Awkwardly stirring the soup, she pretended she could not hear them arguing in the next room.

The monsoon rains had failed in central India that year. Drought parched crops were all the eye could see. Failure of the crops lead to the scarcity of food. Death was all around them. Each day a neighbor, friend, or a family member perished. Without the rains they would not survive.

The well-fed Westerner was no match for her husband in their negotiations. Isha knew that her husband would do what was best for  the family.Their daughter Aiesha would leave the family.

She realized that she had stopped  stirring  the soup and it  was getting cold.