Umbrin Ali, an IT specialist living in Melbourne, was born in Pakistan, and migrated to Australia in 2011 as a student.
In 1998, Umbrin’s parents moved to the USA when she was in grade 7 at a boarding school in Pakistan, to find better employment opportunities and support their family back home. Umbrin completed grade 10 and returned home from boarding school, where she found herself yearning for her parents' return day and night, “those initial days were difficult to live without mum and dad”, she narrates. Finally, Umbrin was united with her mother in Pakistan and felt lucky to once again be in the embrace of her mother’s arms. However, lightning struck Umbrin’s life when she lost her mother in 2006 and that is when her “real struggle” began. Umbrin’s father, still in the USA, could not attend his wife’s funeral due to delays in acquiring a visa. This left Umbrin alone after losing her beloved mother and being away from her father for so many years.
For a young girl in Pakistan, living without a guardian is very challenging indeed. Umbrin tried everything she could to reunite with her father. After several failed attempts to get her own visa to the US, she applied for an Australian Student Visa and succeeded in moving to Australia in 2011. She completed her education in 2014 and four years later became a permanent resident. Although Umbrin was now a successful young woman in Australia, she still had an empty void in her heart, which nothing except her father’s presence could fill. It was during her citizenship and graduation ceremonies when she missed her father the most, wishing she could put her graduation cap on him. Others celebrated their successes with their families, she had to celebrate them by herself. The only thing she could do was to remain hopeful to get reunited with her beloved father one day.
After getting her Australian citizenship in 2020, she immediately booked her flight to the USA to surprise her father on his birthday. However, again her wish was left in vain due to Covid-19 and the subsequent lockdown and travel restrictions.
At the end of every dark path, is light, and so was Umbrin’s.
It is the 16th of March 2023, 1:45 pm. Umbrin is at the airport anxious and at the same time excited. She is finally reuniting with her father after more than two decades of longing and hardship. She is anxious as she has not seen him for 25 years and she wonders if her father will recognize her. Her heart is beating, and her hands are shaking. Her eyes are fixed on the gate. Through the gate comes an elderly man with a familiar face in a wheelchair. Without a single hesitation, Umbrin runs towards him, embracing him. It is her father after all. Following all those years of hardship and separation, sadness, and sorrow, she felt the suppressed frozen river of tears finally release and melt away. A father embracing her child, and a daughter embracing her father. Tears of happiness are falling from both of their eyes. They hold onto each other for the longest time. Everything is melodious. This long-awaited reunion is accompanied by the cheers and awe of the onlookers who witness this emotional moment.
Umbrin has finally reunited with her father. She says her source of strength during the long period of hardship was her faith. She shares this beautiful verse from the Holy Quran “Verily, along with every hardship is relief” (Quran, 94:5). Her message to all those who are reading this and going through any hardship is to be patient, as the fruit of patience is very sweet.
Umbrin’s interview
When you finally met your dad, what were the emotions that you were feeling?
On the day I was nervous as well as very excited. He’s not much into technology so I had only seen some of his photos. I was wondering how he was going to recognize me as when he left, I was a kid. As soon as his wheelchair arrived at the gate, I ran into his arms and all those 25 years of saved emotions started to melt. We both cried for don’t know how long. We had an Australian media presence at the airport with all random passersby cheering and clapping for the reunion.
What is your message to those who are going through the same thing you went through?
Only message is Sabar. Stay patient. Things will settle down, it will come in your favour. It might not come today or tomorrow but one day it will come. Just don’t lose hope. The more you wait, the more sweet fruit you will get. If you ever feel depressed or lonely, just remember that Allah loves you more than 70 times, a mother loves her child.
Written by Maryam Ismaili, Afghan- Australian writer and university student living in Sydney
