Eight Lies

                            This story begins when I was a child: I was born poor. Often we didn't have enough to eat. Whenever we had some food, mother often gave me her portion of rice. While she was transferring her rice into my bowl, she would say " Eat this rice, son! I'm not hungry."
          
            This was mother's First lie.


                            As I Grew, Mother gave up her spare time to fish in a river near our house. She hoped that from the fish she caught, she could give me little bit more nutritious food for my growth. Once she had caught just two fish, she would make fish soup. While I was eating the soup, mother would sit besides me and eat what was still left on the bone of the fish I had eaten. My heart touched when I saw it. Once I gave the other fish to her on my chopsticks but she immediately refused it and said, " Eat this fish, son I don't really like fish."

                   This was mother's Second lie.

                              
                            Then, in order to fund my education, Mother went to a match factory to bring home some used matchboxes, which she filled with fresh matchsticks. This helped her get some money to cover our needs. Once wintry night I awoke to find mother filling the matchboxes by candlelight. So I said "Mother, go to sleep; its late: you can continue working tomorrow morning. " Mother smiled and said " Go to sleep, Son! I'm not tired."


                 This was Mother's Third lie.


                         When I had to sit my final examination, Mother accompanied me. After dawn, Mother waited for me for hours in the heat of the sun. When the bell rang , I ran to meet her. Mother embraced me and poured me a glass of tea that she had prepared in a thermos. The tea was not as strong as my mother's love. Seeing mother covered with perspiration, I at once gave her my glass and asked her to drink too. Mother said " Drink, Son! I'm not thirsty!."


                This was Mother's Forth Lie.


                      After Father's death, Mother had to play the role of a single parent. She held on to her former job as she had to fund our needs alone. Our family life was more complicated. We suffered from starvation . Seeing our family's condition worsening, my kind Uncle who lived near my house
came to help us solve our problems big and small. Our other neighbors saw that we were poverty stricken. Our other advised my mother to  marry again. But mother refused to remarry saying " I don't need Love."


                 This was Mother's Fifth Lie.


                 After I had finished my studies and got a job, it was time for my old mother to retire but she carried on going to the market every morning just to sell a few vegetables. I kept sending her money but she steadfast and even send the money back to me. She said," I have enough money."


                This was Mother's Sixth Lie.


                I continued my part-time for my master's degree. Funded by the American corporation for which I worked, I succeeded in my studies. With a big jump in my salary, I decided to bring Mother to enjoy life in America but mother didn't want to bother her son; she said to me " I'm not used to high living".


           This was Mother's Seventh Lie.


              In her old age, Mother was attacked by cancer and had to be hospitalized. Now living far across the ocean, I went home to visit mother who was bedridden after an operation. mother tried to smile But I was heartbroken because she was so thin and feeble but mother said , " Don't cry, Son! I'm not in Pain."


          That was Mother's Eighth Lie.


             Telling Me this, her Eight lie, she died. Yes, Mother was an angel......