The huge room was filled with people, wearing white clothes. There was a lot of silence even though there were over 60 people around.
I walked in looking for her. She was just a year younger to me. We were close friends, and spent a good time when we went out with our families. She was my 2nd cousin and I was wondering where she was. I met Arnav and Arya on my way to her room. They were her younger siblings. They both were crying and seemed to be in a state of shock. They couldn’t believe it was happening to them. I went and hugged both of them. Life at the age of 15 and 17 can be very difficult without a mother.
I finally saw her through the window. Jia was sitting by the poolside and I walked upto her. She wasn’t crying and showed a very different emotion. I was hoping her to cry on my shoulder and there she stood completely in control of her life and I feared she hadn’t lost the sense of understanding. She was very different as compared to Arnav and Arya. Both of them were very fair and had features of their mother, but Jia had a very Indian brown complexion unlike any of her family members.

She smiled as I reached her. I did not even utter the words “I am sorry for ur loss” and she started talking as if she was just waiting for my arrival. “How have u been?” she asked. “Fine” was my only reply. I couldn’t even muster the courage to ask “And u?”
She continued, “My trip to Switzerland was good. I and mom had the time of our lives. You won’t believe the stock of perfumes we both got back for all u guys.” Jia and her mom had been to London, Germany and Switzerland last month. Jia’s mom had the option to take one person with her from her office trip and she decided to take one of her kids and it had to be Jia. Everyone knew Jia was the favorite among the 3 kids, but I came to know the reason why she was her favorite only that day.

“My trip to Switzerland was good. I and mom had the time of our lives. You won’t believe the stock of perfumes we both got back for all u guys. I will always cherish these past few days. And do you know mom just happened to tell me I wasn’t her real daughter. She is not the one who has given birth to me.”
We both were silent for the next few minutes.
“I was adopted from an orphanage. Mom and dad did not have a baby for 10 years and they finally decided they would adopt a baby. And I was the luckiest to have been selected by them. Mom says I have been her lucky charm ever since, as she was blessed with Arnav and Arya and there was noway she would have let go of me just coz she got her own kids. She decided she would take me to the trip and tell me about this and that’s how I know it all now. But I just gotta ask God, if I was the lucky charm, how did this day come, where I have to live without her?”

I later learnt that her mom had left ‘the Will’ on Jia’s name and Jia was so full of strength & courage on that day, coz she promised herself that she would be as strong as her mother was. And since her mom never made her feel that she wasn’t a part of their family, she would make sure Arnav and Arya would never feel they are without a mother.

---Mana—
Just remembered this brief episode from the family when Amit told me about the Girl Campaign most of the Ilanders were a part of.