pounded rapidly. Let him be patient. It would not be long. His faith in God was deep, profound, and not easily shaken. He should surrender the affair to Him. No matter how long the doctor stayed inside, he would eventually come out. Then he would ask what it was all about. A doctor?… He had not thought about that before… A doctor at a delivery, face to face with her womb. Was not that so? But he was a doctor… What could be done? 'The important thing is for our Lord to take her by the hand. We ask him for deliverance'.
In addition to being worried, al-Sayyid Ahmad felt embarrassed and annoyed. The examination lasted about twenty minutes. Then the door opened. He rose and went at once to the sitting room, followed by the boys. They gathered around the doctor, who knew al-Sayyid Ahmad. Shaking his hand, he said with a smile, 'She’s in good health'. He continued more seriously: 'They brought me for the mother, but I found the one really in need of my care was the baby girl'.
Al-Sayyid Ahmad sighed with relief, feeling better for the first time in about an hour. With a gracious smile brightening his face, he asked, 'Can I be sure of what you say, then?'
Pretending to be astonished, the doctor said, 'Yes, but aren't you concerned about your granddaughter?'
Smiling, he replied, 'I'm not familiar yet with the duties of a grandfather'.
Khalil asked, 'Isn't there any hope she'll live?'
Knitting his brows, the doctor answered, 'Lives are in God’s hands. I found that her heart’s weak. It’s likely she'll die before morning. If she makes it safely through the night, she'll be out of immediate danger, but I think she won't live long. In my judgment, she won't live past her twenties. But who knows? Only God controls our lives'.
When the doctor had gone off about his business, Khalil turned toward his mother with a sad smile. He told her, 'I was intending to name her Na'ima, after you'.
The woman gestured with her hand to scold him and observed, 'The doctor himself said, 'Lives are in God’s hands.' Are you going to have less faith than the doctor? Name her Na'ima. You must name her Na'ima in my honor. God willing, her life will be as long as her grandmother's'.
Al-Sayyid Ahmad was thinking to himself, 'The fool called a doctor to look at his wife for no reason, no reason at all. What an idiot he is!' Unable to contain his fury, although he disguised it in a gentle tone, he said, 'It’s true that fear makes men do foolish things, but shouldn't you have thought a little before rushing off to bring an outsider to take such a searching look at your wife?'
Khalil did not respond. He glanced at the people around him and remarked earnestly, 'Aisha must not know what the doctor said'.
69
'What’s happening in the street?' al-Sayyid Ahmad wondered as he rose hastily from his desk. He went to the door, followed by Jamil al-Hamzawi and some of their customers. Al-Nahhasin was not a quiet street, quite the contrary. Its strident noise did not abate from one dawn until shortly before the next. There were the loud cries of vendors, haggling of shoppers, pleas of crazed beggars, and wisecracks of passers by. People conversed as though delivering a public oration. Even the most personal discussions ricocheted everywhere, flying up to the minarets. To this general commotion the Suares omnibus added its clanking and the donkey carts their clatter. In no sense was it a quiet street, but a sudden clamor had arisen, at first heard in the distance like the roar of waves, then growing stronger and more raucous until it sounded like a howling wind. It enveloped the whole district, near and far. Even on this noisy street it was out of the ordinary and exceptional.
Al-Sayyid Ahmad thought a demonstration had broken out, as anyone who had experienced those days would have, but cries of joy were audible in the uproar. Wondering what it was, he went to the door where he bumped into the shaykh, or supervisor, of the district, who had rushed up. He was crying out with a jubilant face, 'Have you heard the news?'
Even before he heard any more, the proprietor’s eyes began to glow optimistically. 'No,' he said. 'What’s it all about?'
The man replied enthusiastically, 'Sa'd Pasha has been freed'.
Al-Sayyid Ahmad could not restrain himself from yelling, 'Really?'
The shaykh affirmed, 'Allenby broadcast a bulletin with this good news just now'.
The next moment the two men were hugging each other. Al-Sayyid Ahmad was deeply moved. His eyes filled with tears. Laughing to disguise his emotions, he said, 'He’s known for broadcasting threats, not good news. What’s made him change, that old son of a gun?'
The shaykh of the district replied, 'Glory to the one who never changes'. He shook hands with the proprietor and then left the store shouting, 'God is most great. 'Allahu akbar'. Victory to the Muslims'.
Al-Sayyid Ahmad stood at the door of the shop, looking up and down the street with a heart that had recaptured the delight and innocence of childhood. The effect of the news about Sa'd was evident everywhere. The entries of the shops were jammed with their owners and customers, who were congratulating each other. The windows of the houses were crowded with children, and ululating trills of joy could be heard from the women at the peepholes of the window grilles. Impromptu demonstrations took place between al-Nahhasin, the Goldsmiths Bazaar, and Bayt al-Qadi, with people yelling their hearts out for Sa'd, Sa'd, Sa'd, and then Sa'd. The muezzins went up to the balconies of their minarets to give thanks, pray, and shout. There were tens of donkey carts with hundreds of women, fully covered in wraps, dancing and singing patriotic songs. All he could see were people, or, more precisely, people shouting. The earth had disappeared and the walls were concealed by them. Shouts for Sa'd were heard everywhere. The air seemed to have turned into a tremendous phonograph record, spinning incessantly on a turntable, repeating his name. News bounced along the mass of heads that the English were striking their camps, which had been set up at the street corners, in preparation for redeployment of the soldiers to al-Abbasiya. The enthusiasm increased and delirium reached a fever pitch. Al-Sayyid Ahmad had never seen such a sight before. He looked every which way with sparkling eyes and a bounding heart. Under his breath, he sang along with the women dancers, 'O Husayn… a burden has been lifted'.
Then Jamil al-Hamzawi put his head close to the proprietor’s ear to say, 'The shops are distributing cold drinks and putting up flags'.
Al-Sayyid Ahmad told him enthusiastically, 'Do what the others are doing and more. Put your whole heart into it'. Then with a trembling voice he added, 'Hang Sa'd’s picture under the calligraphy of 'In the Name of God.''
Jamil al-Hamzawi looked reluctant and cautioned him, 'In that place it can be seen from outside. Wouldn't it be better for us to bide our time until things return to normal?'
The proprietor replied scornfully, 'The era of fear and bloodshed has passed, never to return. Don't you see that demonstrations are going on under the eyes of the English, who aren't making any attempt to interfere with them? Hang up the picture and trust in God'.
'The days of fear and bloodshed have vanished. Isn't that so? Sa'd is free and at liberty. He’s probably on his way now to Europe. Only a step or a word stands between us and independence. These are demonstrations with trills of joy, not bullets. Those of us who are still alive are happy people, having passed safely through the fires. God’s mercy on the martyrs… Fahmy? He’s escaped from a much greater danger than he ever imagined. He’s escaped, praise and thanks to God. Yes, Fahmy has escaped. What are you waiting for? Pray to God your Lord'.
When the family gathered that evening, their hoarse voices revealed that they had spent the day shouting. It was a happy evening. Joy was evident in their eyes, lips, gestures, and words. Even Amina’s heart imbibed some of the overflowing happiness. She realized that Sa'd’s release brought good news of a return to peace and joy.
'From the balcony I saw something no one has ever seen before,' she commented. 'Has Judgment Day come with the scales to weigh our sins? Were those women crazy? The echo of their singing still rings in my ears: 'O Husayn… a burden has been lifted.''
Laughingly messing up Kamal’s hair, Yasin said, 'It was a word of farewell to speed the departing English on their way, just as you see off an unwelcome guest by breaking a jug after him'.
Kamal looked at his brother without saying anything. Then Amina had another question: 'Is God finally pleased with us?'
Yasin replied, 'No doubt about it'. Then he asked Fahmy, 'What do you think?'
