Chacha Fayyaz came to work for us in 2006. He came from my mother’s village but lived in Lahore for many years. He was a real city man. Chacha was the title we gave him, meaning uncle in Urdu or Punjabi, and Fayyaz was his real name. When my sister saw him, he was given a new name, Luca Brasi. This was mainly due to his humongous stature, and his main task, be our bodyguard and drive us safely from one place to another.

Yet, Chacha Fayyaz was so much more than that. Soon after he and his wife came to live with us, they became our family members. Every morning, he would come outside my window and gently call my name to wake me up, Mariaaaaa Khaaaaan, Mariaaaaa Khaaaaan. I would jump out of bed, rush to get ready, and thanks to Chacha Fayyaz’s amazing driving skills, I would reach my college at the speed of light. He would tell us heroic stories of his previous adventures, often involving lengthy truck rides he took from one part of the province to another. He smoked like a chimney and was diabetic. In 2012, he lost his eyesight, and in 2023, he passed away in his sleep. I often look at his photograph to remind myself of his company and warmth.

Chacha Fayyaz was not a luxury in a country where women are extremely unsafe. Although his ability to fight and hit a man was probably negligible, his looks were scary enough to keep trouble away. My parents trusted him, and to say that throughout my adult life in Lahore, I have never been anywhere without him would not be a misstatement.

My parents felt comfortable sending me off to Western countries for higher studies because women are relatively safe and face fewer risks living by themselves, as they do in Pakistan. This was the assumption before I moved to New York. Although when the city began to feel more unsafe, I began to think back on my time in Lahore. You can take a person out of Pakistan, but never Pakistan out of that person. Funnily, EN became a necessity, a shield- a must-have in New York. My life has come full circle; a Luca Brasi here, and a Luca Brasi there.