Every year, the arrival of Eid-ul-Azha brings a wave of excitement in our homes. It is more eagerly awaited than Eid-ul-Fitr by all my cousins, even though we get eidi in Eid-ul-Fitr. The enjoyment and contention we derive from feeding animals and taking care of them is just very beautiful and special.

Watching animals that you got attached with, being sacrificed is emotional and scary at the same time. And the barbecue of the sacrificial meat that we do at night is an absolutely amazing time because all my cousins gather as we cook and eat together. We play, laugh and watch comedy movies. The combination of all these factors makes Eid-ul-Azha more thrilling for all of us as compared to Eid-ul-Fitr.

The joy of this Eid is unmatchable, therefore let me share some of my memories from last year’s Eid-ul-Azha celebration. Last year we bought a cow and a goat for us. They were both very beautiful, Masha Allah. I used to feed the goat with my own hands and my brother did the same with the cow. Although, I am always a bit scared of animals, last year was different.

Both of our animals were hyperactive and the goat was extra lively, which created an emotional attachment and an impregnable connection between us.

Our goat was of white and ginger colours, and it looked pretty. The time spent with it and the way it entertained us will always be memorable for us. When we brought it from the ‘Mandi’, only my brother took care of it and fed it for three days. Then one of my cousins Owais came over to our house to play with it and opened its rope to take it for a walk. It was going all fine till the goat saw my brother coming from the other side of the street. As it had grown attached to my brother, the goat ran towards my brother as fast as it could and also dragged Owais with it. The goat stopped only after reaching my brother, and by this time Owais was badly injured.

He was immediately taken to a clinic nearby as he had a lot of bruises. When I heard about this incident, instead of feeling sorry for Owais I began to laugh and was unable to stop. Well, the mischievousness of the energetic goat did not end, here’s one more but, thankfully this one was not that bad and it didn’t injure someone.

It happened a couple of days later when we were relaxed as the goat didn’t try to run anywhere. My mother had bought me very cute earrings. I held them in my hands and went out of my house and showed those earrings first to our cow, but it didn’t pay any attention so I went to our goat, who had become my best friend. It smelled it first and then stared at my earrings for a minute. Then I stood up but it was too late as I realised that it had taken them in its mouth and gulped them down to its stomach.

Alas! It was actually very painful for me as I loved those earrings of mine which were now probably resting in its stomach. I cried a lot but it was of no use, everybody calmed me down and at last I forgave the goat.

Finally on the first day of Eid, the time came to sacrifice our goat. I cried a lot that day. Not only I, but my mum, dad and my siblings were also crying silently. We all missed it a lot despite all its mischievousness and I really hope that we find another goat similar to it this time. Ameen.

Published in Dawn, Young World, August 18th, 2018