When Mr Pirzada Came To Dine

"When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine"
Lilia is a ten-year-old Indian girl. She recalls events that occur in the fall of 1971. Her family has a regular dinner guest at their home. Mr. Pirzada is from Dacca, the capital of Pakistan. He lives there with a wife and seven daughters whose names all start with A. Because of the war with India he does not hear from them in six months. Mr. Pirzada has a grantto study New England foliage. He begins in Vermont and Maine but now lives in a graduate dorm room at a university north of Boston where he lectures. His grant is small, so Lilia's parents feed him and others visiting from their homeland.
Lilia is unaware of country distinctions until she asks about setting a glass for the Indian man. They speak the same language, share the same customs and looksimilar, but her father says he is not Indian. He explains the British gave independence to India in 1947 and divided the country by Hindu and Muslim sects. Her father shows a map displaying Pakistan and India, one yellow and the other orange. He asks whether she is aware of the current situation. Lilia nods but is totally unaware. Her mother and father discuss what she learns in school and whatshe avoids by living in America instead of India. He wonders if she learns about Partition. Lilia silently recalls George Washington and King George.
Mr. Pirzada usually arrives at six for dinner and shakes hands with Lilia's father. Lilia takes his coat. He dresses well in suits of matching ensembles and maintains a good posture. He walks to their house about twenty minutes away, althoughLilia's father offers a ride. They express concern about the nine million refugees on Indian Territory. They sit down in the living room to eat while they watch the news. Mr. Pirzada follows a nightly ritual of giving Lilia little candies. She likes the treats but feels uncomfortable. They are like jewels she keeps in a sandalwood box by her bed. The family sits around the coffee table and Lilia'smother brings dishes from the kitchen. Lilia brings water glasses, lemon wedges and chili peppers. Mr. Pirzada takes out a band-less watch he holds to his ear, winds and puts on the table while they eat. The watch is set to the time in Dacca, eleven hours earlier. Lilia realizes his life in Dacca is ahead of his time here.
When the news begins at six-thirty, Lilia's father turns up the volume and asksLilia to pay attention to the news instead of the book she usually reads. There are tanks in the streets and Pakistanis fleeing to India. They discuss the news. Her father comments to Lilia what children her age do to survive. She imagines Mr. Pirzada's wife and children waving from a balcony and how relieved he would be. When Lilia goes to bed she thinks about Mr. Pirzada's life on thetelevision. She cannot sleep, worries his family is dead and as she eats a piece of candy says a prayer. So as to not rinse the prayer away she does not brush her teeth.
At school the next day Lilia studies the American Revolution but cannot concentrate. She finds a section in the library labeled Asia and a book about Pakistan. She reads about Dacca and is asked if this is part of her report. When sheanswers no she is told there is no reason to read it. News about Dacca becomes rarer as the weeks pass. Mr. Pirzada and her parents spend more time in the evening until the news at eleven to hear more. Lilia goes to bed earlier. She wants to join them, but can only pray for Mr. Pirzada and his family as she eats a piece of candy for their sake.
In October Mr. Pirzada asks what the large orangevegetables are that he sees on porches. Lilia's mother answers pumpkins and asks Lilia to remind her to get one. Lilia explains to Mr. Pirzada that you make a jack-o'-lantern and they decide the next night to carve the one she gets. They all gather around the dining table and forget about the news. Lilia shows Mr. Pirzada how to carve a face on it. Her mother gives him a spoon to clean out the seeds....