Syed Ali Riaz does not want to sit down because he knows that he will soil the chair. Nor does he want to be constantly reminded of the pain and there is pain. Riaz is suffering from cancer of the rectum. The passage which releases stool has been removed and for the rest of his life he will have a bag attached to him. Every single day he has to clean the bag, have his dressing changed and suffer the humiliating pain of being reminded that he is different from others. Yet he carries gamely on, for what matters most is that he is alive, and that is the most precious gift of all.
Dr. Aqeel of Rahat Kada says that Ali Raza is well because the tumor has been removed, but with cancer one never knows. “It is a life-threatening disease,” he says. “Even if you think it has been killed, it can strike again.”
It is hard not to become friends with Ali Riaz. He is pleasant, cheerful and can talk to you for hours on end without boring you. Ask him about his life and he will recount stories galore from the Pakistan movement days when he was a national guard with the Muslim League.
Riaz’s stoicism comes through when you ask him about his illness. “I didn’t want to stay at home because there is no one other to change my dressing.” He says. “Even when I was under treatment at the Civil Hospital, I wasn’t happy there. I had to pay lots of money and although I have nothing against the hospital itself, many of its administrators were disorganized. They would change my dressing in one minute where as if it is done properly it can take up to half an hour. It was through a doctor there.
Who later left, that I found out about Rahat Kada and came here. The treatment and care I get here is wonderful, & I don’t have to pay a rupee. My major concern is the dressing which is painful, tiresome and needs to be done hygienically. I don’t want to have to put my family through all this pain and that is why I didn’t stay at home. How could I have traveled every day from Malir to a hospital simply for a change of dressing? You know conditions in this city. My family comes to visit me, but I want them to stop coming. I know they worry about me but it is not safe nay more.”
After spending time with Ali Raza, you faith in humanity is renewed. Despite all the suffering he has undergone he is optimistic and does not want to burden anyone with stories about his pain. His faith in God is strong and he prays for some medicine to be in the market soon that can alleviate his pain, and that of others who have cancer. When I asked him whether he minded being photographed he willingly agreed, but on the conditions that he be photographed in front of the Rahat Kada board. That is now home for him. |
