A Mother's Mission to Empower Women

In a South Kashmir village, one woman turned loss into action, building a life of learning, work, and hope for herself and her community.

- Gowher Bhat

Zehra Rehman learned early that life does not wait for you to heal.

At 35, she faced a reality most would find unbearable: three young daughters to raise alone, two elderly parents relying on her entirely, and no one to step in.

Life after her divorce felt uncertain, with grief as her constant companion.

"I cried," she says, voice steady, "but crying does not feed children. Crying does not pay school fees."

At the edge of Verinag, South Kashmir, where the mountains rise silently, untouched by human struggle, Zehra reshaped her life with resolve.

The young mother refused to wait for help, neither from God nor from anyone else.

"Some people said, 'Wait, Allah will help," she recalls. "I told myself, Allah helps those who move."

She turned first to education, the foundation she had built for herself.

Holding an M.A. in Urdu and a B.Ed., Zehra began teaching from her home. Village girls started attending classes in the afternoons. Some paid what they could, others nothing.

"Education should not stop because of money," she says.

Teaching brought more than income. It gave her purpose.

"When I taught, I felt useful again," she continues. "I felt alive."

Alongside teaching, Zehra returned to embroidery, a skill her mother had passed down.