Nikhat auntie was loud and proud. She was the Fierce Auntie who wore pastel shalwars under her white lab coat. When she entered a room, you knew the fun would start then.
And she cared about anyone. She Fedexed me Nyquil from Texas when I was sick with the flu in New York. She fed the pigeons that gathered on the hospital lawn. She looked after her elderly patients and brought cakes to their homes on their birthdays.
Once when I came home to visit my parents in Texas, I called her while she was driving on her way to somewhere, and she immediately turned around, saying, "I had plans, but I'd rather see you." She was like that; she would do things without hesitation.
She thought a lot about what she had, and what she could give, as you can hear in the attached audio. Nikhat auntie passed away from breast cancer several years ago, and I think about her a lot.
She gave so much to all of us who were graced by her presence. I'm lucky to have been around her and absorbed some of her confidence and caring, her outspokenness and thoughtfulness — and her joy. #FierceAuntiesUnite
(In this photo: Nikhat auntie (at left) is in her bedroom with her mother. If one can tell anything from Nikhat auntie's style in this picture, it's that she was bold enough to mix big prints in order to make beauty.)
