Love across the salt desert

In our class XII English text book we had a chapter titled "Love across the salt desert". This is the story of Najab Hussain who falls in love with Fatimah, daughter of a spice seller from the other side of Kutch. Known to be a simpleton, Najab decides to brave the vast desert to meet his beloved. When they do meet, Fatimah discloses her fears of her family getting her married to another suitor. On hearing this Najab asks her if she would want to come with him on the journey back. Her entry into Najab's village is greeted with the falling of raindrops for the first time in two years.

I particularly love the following passage which tells the thoughts going through Fatimah's mind during the ride.

"It was only in passing that she thought of the village she was leaving for good. As for quitting one and entering another, she never gave it a thought. Where did one have the time for Pakistan and Hindustan when one was eloping with one’s love and crossing the desert which divided, both physically and symbolically, the two countries? For her it meant just a shift in dialect, a smear of Kutchi added and a little of Sindhi sandpapered away."

Fatimah's willingness to leave home, absence of worries about fitting into a new family, and simplistic approach to the huge transition about to take place, are highly endearing. In a world which has a habit of throwing doubts at you, she shows us how easy it really is embracing the changes in our lives.

She makes us realize that when in love we shouldn't be afraid of taking the leap.

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PS: Do you remember reading the story in school? What relevance does it hold for you today?