mehreen and Rumaisa’s study to greet them. They all praised the beauty of Mehreen as being fair is considered beautiful in our society. But on the other hand, Rumaisa was standing beside Mehreen, and everyone ignored her. Rumaisa, at that time, was moving to the age where a child could understand and feel other people\’s words. So she felt bad for a while but soon forgot what had happened.
The next day, both the sisters went to their new school. On reaching there, they hugged each other and went to their classes. During breaktime, Mehreen came to meet Rumaisa outside her class. Rumaisa’s new friends also saw Mehreen; they were impressed by her and started complimenting Mehreen on her beauty. Moreover, a classmate of Rumaisa named Tina, who loved to mock people, said to Rumaisa, “Your sister is so beautiful, unlike you; I wish she were my classmate, not you.” Rumaisa could not absorb the words and was utterly broken; her eyes welled up. To avoid everyone, she excused herself to go to the washroom. At two o clock, Mehreen and Rumaisa came back home. Rumaisa could not stop thinking about everything that happened at school. She recalled how her neighbours had also acclaimed her sister.
Soon, she started to develop feelings of jealousy and hatred for her sister. When they sat for lunch, Mehreen, sitting closer to the bread plate, offered Rumaisa the bread for lunch, but Rumaisa could not even bear her presence and, instead of answering Mehreen, got up from the table to go to her room. A few days passed, and the situation worsened to the point that Rumaisa stopped talking to her sister. Then, one day, a tragic incident occurred when the sisters were in school. Rumaisa was walking on a staircase, and her classmate, Tina, was walking behind her. Tina was jealous of the progress Rumaisa was making in academics; therefore, she pushed Rumaisa down the stairs. Mehreen was walking with her friend to go upstairs, and suddenly, she saw Rumaisa falling. At the same time, Tina looked at Rumaisa with a smirk. Mehreen rushed to help her sister, but, until then, Rumaisa had gotten her arm fractured. Mehreen asked her friend, who was going upstairs with her, to call a teacher who would call their parents.
Meanwhile, Mehreen ran towards Tina and reprimanded her. Finally, their parents came and took Rumaisa to the doctor, where Rumaisa got a plaster on her arm. Mehreen, on the other hand, was continuously trying to help Rumaisa and asked her whether she was okay. When they went home, and Rumaisa was in her bed, Mehreen came and brought food for her. Moreover, she fed her sister because Rumaisa had fractured her right arm. Everyone in the house was asleep at night, but Rumaisa could not sleep, thinking about how much Mehreen loved her. Her feelings of remorse had become painful for her, so she went to talk to Mehreen. She blurted everything out in front of Mehreen about how she was feeling inferior. While listening, Mehreen comforted her sister and said, “People come and go in life. They say many things that could break our self-confidence; to me, you are the most beautiful and intelligent girl, which I certainly am not. My love, it is utter folly to consider what others say. God has made you beautiful from inside and outside; our parents and I know this. So stop being concerned about others’ words and live for yourself.\” After listening to Mehreen, Rumaisa started crying; besides, she also found solace in her sisters\’ words. Mehreen hugged her sister, and Rumaisa apologized for being rude to her.
Moral
Always love your sister, for she is the one who loves and takes care of you the most after your parents. And do not pay attention to the folly of the world; be confident and believe in yourself.
