A Girl Called Apple

[Not Proofed]

         Apple had not married. She was almost forty and she had not yet married. Her dark skin was not tile reason (many girls with her colour had married) nor wits it her name. That is the least important matter in marriage, and anyhow oasis girls are sometimes called by the names of fruit: her girl friend Banana had married last year.

Fate? Accident? Or was it Apple's obstinacy which had refused and continued to refuse to raise the wedding flag ore the roof? Even though its hoisting upon the occasion of tire girl's first menses was customary in the oasis. But Apple had refused. Sire had begged arid cried, hiding leer face, saying to her fattier, 'Daddy, please don't. 1 don't want it.' Her mother lead thought that Apple was embarrassed that everyone old and young ire the oasis ‑ should learn that she flat! reached womanhood. So sire shook her head at her husband, who understood and left Apple alone.

A month later when tile matter was forgotten, tier father was about to plant the red flag in an earth-filled container. But Apple ran tip to him, begging him with tears streaming from tier eyes, 'Daddy, 1 don't want it.' And tie didn't understand. He asked her in obvious confusion, 'You mean that you don't want to get married?'

And when site answered, he did not understand what site meant despite tire tact that lie heard her say, 'I wasn't to get married, but I don't want the flag.' And her weeping increased.

Her father clapped his hands together and repeated, 'There is no power anti no strength save in God.' f low wits it possible? tier grandmother, tier mother, all her aunts, and every woman born in this oasis had been married by means of the flag. The importance of raising the flag had not been explained to them, but they knew as well as they knew their own faces that the flag was probably the only way to get married.    Indeed, this oasis was the only one that had not relied on tire services of a matchmaker for generations-- in fact, not from the time of I‑livid, who separated more than site brought together, and who used to describe every bride its it model of, virtue, every groom as tire inoon of his age, a cavalier. The girl was said to be ail enchanting dark-skinned innocent and tile groom owned  camels. The families would agree quickly to these descriptions, and Hind would swear solemnly that this was tile truth. And ore the wedding night the screams could be heard. Moreover, many strangers came to this oasis. They would halt their caravans, letting their camels drink for a couple of hours. Surely tire idea of marriage would not occur to anyone in such a short period, and yet tire flags fluttering above tile roofs would tickle the men's hearts, enticing them to marry in this oasis.

Apple refused the red flag, although her father had tried to plant it in some sand in a can whose shiny surface rust had dulled. lie tried to hoist tile flag without her knowing. But Apple did not let the night pass with tile stars guarding her flag. Sire pulled it down, and then sire knelt and kissed her father's feet, weeping anti saying, '1 don't want it.' Her father could not understand tire secret of' her refusal, but believed that an evil fortune lead chosen his daughter, Apple, to be this generation's oasis spinster.

Scandal tried to whisper to tier mother, but how? For Apple, like all the girls of the oasis, never left her home, day or night. And if ever these girls did leave their homes, they would be enveloped entirely and their faces covered and they would lie accompanied by someone. Days passed and Apple continued to help tier father (lye the sheep skins ill borne, bring water from tire well, sweet) arid cook. Then sire sat at her loom and with leer woolen threads wove a carpet of' carnet hair. Site thought about herself and wondered why it was that sire refused despite her ardent desire to get married and to have a house of' tier own. And she loved children. Site wanted to have lots of thorn. When site had really asked herself the reason, she discovered that the answer was easy: site was mortified at the drought of tile flag and its fluttering on tile roof*. Wizen sire said this to her father, his wrinkles smoothed out anti his tropes rose. Without further ado he got tit) and set off to plant the flag oil the roof of' the house of her bachelor uncle, after saying to her happily, 'Rejoice, for whoever knocks at your uncle's door will be sent here.' And to her amazement site found herself refusing adamantly. She was surprised by tier refusal, especially since the red flag, the one that was used for tile under-twenties, was about to pass leer by; the blue one was good until age thirty, and then finally came tile yellow one. Apple thought: 'God willing, I shall marry under the shadow of the blue flag.'

But she did not. The days passed, never to return, and the blue flag was about to disappear with tier years. And Apple refused to let tile flag flutter over tile roof. And whenever site passed by tile mud houses of tire oasis and saw the colored flags playing with tile breeze, site laughed to herself and said, 'Crazy, stupid women.' And yet Apple envied the bride when site dyed her It s with henna in preparation for the wedding, choking whenever she saw tier sitting like a princess, surrounded by singing and dancing in her honour. Whenever she heard the cry of the newborn babe she would run to tile house, pick tip tile infant, put kohl in its eyes, and bathe it in oil, wishing that it were of her own flesh and blood.

The red flag flew away, and then the blue one, as she jumped past thirty. And although Apple shrugged fret shoulders as though she did not care, sire began to know depression. Sire had never before found herself grumbling about helping her father and doing the housework. Sire sat behind her loony, pulling the threads through and tying them nervously and fit annoyance. Site kept asking herself, 'Why do I refuse marriage? I long for a husband to be the crown on my head, and for children to skip around rile. I am hiding the beautiful clothes and tile turquoise stones and the heavy rugs until the day of my marriage.' She turned and saw tile shadow of a (late branch oil tire wall of' the living room. Sire saw her mother's dress next to the prayer garment, and suddenly site was filled with tenderness for everything she saw, and she felt that this tune sire had found the answer. And she said get out!, 'I don't want to leave this oasis.' And site hurried to her father and said, 'I don't want to leave you or the oasis.'

And her father's wrinkles smoothed out: 'May you never leave my sight, Apple. if the mart who marries you is a stranger to tire oasis, I shall give bill three camels and 1 shall build you a house in our oasis.'

He got up and, stretching under the bed, dragged out a palm leaf basket that Apple had made. When part of the yellow flag appeared, Apple ran to her father and kissed his hands, weeping and crying, and tier head was almost rent from her body to fling itself against the walls. And site sighed and wept for herself because site had refused, because site could riot control her obstinacy.

The following day after a sleepless night, site compelled herself to accept, arid site hurried to tell fret lather tile news, having seen with pity tile grief and sorrow which had inscribed themselves in his wrinkles. But no sooner slid site see the yellow flag in tier father's trembling hand titan site fell to iris feet, once again begging his pardon and again refusing the flag.

Apple changed as though the black sickness had hit tier. Site began to frown much more, becoming thin and sad. She was annoyed by tier mother when she wished her good morning and by tier father when lie wished her good evening. But she never let tier annoyance cross the bridge to tier inside.

One evening, site was holding the thread in her hand and was asking herself the question that site had thought about every moment of her life when she held her breath and heaved a deep sigh. And this time sire grasped the true answer and it was so simple: the flag might flutter for months on end, and no one might come. I would be like mutton or old dates for sale. And sire found herself for tile first time corning to grips with her fear: 'Maybe no one will come. And everyone in the oasis will see tire flag wherever they go, and they will feel so sorry for me because I am not saleable merchandise.' Again sire blamed herself, defeated: 'But wiry was this simple, clear reason so hard to find before age forty?' Apple found herself leaning under tile bed and carefully dragging out the basket, making sure not to wake up tier mother. Site took out the flag that no house in the oasis needed, and she climbed tile stairs up to the roof while her mother and father and the oasis were sound asleep. And this after everyone was sure that marriage had passed Apple by forever, because it would not be long before even tile yellow flag would be gone, and then no one would open tile path of marriage to her. Indeed, it was felt that this was already the case.

In tire starlight, Apple raised her face to the heavens and called upon God to be her witness. Then sire knelt and fixed the flag in tile container, thinking all the while that the oasis was small, that there were few inert and that there was no matchmaker. Site went downstairs and, sighing, sat down to await a knock at tile door.

 Translated from the Arabic by Miriam Cooke