Married for 53 happy years, Guyanese-born Abdul and Tazroon Wahab were inseparable in life. Death and the Covid 19 virus claimed the devout Muslim couple within hours, at the Houston Methodist Hospital in Texas, a week ago.
The humble pair were dedicated to each other and their five children, migrating like countless others to the United States of America (USA), in search of a better life. Last January, they decided to move from chilly New York to the warmth of Sugar Land, Fort Bend County in the populous southern city, to live with their youngest daughter, Waheeda Hussain, and to be closer to family.
Originally from New Road, Vreed-en-Hoop, Abdul 74, and Tazroon, 71, started feeling sick suddenly. “It was just so fast,” a composed Waheeda recalled in a television interview recently. “I dropped my parents off at the ER (emergency room) – my dad on Friday (April 3), and my mom on Saturday (April 4), and not even a week in the hospital, they passed away.”
Diagnosed with the coronavirus, the couple’s condition worsened since both suffered from diabetes, a serious underlying health condition. Their distraught daughters publicly appealed on Facebook for prayers. On April 5, Wassela Ajaj said, “my dad is in the ICU positive with Covid-19, my mom (is) also in the hospital with pneumonia – (but) her results not back yet …”
The next day, a desperate Bibi Wahab wrote that she was “feeling broken,” admitting, “I really don’t post much personal stuff of my life,” but “I’m begging everyone to please say a prayer for my parents. My DAD is not doing very well with this Covid-19 my MOM is fighting this deadly virus as well…if you have it in your heart please send a prayer for my parents, my inside(s) never felt like this before I’m feeling so empty so lost.”
Using the online cloud platform Zoom that has become a virtual and invaluable contact lifeline for affected families around the world, the Wahab relatives dared to hope for a reprieve but still prepared for the worst. “We were able to see them in the hospital until the last moment. The hospital did an amazing job in keeping us posted and as well as facilitating the video chat so kids and family (could) see them, pray for them and say our goodbyes,” Wassela explained.
Tazroon died on April 7 at 11 p.m., and her husband, on April 8 at 4 p.m. Waheeda recalled her parents’ decline was quick. With her father on a ventilator and her mother sedated, they were able to say goodbye via video conference. “In Islam, we have where we do Koran recitations,” she noted. “We were able to recite the Koran for them and, just as their last Islamic rites so they would have that passing – for them to be at peace.”
Bibi confessed she never expected the dreaded virus to devastate the family. On Tuesday, she acknowledged, “But this is so hard on me there is an empty void in my heart. I’m sitting here crying as I’m writing this, my heart aches so much. It’s so difficult to breathe. I’m not sure how I will go on. About her parents, she added, “I watch your pictures listen to the voicemail from both of you on my phone. Knowing I will never hear your voices again and it tears me to pieces. I know this was your destination but I’m afraid that I cannot find the way to accept this right now. Mom and Dad I miss and love you so much how I pray that I can touch your beautiful face once again Mom and hear your not normal jokes once again Dad. I’m sorry Mom and Dad I didn’t expect this much pain and heartache, (I) love you so much.”
As the sealed white coffins of her parents were lowered in a Houston cemetery, their stunned daughter Waheeda could only watch from her car as handlers dressed in hazmat suits laid the loving couple side by side. Testing positive for the contagious virus that has swept the world, she is recovering in self-quarantine. Fort Bend County has reported just 12 deaths and 543 confirmed cases, among the lowest of major U.S cities, with authorities pointing to early precautions and guidelines as working, even as they warn of the still long road ahead.
The USA has the world’s highest number of deaths from the Covid-19 pandemic, with nearly 29 000 people losing their lives in that country, to the virus as of yesterday. According to www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ international cases are well over 2 million with fatalities reaching 134 600, and recoveries at 644 000.
Dozens of US-based Guyanese of all backgrounds, ages and professions, are among Caribbean and Latin American-born patients killed by the virus primarily in the hard-hit immigrant enclaves in the epicentre of New York (NY) which has recorded over 11 500 deaths. As of Monday, NY’s death rate linked to COVID-19 was 513 deaths per million people, compared with California’s 17 deaths per million. With more than 70% of the state’s related deaths being reported in New York City, experts indicate that up to 100 travellers brought the virus in, mainly from Europe, Livescience disclosed. Studies of the viral genome have shown that California had about eight initial introductions, primarily from Asia. Each of these cases created its own “chain of transmission,” passing the virus on.
As the Wahabs mourn like tens of thousands of others around the world, they remembered Tazroon and her “heart of gold” as the foundation of the family. “My mom was my best friend,” Waheeda said in the interview. “My mom, I could tell her anything and everything. My dad always told jokes; he spoiled us rotten. There was nothing we could ever do that would be wrong.”
She believes people are still not taking the pandemic seriously. “It’s not a game, it’s not a joke, it’s not a hoax. Coronavirus is taking lives,” Waheeda declared. “If you don’t have to go out, do not leave your house. Use the hand sanitizers, use the gloves, use the mask, use whatever you can to protect you and your family members.”
Yesterday, Wassela pointed to the Islamic teaching that “if you kill one human it is like killing a whole humanity. Social distancing perhaps is the best way to go about saving lives…This is a test from Allah and if we continue to jeopardize other lives – we will be questioned. The pandemic is real not a hoax, (I am) urging people to do what is right stay home, order your groceries, wash your hands, wear your mask. Stop the parties and having large crowds at your homes. Do virtual church and prayers via Zoom. Religion, Race, Social class will not save you or your family members.”
In an earlier post, she stressed their parents’ “great legacy,” saying they “thought us how to be kind, how to love, how to give without expecting anything in return,” promising, “We will continue to follow in your footsteps and we will continue your legacy.” Still, “I have no more words to describe what we have lost and how we are feeling. We hope that this will awaken some of you who think this is a joke. The horrific virus has no prejudice. May Allah grant them both the highest place in Jannah inshallah (Heaven/Paradise as God wills).”
ID is under lockdown with her children and elderly husband, but grateful for life, green trees and sweet birdsong in their drought-stricken garden.
