Autumn's lesson

Nature reminds us every year to let go. Yet we cling to things that are not ours to keep. We cling to pain. We cling to people who have to go. Autumn shows us by example that there is beauty in letting go. 

The devil within

photo courtesy:islamclandmarks

The real devil we have to beat is within us.
It stops us ..
from forgiving,
from loving
and from accepting our differences .

If we beat this devil..we will find peace.

lets keep the spirit alive

Dedicated to my grandparents

“I have accepted the fact that they are no longer there as a person - but their spirit will live forever! And as such, the body is not what I’m attached to; I’m attached to the spirit of a person. The question is how can I attach myself to a body full of weakness if the great spirit of goodness lives on forever! I have learned that acceptance makes us live a happy life and reality is not always a fairytale.”(Mike Horn)

People do leave us..but they within us..

Some live as courage and strength..

Some as unconditional love..

Some as generosity ..

And some with their liveliness and optimism.

We just have to keep the spirit alive somehow!..

When you are left with no grandparents..half of the world seems to end.

But we might be able to keep their spirit alive… if we pass on the unconditional love they introduce us to.

No one in the world can make you feel as special as your grandparents do..but we can  keep the spirit alive by making people  believe that there is something special about them.

We can keep the spirit alive by limitless forgiveness to keep each member of the family together.

We can keep the spirit alive by covering and hiding each other’s shortcomings  and appreciating the goodness which surely lies within everyone.

the pleasures we so easily miss

As I was not feeling well , I decide to rest for a while. After a while my two daughters came and started playing besides me. I wanted to order them to just leave me alone. But I somehow resisted. I am glad I did. After a while, my three year old daughter came and asked me “what happened?” .I told her that  I was not feeling well. She said:’ You will get ok. Just hold my hand’.
She kept holding my hand gently but firmly while playing with the other hand.

Amidst all the yelling, shouting and ordering we miss all the little pleasures that God has sent for us. These are little gifts that forever remain unopened with our  impulse to yell at every small thing they do.

Someone is looking up to you!

Can we even count how many times we utter these sentences to our child:
' I do not have time for this right now''
'Not now please...go and play!'
'WHY DID YOU DO THIS?'
'Read the book yourself..I am sleepy '
'Why are you scared?there is nothing to be scared off..silly! go and get it yourself'
'Shhh..go.....I am watching T.V'

God made us a parent ...He made us  responsible for little ones..Why? Because they are  too small....they look up to us for their needs....and time will come when we would look up to them.
We owe our time to them.Read with them, play with them and most importantly listen to them.

Love them before they no longer they need it.
Listen to them before they find another listener.
Talk to them before they give up on you.

I would like to share this article with  so every parent realizes how special this time is.
___________________________________________________________________________
No more oatmeal kisses by Erma Bombeck
A young mother writes: “I know you’ve written before about the empty-nest syndrome, that lonely period after the children are grown and gone. Right now I’m up to my eyeballs in laundry and muddy boots. The baby is teething; the boys are fighting. My husband just called and said to eat without him, and I fell off my diet. Lay it on me again, will you?”
OK. One of these days, you’ll shout, “Why don’t you kids grow up and act your age!” And they will. Or, “You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do . . . and don’t slam the door!” And they won’t.
You’ll straighten up the boys’ bedroom neat and tidy: bumper stickers discarded, bedspread tucked and smooth, toys displayed on the shelves. Hangers in the closet. Animals caged. And you’ll say out loud, “Now I want it to stay this way.” And it will.
You’ll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn’t been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in the icing, and you’ll say, “Now, there’s a meal for company.” And you’ll eat it alone.
You’ll say, “I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around. No demolition crews. Silence! Do you hear?” And you’ll have it.
No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghetti. No more bedspreads to protect the sofa from damp bottoms. No more gates to stumble over at the top of the basement steps. No more clothespins under the sofa. No more playpens to arrange a room around.
No more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent. No more sand on the sheets or Popeye movies in the bathroom. No more iron-on patches, rubber bands for ponytails, tight boots or wet knotted shoestrings.
Imagine. A lipstick with a point on it. No baby-sitter for New Year’s Eve. Washing only once a week. Seeing a steak that isn’t ground. Having your teeth cleaned without a baby on your lap.
No PTA meetings. No car pools. No blaring radios. No one washing her hair at 11 o’clock at night. Having your own roll of Scotch tape.
Think about it. No more Christmas presents out of toothpicks and library paste. No more sloppy oatmeal kisses. No more tooth fairy. No giggles in the dark. No knees to heal, no responsibility.
Only a voice crying, “Why don’t you grow up?” and the silence echoing, “I did.”
________________________________________________________________________

Karachi: The city by the sea

  Blaring horns of over loaded buses , deadly traffic, ever crowded bazaars, beggars with their new trick every day, roads which can get flooded with just an hour of heavy rain..

all of this happens in Karachi. But when you close your eyes and think about Karachi..you can see and feel…

Heavy breeze which encapsulate you fully..and captures every essence of you..
shiny colorful buses whose conductors prefer to shout ‘double hai’..instead of tapping the bus two times to signal the clear way..
Sunday bazaars…zainab market..which have a charm of their own
the craze for roll paratha….
addiction to chaai
the city with the best biryani..
spicy chaat..
Aagha's juice..
Ami's pan...
the language of ‘abay yaar’..
the magnificent beach..
 The glittery silver sand which sticks with you for days..
the powerful waves which take away your sorrows..
If you have lived there ..you can never ever disown Karachi.

Karachi has a magnetic gravity which pulls you towards itself with all its force!  And every time you leave ..you just know that you have to come back...The city does not requests you to come ..it knows you will!

The PERFECT home…!

‘Feel  at home’. ‘Home sweet home’…’there is no place like home’

So what is so special and perfect about home? Spotlessly clean? Aesthetically  decorated? Perfect food right on time? Or on the contrary ..everything  is just fine as it is.

After forced conversation and strained smiles throughout the day...the moment you enter home you are free! Free to  throw your shoes where ever you want. Free to put your feet up, play loud music..sing on top of your voice or say nothing at all. You are free to toss that fork away…and eat anyway you like!

There is nothing more comfortable than kicking off the perfect and fashionable shoes that killed your feet all day or releasing yourself of that branded tie that felt like a rope around your neck at the end of the day. It is home where you do not have to be perfect!

So after all… may be  little imperfections are what  make the home so perfect!