As Eid is approaching, older women who reside in Lahore’s government -driven old age await aafiyat, with longing eyes on their loved ones. Despite the efforts of Punjab Social Welfare Department, NGOs and philanthropists to bring them new clothes, shoes, gifts and Eid quotas, their hearts are only for one thing – family.

Among them is Bakmina, originally from Marran. After her husband’s passing, she moved to Lahore, bred her children and saw them settle in their own families. But now she lives alone in Aafiyat.

“My son is a good man,” she says, “but my daughter -in -law threatened to leave if I stayed with them. I couldn’t let my son’s home break because of me.” Her daughter in Karachi insisted she had to move in, but she refused and said, “Like a Pakhtun woman, I can’t live in my son-in-law’s house.”

Old Age Home Shelters 33 Senior Citizens – 21 Men and 12 Women. Among them shares Rukhsana Zafar from Faisalabad and Naseem Akhtar from Shahkot similar fates.

Rukhsana’s voice shakes as she remembers her children.

“Children may forget their parents, but mothers never forget their children,” she says. “NGOs and students visit us on Eid and Mother’s Day, but my own sons never come.” One calls occasionally, but the others have deleted her from their lives.

Naseem Akhtar is also fighting for loneliness. After her husband’s death, her own brothers took possession of her inheritance while her in -laws grabbed her husband’s property.

She lived with her only daughter until her sudden death. Left with nowhere to go, her son -in -law forced her out. “Now I have none,” she says. “I have a granddaughter in high school. We’re talking on the phone, but he never visits.”

While some at Aafiyat have families who have left them, others have never had their own families. In order to ease their pain, the home keeps them engaged in Activiti

es. Aafiyat’s responsible, Sumaira Aslam, says: “Every resident here has a unique history. Although we cannot replace their families, we ensure that they are well -groomed, which delivers decent meals, healthcare and a comfortable environment.”

The facility offers a TV lounge, newspapers, magazines and religious activities such as prayers and Koran Recitation. A meal committee composed of residents helps to plan their daily menu.