Saturday, August 14, 2010
Yaarey!
I am never too eager to go home. Don't know, have been just like this. Friends at university used to call me 'Ghar se nikala howa', and I agree they had their justified reasons for it. For 4 years, I have spent hours in cafes, pathani dhabas and on road. Just moving yahan se wahan. Random. It has its own charm you know. When you have friends, it feel like an ultimate ecstasy. Just plain raw energy making you believe that yes, everything is achievable. Its never too dark when you have friends.. Its never too hopeless.
Whatever I learned from those seemingly insignificant chats with my best buddies over chai has stayed within me. Those amusing pranks, entertaining stories and innumerable fun filled moments have really made the difference. Sounds different but I absolutely believe that your friends in longer terms, define your character. Your true identity.
Friday, July 16, 2010
Change & Youth Conferences
Today, over lunch at some famous restaurant, we were discussing.. well you know, how mismanagement is confining our growth as an organization and as collective nation. Nothing new really. Usual sort of a discussion that yields some shabby and predictably boring conclusions. But all in the process somewhere, and I don't know from where one colleague said something really interesting. Something extremely fundamental in its core yet amazingly forgotten. Something which can be understood and applied in context of politics, governance, management, conflicts, technology, economics and every other significant dimension of human evolution. Something which can redefine our future.
"Yes we have problems and some serious questions to answer... but what we gotta realize is, we are actually part of that very same problem..."
People who are into organizing youth conferences, conventions, seminars and blah blah should take some notes. Its not exactly the way you try things out. Well, to change them. Don't get me wrong here. I'm certainly not against the idea of youth mobilization for a cause but I don't subscribe to this whole notion of talking about food and water shortages in parts of Sindh while relaxing my butt on a cushioned chair of some air conditioned five star hotel. Rich kids like us playing 'Lets change the world' game? In 2007, I was part of one glorified youth residential conference where each one of the 300 participants paid around 35000Rs. for 5 days. That's like 10500000 Rs in total. A lot of money made by the organizers from engaging some insignificant and brazen minnows to flip charts, role plays and incoherent babbling.
Change. What is change?
Nelson Mandela had the answer. His version was never too loud. Steve Jobs had the right idea. In out, being consistent year after year... Apple has now penetrated into world markets. Getting so inherently connected to our lives. Adding value, through change. Lance Armstrong's fight against cancer is another shining example. His journey wasn't sexy always. But didn't he just redefine the perceived level of human courage? Even religion has it. How Muhammad (S.A.W) transformed the ill bred and absolutely beast like Arab creatures into world leaders who went on conquering almost one third of the entire world is something of highest worth and significance. Science, Art, Literature. Muslim led every field, through change.
We got to realize two things. One, you got to be In the system to Change the system. You got to understand the governing dynamics. Make sure you realize that you've contributions someway in every problem you can think of. Make yourself think this way. As a part. Don't go to change straight away. Don't even talk about it. First, find your own faults, your crime, your role. It is bound to re-define your thinking pattern.
Two, change is never incoherent. Its focused. Consistent and dimensionally focused to produce some objectivity.
"Yes we have problems and some serious questions to answer... but what we gotta realize is, we are actually part of that very same problem..."
People who are into organizing youth conferences, conventions, seminars and blah blah should take some notes. Its not exactly the way you try things out. Well, to change them. Don't get me wrong here. I'm certainly not against the idea of youth mobilization for a cause but I don't subscribe to this whole notion of talking about food and water shortages in parts of Sindh while relaxing my butt on a cushioned chair of some air conditioned five star hotel. Rich kids like us playing 'Lets change the world' game? In 2007, I was part of one glorified youth residential conference where each one of the 300 participants paid around 35000Rs. for 5 days. That's like 10500000 Rs in total. A lot of money made by the organizers from engaging some insignificant and brazen minnows to flip charts, role plays and incoherent babbling.
Change. What is change?
Nelson Mandela had the answer. His version was never too loud. Steve Jobs had the right idea. In out, being consistent year after year... Apple has now penetrated into world markets. Getting so inherently connected to our lives. Adding value, through change. Lance Armstrong's fight against cancer is another shining example. His journey wasn't sexy always. But didn't he just redefine the perceived level of human courage? Even religion has it. How Muhammad (S.A.W) transformed the ill bred and absolutely beast like Arab creatures into world leaders who went on conquering almost one third of the entire world is something of highest worth and significance. Science, Art, Literature. Muslim led every field, through change.
We got to realize two things. One, you got to be In the system to Change the system. You got to understand the governing dynamics. Make sure you realize that you've contributions someway in every problem you can think of. Make yourself think this way. As a part. Don't go to change straight away. Don't even talk about it. First, find your own faults, your crime, your role. It is bound to re-define your thinking pattern.
Two, change is never incoherent. Its focused. Consistent and dimensionally focused to produce some objectivity.
image: Alkaline- Deviantart
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Connecting Dots - I
"You know its true... Everything I do.. I do it for you."
One beautiful song by Bryan Adams. Brings back so many memories... makes me want to get personal tonight, after well around 3 years I think. At that time somewhere around the later half of 2007, I promised myself that I would not let my emotions flow through my words. I decided I would not talk about my breakdowns, about things/people I love and what I feel about them. Resting deep down inside those inexplicable corners of my existence. All that I have written since that day, have just been mere reflections. Point of view, you may say. About things/people, where how what I think about them. I completely own my thoughts, my words but there are things I yearn for. People who I love, people who I need, people I want to be with. And badly. All these years, it has just been about them, not me. Someone needing love, unconditionally.
Today, it is just going to be about me.
There was a time, when I had gone very unstable. Emotionally I mean. What do you expect man.. I was 19, madly in love with her. And what happened... 3 30AM one night she texted me, "Noor.. I think I'm falling for someone else.. you need to get over with us". Hmmmm.. You know I agree things weren't all smooth between us but.. I didn't expect things to be.. well this interesting. Ha! Things were interesting. I met her next day at KFC nearby. She looked like someone in love but crap, it wasn't for me. I knew it, had to accept it. And yeah, had to attend my first cousin's wedding reception that evening as well. I came home, cried in shower, dressed up, went to the reception, met relatives, smiled, talked... being normal about it... being personal about it.
It was that day. The last time I cried for her. Or anyone else. I realized its such a difficult thing to do, crying that is. You know that day really made me who I am today... some would say strong, some would say aloof and some cold may be. I don't know but yes... today I'm more prepared to deal with such interesting situations. I'm no longer 19, no longer a first timer. I'm glad I didn't let myself completely crumble. I feel blessed that I had friends to help me get out of it. Many a times I picked up a knife to cut myself but I never did. Many a times, we had fights and arguments just on the night before my exam but I never failed even one. I'm blessed you know, I got out of it without much damage. Well.. yeah may be.
But you know, this suffering, broken relationships, fights, arguments... nothing has stayed long enough to weaken the intensity of my desire to love. I want to love. I want to be loved.
You need to know... there is someone real behind that shining armor... and he needs a hug!
One beautiful song by Bryan Adams. Brings back so many memories... makes me want to get personal tonight, after well around 3 years I think. At that time somewhere around the later half of 2007, I promised myself that I would not let my emotions flow through my words. I decided I would not talk about my breakdowns, about things/people I love and what I feel about them. Resting deep down inside those inexplicable corners of my existence. All that I have written since that day, have just been mere reflections. Point of view, you may say. About things/people, where how what I think about them. I completely own my thoughts, my words but there are things I yearn for. People who I love, people who I need, people I want to be with. And badly. All these years, it has just been about them, not me. Someone needing love, unconditionally.
Today, it is just going to be about me.
There was a time, when I had gone very unstable. Emotionally I mean. What do you expect man.. I was 19, madly in love with her. And what happened... 3 30AM one night she texted me, "Noor.. I think I'm falling for someone else.. you need to get over with us". Hmmmm.. You know I agree things weren't all smooth between us but.. I didn't expect things to be.. well this interesting. Ha! Things were interesting. I met her next day at KFC nearby. She looked like someone in love but crap, it wasn't for me. I knew it, had to accept it. And yeah, had to attend my first cousin's wedding reception that evening as well. I came home, cried in shower, dressed up, went to the reception, met relatives, smiled, talked... being normal about it... being personal about it.
It was that day. The last time I cried for her. Or anyone else. I realized its such a difficult thing to do, crying that is. You know that day really made me who I am today... some would say strong, some would say aloof and some cold may be. I don't know but yes... today I'm more prepared to deal with such interesting situations. I'm no longer 19, no longer a first timer. I'm glad I didn't let myself completely crumble. I feel blessed that I had friends to help me get out of it. Many a times I picked up a knife to cut myself but I never did. Many a times, we had fights and arguments just on the night before my exam but I never failed even one. I'm blessed you know, I got out of it without much damage. Well.. yeah may be.
But you know, this suffering, broken relationships, fights, arguments... nothing has stayed long enough to weaken the intensity of my desire to love. I want to love. I want to be loved.
You need to know... there is someone real behind that shining armor... and he needs a hug!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Intellect
Your mettle is tested every now and then. Just when you start thinking that you might have all the answers, life so artistically changes the questions. Questions irrelevant to answers; questions incompetent of any definite conclusions. Life's a mess, a problematic affair if you take it that way. Boring, customary and strictly sensible. But on the other way, it is a myth. Just like a hidden treasure. It gets interesting and significantly magical the moment one understands the prank behind it.
In our lives, being sensible and logical can be boring because we so consistently relate it to the net outcome. The conclusive part; the final result. I believe logic should be understood like something inherent, something beautifully cultivated across the procedure, the course of action. Being logical or intellectual should not be considered as being mechanical. Anyway, anywhere. Being logical should be as good looking as being humane. It should be as warm as a motherly hug and as emotional as the first love. Like some close friends enjoying a game of chess. Like a child sitting along with his papa trying to fit jigsaw pieces together. Like two lovers discussing Rumi. Long walks. Beach.
Its disappointing to feel it. Feel that we are fast losing that breathing intellect that we all have. We are not exercising it. Stretching it. Friends meet at Sheesha and discuss their babes, lovers meet and they think they talk about love. 16 17 18 years of age, talking hours on the phone? 'Dou ruppey mein aik ganta baat'? You attend a lecture and the professor, who happens to be an eminent scientist fails to understand the simple philosophy that binds all the scientific theories and evolutions together. He fails to understand and then, fails to deliver. Quite obviously. And the chain goes on... Being mechanically focused on the net outcome. An unsatisfying journey to the center of nowhere land.
I believe we need to learn, and quickly. We don't have to be anyone else to be logical. Just being human again would be critical for the years to come.
In our lives, being sensible and logical can be boring because we so consistently relate it to the net outcome. The conclusive part; the final result. I believe logic should be understood like something inherent, something beautifully cultivated across the procedure, the course of action. Being logical or intellectual should not be considered as being mechanical. Anyway, anywhere. Being logical should be as good looking as being humane. It should be as warm as a motherly hug and as emotional as the first love. Like some close friends enjoying a game of chess. Like a child sitting along with his papa trying to fit jigsaw pieces together. Like two lovers discussing Rumi. Long walks. Beach.
Its disappointing to feel it. Feel that we are fast losing that breathing intellect that we all have. We are not exercising it. Stretching it. Friends meet at Sheesha and discuss their babes, lovers meet and they think they talk about love. 16 17 18 years of age, talking hours on the phone? 'Dou ruppey mein aik ganta baat'? You attend a lecture and the professor, who happens to be an eminent scientist fails to understand the simple philosophy that binds all the scientific theories and evolutions together. He fails to understand and then, fails to deliver. Quite obviously. And the chain goes on... Being mechanically focused on the net outcome. An unsatisfying journey to the center of nowhere land.
I believe we need to learn, and quickly. We don't have to be anyone else to be logical. Just being human again would be critical for the years to come.
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Constant Change - Revisited
Since ever, reading has been one of my most beloved hobbies. Something that comes naturally to me. Though the inconsistency of my taste and my wavering nature is well exhibited from the way I select a book to read, one particular genre was successful [till sometime back] in arresting a meaty portion of my time. "Self Help and Inspirationals". Yes! I have quite a few of them at my home. Dale Carnegie, Norman Vincent Peale, Og Mandino, Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield, Anthony Robbins, Robin Sharma, Napoleon Hill, Stephen Covey etc etc.. And the list never ends. My brother has this odd habit of collecting self help books and I, the very reader, continued to read them. And read again. Some tried to teach me how to find love, some tried to signify shortcuts to fame and fortune and some tried to make me a better human. I don't know how much they all succeeded but one thing is for sure, reading all these self help books over the years, I have finally decided one thing. That I 'm NOT going to read them anymore. Atleast for sometime. I think I don't need so much of help.
But I guess this happens with every one of us. Sometimes we just start feeling over filled. We might not know but we yearn to feel a bit empty. Sometimes we suddenly get to know that we know so much. Sometimes, our haggard minds desire for something new. Little bit immaturity. Little bit of childishness. Sometimes getting 100/100 isn't satisfying, as it doesn't offer any challenges or targets to achieve then.
I've observed something salient about us beings. That we, unlike every other creation in the universe, get tired of things. We actually dwell nowhere and are in constant state of search. Search for the subsequent. That search might not necessarily be for prosperity or betterment. It might be destructive and disparaging. We are self ignorant to the fact that changes can swing both ways. From better to worse. From worse to better. But who cares. What a 'typical' human soul wants is a Change. [And the word typical excludes saints and Sufis].
I think this is why anything in abundance just doesn't work for us. Infact, it starts to work against us. Start walking on The Right Path. Be true and speak the truth. One day, Even if you don't ask for a change, you might get weary about The truth, The Angels and The Heavens... Lie, lie, lie... and one day, there is a bright chance that you might start seeking "The Righteous Path". I wouldn't call it a God's blessing on that lier but to me, it is the same need. The Search for the subsequent. The quest that keeps us mortals tangling around two extremes. We leave "Black" in search for something brighter... but even "White" doesn't satisfy us. May be this is why; most of us spend huge portions of our lives traveling and roving in those "Gray" areas.
I believe science can re-create everything. It can make everything seem understandable and logical. But this strange expedition of us mortals is and should always stay as a delicate knot. Who knows, undoing it might change everything...
Noor.
Wednesday, March 19,2008
1:34 AM
But I guess this happens with every one of us. Sometimes we just start feeling over filled. We might not know but we yearn to feel a bit empty. Sometimes we suddenly get to know that we know so much. Sometimes, our haggard minds desire for something new. Little bit immaturity. Little bit of childishness. Sometimes getting 100/100 isn't satisfying, as it doesn't offer any challenges or targets to achieve then.
I've observed something salient about us beings. That we, unlike every other creation in the universe, get tired of things. We actually dwell nowhere and are in constant state of search. Search for the subsequent. That search might not necessarily be for prosperity or betterment. It might be destructive and disparaging. We are self ignorant to the fact that changes can swing both ways. From better to worse. From worse to better. But who cares. What a 'typical' human soul wants is a Change. [And the word typical excludes saints and Sufis].
I think this is why anything in abundance just doesn't work for us. Infact, it starts to work against us. Start walking on The Right Path. Be true and speak the truth. One day, Even if you don't ask for a change, you might get weary about The truth, The Angels and The Heavens... Lie, lie, lie... and one day, there is a bright chance that you might start seeking "The Righteous Path". I wouldn't call it a God's blessing on that lier but to me, it is the same need. The Search for the subsequent. The quest that keeps us mortals tangling around two extremes. We leave "Black" in search for something brighter... but even "White" doesn't satisfy us. May be this is why; most of us spend huge portions of our lives traveling and roving in those "Gray" areas.
I believe science can re-create everything. It can make everything seem understandable and logical. But this strange expedition of us mortals is and should always stay as a delicate knot. Who knows, undoing it might change everything...
Noor.
Wednesday, March 19,2008
1:34 AM
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