Al-istiqamah: It
must have been a huge relief to hear that the surgery had
been a success. How did you hear about the outcome of the
surgery?
Omar: We got a phone call from the nurse. My father
answered the phone as we waited patiently. “Mr Haq, the
tumor is out! She is doing fine and we are wrapping up the
surgery.” My father hung up the phone and stood up. He
hugged my mother as they both started to weep. He then turned
and came to me and hugged me. Soon the rest of my family (including
uncles) came. When we went up to the recovery room to see
Asma, she was in bed awake. Her whole body was ‘puffy.’ She
was quiet and just looking around. After a bit, I tried speaking
to Asma. Looking at her hand, she smiled and said, “I’m
so fat!” It was quite amusing.
Al-istiqamah: How
did she feel?
Omar: She told me how she
had woken up scared not knowing if she still had her leg.
She went on to tell me that didn’t want to look down to check.
Instead, she slowly put her hand down trying to feel her leg
and it was there. She had a big smile and told me she was
relieved.
 Al-istiqamah:
Alhamdulillah. Could you describe
her post-surgery treatment?
Omar: After the surgery, another session
of chemotherapy started which lasted for 3 months. It was
the same routine as before except this time she was also in
rehab. Finally, we thought it was done and over with and on
our way to recovery. Well, we were wrong. The cancer had come
back. After many trips back and forth to the hospitals, trips
all over North America, trips to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU),
her leg was amputated completely. Once again, we thought we
were at last on the road to recovery.
Al-istiqamah: How
did Asma manage emotionally at appointments when it would
be mentioned she would need her leg removed?
Omar: One of the things
I remember which always bring sadness into our hearts is when
the doctor told my parents that he would have to amputate
her leg. Asma heard that and broke down crying. “My life
is over!” is what she said as her tears were falling.
Asma was put in rehab. It was a depressing
place to be at. Everyone was old and sick. It had a really
bad odor as soon as you walked in. I don’t know how Asma and
my mother actually stayed there.
I remember at the rehab place, this guy from the company that
was making the prosthetic leg for Asma came to speak to us
about the process. After he was done speaking, Asma asked
him if she would be able to run with the prosthetic she would
be getting soon. The guy’s answer saddened her. He told her
that he has to be honest and tell her that she would not be
able to run with it. Asma appeared to be strong but I could
tell she was quite hurt inside. She just said, ‘Okay’ and
remained quiet.
Al-istiqamah:
It must have been so difficult for Asma, to have had her hopes
dashed. As Muslims, we try to think of someone in a worse-off
position. Did Asma try to do that?
Omar: Yes, even when she
had her leg amputated, she reminded my father and others that
it is no big deal. She reminded us of that little Iraqi boy
who had lost some of his limbs and said, “Tho kiya huwa?
Merey aik taang se hop karsakthee houn” (“So what? I can still
hop on one leg”).
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