Holy journey

I am very excited today. Not just because holidays are going on and I am promoted to a new class. I am going to Makkah to perform Umrah and will also visit Madina as part of the pilgrimage.

I am happy because it is like a dream come true. I always asked my parents to take me for Umrah or Hajj.

I am waiting eagerly for the trip as I will be visiting the significant places of Islamic history. We have been taught about Islamic history in the school and learning through books as well as the Net. I always wanted to see those historic places and battlefields.

We keep learning for years about them and imagine them but it is a rare chance to see them. I think that books can enhance our knowledge about historic places or monuments but we get full knowledge when we see them. It is the same feeling like when you see the monuments or places in Delhi. Apart from being a holy journey, it is also like an educational trip where I will learn more about Allah and His Messengers (PBUH) and his struggle.

We should take advantage of living in a place near these cities and visit Makkah and Madina frequently. We can go and perform Umra or Hajj. It is a chance that we should not let go.

(Published in The Gulf Today on April 6, 2013)

Mind your language

Computers have made our lives easy. People say that even the minor mistakes that may elude human eyes can’t go unchecked by this man-made machine. But I have noticed many mistakes which not only escaped careful human eyes but also passed through the mighty machine. Some of those mistakes were hilarious, I couldn’t stop myself from sharing them with you.

Once, I was going through the pages of a newspaper when I noticed a very surprising job-title – “By Our Chef Reporter” — written below the headline. I was confused and consulted my father. 

I asked, “Can you describe the designation of Chef Reporter?” He started laughing and I got more curious. Later, he told me it must be a spelling mistake.

This mistake had made the “Chief Reporter” a “Chef Reporter.”

On another occasion, I was going through the weather forecast in a newspaper. I suddenly spotted that it had been printed, “The son will rise early tomorrow.”

It baffled me as why should someone should announce in the newspaper that his son will wake up early the next day. Later, I realised that they wanted to write, “The sun will rise early tomorrow.”

Recently, I got puzzled when one of my cousins sent me an email. He wrote that he lost his favourite watch in the “Dessert.”

I kept thinking what he meant by that as the watch can fall on the dish but how can he lose it. The next day when he visited us, he explained, “Recently, we had gone for Desert Safari and I lost my watch there.” 

I realised that we should be careful not only with our works but also with our words.

(Published in The Gulf Today on March 30, 2013)

Puzzling perceptions

Certain occupations are so much associated with their workplaces that they seem to be inseparable and any change astounds us.

Like, we don’t need to ask a doctor where s/he works, as it is clear that a doctor works for a hospital. So when we meet a doctor we automatically ask him/her which hospital s/he works for. It is similar with other professions like an engineer, an architect, and others.

But recently I was surprised when we had a guest who was a doctor by profession. I asked him, “Uncle, which hospital do you work for?”

He burst into laughter along with my father. He replied, “I work for a college, not for a hospital.”

I was taken aback. I got confused what could be the use of a doctor in a college. He explained that he provided medical facilities to the students.

Another puzzling moment was when I met my new classmate, whose father was an engineer. I asked her, “Which company does he work for?”

I was surprised when she replied that her father worked for a school. He helped in constructing new buildings.

An encounter with a lawyer was another hilarious moment. I asked him, “Uncle, which court do you go to — High Court or District Court?” “I work for the Railways,” he replied.

I then remembered the incident when I noticed that many people perceived that an editor only worked for a newspaper or a magazine. I was astonished by this observation because an editor could edit anything like storybooks, novels and dictionary too. It is really hard to change certain perceptions.

(Published in The Gulf Today on March 23, 2013)

Nature care

The park is a good place to relax, educate, entertain. The greenery soothes our eyes, while rides, swings and slides are the additional advantages. 

I visit the park in my neighbourhood daily. But I enjoy much more nowadays. Not only because my holidays are on, I relish more now as the weather is pleasant and the breeze is more refreshing.

Recently, I have noticed a larger number of people visiting the park. While most of them visit just for fun, many others are seen walking or doing exercises to get a slim body, perhaps taking advantage of the good weather.  

It is always nice to see more people in the park, but the thing I hate is that occasional visitors rarely care about the facilities. They litter the ground, harm plants, pluck flowers.  I have also seen another set of people who keep occupying the rides and exercise machines for long without thinking about others, while many adults occupy facilities meant for children.

It is our right to enjoy these facilities, but it is also our duty to protect the machines as well as nature’s gift.

I recently read an interesting quote of India’s Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi. “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed. What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another.” 

I really wonder what gives people the right to ruin this beautiful planet of ours. Nature is not a place to visit. It is our home.

(Published in The Gulf Today on March 16, 2013)

What’s in a name?

                                     

While surfing through the Net, I got stuck with William Shakespeare’s often-mentioned quote, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet.”

I am sure many people would have disagreed with him then, as people still differ with his observation. Many are of the opinion that a name has everything to do with quality while others think that a person’s nature depends on his name.

But I think that Shakespeare was right as I have noticed many people in my surroundings who don’t live up to their name.

I had a classmate whose name was Rice. Everyone found it strange because the rice grain can be easily broken but she was very strong and it was very difficult to persuade her to change her stand.

While writing this, I remember Sweety Aunty, my neighbour who has now shifted to America. I could never understand how she got nicknamed as Sweety, because she was never sweet to the neighbours. She was always ready to fight.

I recently read about a boy named Brian who always said that he was very brainy and he used to write his name as “Brain.” But he didn’t even have a bit of brain. He always used to do something foolish. 

I have also read about a man whose name was Alive, but he was never lively. Whenever he was told something, he would never react. Another character was called Happy, who never looked cheerful whether it was his birthday or his job or any other occasion.

And how can I forget my neighbour Lucky Uncle. I always thought what a wonderful name he has got. I had the impression that he must be very lucky, until I heard his tragic story. As usual, Shakespeare was right once again.

(Published in The Gulf Today on March 9, 2013)

Strength of confidence

If a person has confidence that he can accomplish a task, he will do it. But if a person has talent without confidence, then even his talent is of no use. I have seen many examples of this.

Like, during the class tests I have heard many of my classmates saying, “O God! I have learnt everything, but I don’t know whether I will write the answers correctly. I am so scared.” And sometime, they really make mistakes.

Similarly, I have heard of one of my uncles who was never confident while going for interviews. Everytime he would say, “Oh! I don’t think I will get the job as many brilliant people will be there.”

I recently watched the movie, Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year. It was about an ordinary man who became the head of a famous company as he was confident of becoming one.

Recently, our Hindi teacher also told us that if we have confidence in ourselves, we can achieve our goals in life. 

She narrated us her story. She said that she used to get scared when she had to give her exams. When her final exams for Grade 12 were approaching, she was worried. But she recovered her confidence and started preparing for the exam. She was surprised when the result was declared. She had passed with flying colours.

This story inspired us all. We all had many thoughts in our mind. We discussed with each other after listening to the story. One of my classmates said that as the exams are approaching, we will also prepare for it and will give our final exam with full confidence. 

I read an interesting quote by Alfred Tennyson. “Self-reverence, self-knowledge, self-control: These three alone lead life to sovereign power.”

(Published in The Gulf Today on March 2, 2013)

Wealthy Message

When I go on vacations, my grandmother narrates many value-based stories. One of her favourite topics is money. She tells me about the importance of money and happiness. At first, I was not able to understand anything. But now when I meet people, I recall those stories and try to understand what she really meant.

I have met many people who think that money is everything. They say that we can live like kings if we have money. But I don’t think in those terms. I have seen many people who earn little money but keep smiling. I have also seen wealthy people, but many of them remain tense. Thus it’s not necessary that money is everything. We should not care so much for money as money can’t buy happiness. I see many examples of this in my daily life.

One example of this I can mention is about my friends. They keep on discussing electronic gadgets. Once a friend said that she had got an iPad2, but she wanted an iPad4. Another said that she had Blackberry phone, but she was asking her parents to buy Samsung Galaxy S III. Another of my friends said that she would love to have an iPhone5.

It seems that they spend more time looking for new gadgets in the market than looking towards other people around them. I have noticed that our conductor lives a peaceful life with a simple mobile in his hand. Similarly, the watchman of our building gets very little money, but he keeps smiling.

Recently I was reading a book, where I noticed a very important sentence: “Money can buy almost everything, but not the dignity and respect of being who we are.”

(Published in The Gulf Today on February 23, 2013)