A farewell ode

An ode to my cousins, also my best friends, who are relocating to India for a better future... Going to miss them

You were here for so long

And now you have to leave

So I thought of writing a song

For which, the words I had to weave

You have been with us

For so many years

Will you be comfortable in India?

Is one of my fears

Such people are hard to find

Who are hospitable and kind

You are one of the few

We all will miss you 

Hope you live happily there

Can’t wait to see you again here

Do not forget us, be in touch

We will remember you very much

Best Wishes...

Saamia Mujeeb

Skype is the limit

Are you on WhatsApp?

With the advancement of technology, the world has become a global village. People have come closer as you can virtually meet people living in a distant place anytime, anywhere, and that too for free. Thanks to Apps like WhatsApp and Skype, no distance has remained a distance between two persons.

But this is not the whole truth. No technology can bridge the distance between a mother and her daughter. I realised this during the past few days as my mother has gone to India to see her ailing mother.

I could not accompany her, as I have to attend school. Since this was the first time she had left me alone with my father, I was a bit nervous. I was confident that I would be accompanying her virtually with the help of modern gadgets. I was wrong. 

However, it has helped me realise the importance of mother. Mother is only a six-letter word but it has a very broad meaning. It defines eternal love. Without mother, we are nothing. Mothers are God’s gift to us. We should take good care of that special present.

These electronic gadgets have made it easy to talk to my mother yet the closeness is missing. I miss the way my mother advised me before taking every step. I miss the delicious dishes she used to prepare just for me. I miss her when I wake up early in the morning for school, as she used to get up much early to help me get ready for school. Even after coming back from school, I used to find her there for me.

I just wonder how she manages each and every household chore without any complaint. She surely is a super-woman, because despite everything, she keeps smiling. I miss it all. It is difficult to see her heart-warming smile through a phone. These devices cannot transmit the warmth and affection that I am habituated to receiving every now and then.

I have realised not to rely too much on technology.

(Published in The Gulf Today on April 11, 2015)

Missing melody

Do you like melodious songs?

Listening to good music is one of the best ways to relax or de-stress. It helps in lifting our mood and enjoy the pleasant atmosphere it creates in the immediate surroundings.

Perhaps that is the reason, why in India lyrics and melody are much more cherished, be it classical, semi-classical or film music. We still love to hear the melodious songs of evergreen singers such as Mohammed Rafi, Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar. It has been 35 years since Mohammed Rafi passed away, while Kishore Kumar left this mortal world over three decades ago. 

Similarly, the Queen of Indian film music, Lata Mangeshkar, has not recorded a new song for years. Yet their songs are still popular with the masses.

But in recent times, rapper Honey Singh has become very popular. In fact, he even claims to be changing the music industry of Bollywood. He has attracted many children and adults alike, who have become a fan of him. 

Many of my friends too claim to be big fans of him. They consider Honey Singh the best singer of Bollywood and say that no movie can be a hit without a rap in it. They also believe that this is the future of Indian music and raps will continue forever.

But I don’t think that rap music can last longer, simply because it doesn’t help in de-stressing. Instead it causes stress sometimes. I still remember a popular rap song, “Meri Laundry ka Ek Bill” from Farhan Akhtar’s movie, “Rock On.” It was the first time I had heard an Indian rap song, yet I did not like it as it neither had good lyrics nor melody. I cannot understand why anyone would be interested in someone losing his laundry bill.

Someone may say that I do not like raps because I grew up listening to melodious songs. Whatever be the reason, I hope that it is just a passing phase and that the era of melodious music will return soon.

(Published in The Gulf Today on April 4, 2015)