This is a story about a girl whose father was murdered when she was two and she was orphaned at 15.

The girl was then married.

The girl was married off at such a young age it meant that she did not have the chance to go to school. When her husband was gone for months working to make a living, she was left alone to raise her daughter.

When her daughter was 5 she understood the importance of education. She knew that she did not have the chance to go to school, but she was adamant that her daughter will. The problem was that there were few schools and those that did exist were only for boys.

With the encouragement of her husband, the Mother took the unconventional step of sending her daughter to an all-boys school.

Best of it all, her daughter topped the class.

She excelled in her academics and her extra-curriculars. So much so that she delivered the annual speech. To a hall full of men and boys.

The mother then went on to have more children. She now has 6 sons and 2 daughters.

Life became difficult and with the grace of Allah (swt) she moved to England. Again, without a word of English she was adamant that her children get the best education possible.

Despite suffering from severe, chronic illness, the mother with the support of her husband woke up every morning and readied 8 lunches, woke up 8 sleepy heads and raised 8 children to excellence. Whilst this story is about that Pashtun girl her husband’s feat were no less. He was her sword and supported her through her illnesses and took the duties of both mother and father when she was ill.

Her first daughter is a psychologist working with special needs children. She has one son who is an engineer working , one son who will start GP training, two sons studying medicine, one graduated in Accounting and Finance, another studying engineering and a daughter graduating from Cambridge this year.

This is the story of my mother. But her story is one of communities all over the world. There are so many women like my mother who are working hard against all odds, to give the best education to their children. Not every story ends as happily as ours. how else can we be grateful and remain connected to our communities if not by giving back?

‘Those who spend their wealth [in Allah 's way] by night and by day, secretly and publicly - they will have their reward with their Lord. And no fear will there be concerning them, nor will they grieve’. (Surah Al-Baqarah 274)

This year, I intended to travel to Pashtun tribal areas with my family to fundraise donations to help women and girls like my mother; however due to coronavirus travelling to the region has become more difficult. I intend to fundraise now and travel to the region in a year time.

Please donate anything that you can, and rest assured that 100% of your proceeds will go directly towards helping mothers who cannot afford school fees. Remaining funds will be given to families who cannot afford healthcare or travel costs to the hospitals. I will be documenting my journey and where your donations go.

And finally, please say Mash ‘Allah and make dua that Allah (swt) preserves my parents so that my siblings and I may repay them for the sacrifices that they have made to give us a better life.