تون مونکي ياد اڄ به آهين

ليکڪ: رضوان احمد ميمڻ

انسان هونءَ ته دنيا جا سڀ ڏک ۽ اذيتون سهي وڃي ٿو، پر جڏهن ڪنهن پرين پياري جي جدائيءَ جو غم وڪوڙي ٿو ته پل ۾ شيشي جيئان ٽوڙي چڪنا چور ڪري ڇڏي ٿو. ڇو ته وڇوڙي جو درد تمام تڪليفده هوندو آهي. ساوڻ جي برساتن ۾ جڏهن پنهنجي ساجن جون يادون ڪڙڪا ڪن ٿيون ته من کي موهي وجھن ٿيون. پوءِ دل بي اختيار ٿي سڏڪا ڀرڻ لڳندي آهي.

اهڙو ئي درد مون ارشاد جي نيڻن ۾ جھاتي پائي محسوس ڪيو آهي. جيتوڻيڪ هن جي اکڙين ۾ هاڻي لڙڪ ناهن هوندا، هن جا ٿڌا ساهه هن جي درد ڪٿا بيان ڪندا آهن. مسجد ۾ سجدا ڏئي، سنڌوءَ جي ڪناري تي ريڊيو ٻڌي، ٽيوشن پڙهائي يا ڪڏهن عاقل جي اسٽان تي هوٽل ۾ چانهن پي هو دل وندرائيندو رهندو آهي. پر هن کان سندس محبوب اڃا وسريو ناهي.

هر وقت کيسي ۾ هڪ تصوير ساڻس گڏ هوندي آهي. اها تصوير پنهنجي سوٽِ دلشادِ جي هوندي اٿس. اها تصوير انهن پنهنجي ننڍپڻ ۾ اسڪول جي آخري ڏينهن تي گروپ ڦوٽو ۾ ڪڍرائي هئي. دلشادِ ارشادَ سان پنج درجا گڏ پڙهي هئي. بعد ۾ دلشاد جا گھر وارا ڄامشوري لڏي ويا هئا. ارشاد جي دل ۾ دلشاد لاءِ ان وقت جاءِ پيدا ٿي هئي، جڏهن ننڍپڻ ۾ دلشاد ۽ ارشاد ڄڃ سان وڏيرن ڏي ڏاجو ڏيکارڻ ويا هيا. دلشاد ارشاد جي سوٽِ هئي. ان وقت انهن جي ڳوٺ ۾ رواج هوندو هو ته هر وِهانءَ شاديءَ تي ڳوٺاڻان وڏيرن کي ڏاجو ڏيکاريندا هئا.  وڏيرن جي باغيچي مان ارشاد گلاب جا گل پٽيا. ”ارشاد ٻه ٽي گل مونکي ڏيندين؟“ دلشاد ارشاد کي چيو. هن سڀ گل دلشاد کي هڪ لفظ به نه ڪڇندي ڏئي ڇڏيا.

  وقت جي وهڪري ارشاد کي ڇا ڇا نه سيکاريو آهي؟ خاموشيءَ سان سڏڪا ڀرڻ، ڏک کي لڪائڻ،  ۽ چهري تي مرڪ سجائڻ جو هن فن سکي ورتو آهي. چوندا آهن ته دل درياهه هوندي آهي. اهو پهاڪو مونکي تڏهن مڪمل طور تي سمجھه ۾ آيو جڏهن مون ارشاد جي دل ۾ ڇلڪندڙ ڇولين جو آواز ٻڌو.

سياري جو آچر جي شام هجي ۽ مان واڪ لاءِ سنڌوءَ جي ڪپ تي نڪتل هيس. منهنجي ملاقات اڪثر ڪري ارشاد سان واڪ دوران ئي ٿيندي آهي. ارشاد کي خبر نه هئي ته مان ان جي پٺيان بيٺو آهيان. هو نم جي وڻ کي ٽيڪ ڏئي هلڪي آواز سان ڪنهن سان مخاطب هو.

”هاڻي تون ڏاڍي پڪي ٿي وئي آهين. ايتري پڪي جو خوابن ۾ به اچڻ ڇڏي ڏنو اٿئي. شايد تون ڄامشوري جي هوائن ۾گم ٿي وئي آهين. پر مونکي تون ياد اڄ به آهين. هن وقت تائين توکان سواءِ ٻئي ڪنهن جي باري ۾ سوچيو ناهي. دل تنهنجي يادن سان آشنا رهي ٿي.  تنهنجي وڇڙڻ جو درد من کي جھوريندو رهي ٿو. پر تنهنجي ملڻ جي آس جيئاريندي رهي ٿي.“

جڏهن مان ارشاد جي اڳيان وڃي بيٺس، ته ڏٺم ته تصوير سان ڳالهائي رهيو هو. هن جي اکين مان ڳوڙها لارون ڪري وهي رهيا هئا. هو مونکي ڀاڪر پائي چوڻ لڳو:

”رضوان يار ڏس نه ڀلا ائين ڪبو آ، اڄ اٺون مهينو پورو ٿيس جو نه ڳوٺ آئي آهي ۽ نه ئي فون تي رابطو ڪيو اٿئين! پنهنجو نمبر به بند اٿس. هر هفتي ڪال ڪندي هئي، پر هاڻي خبر ناهي ڇو ايترا ڏينهن ٿي ويا اٿس جو ڪال ئي نه ڪئي اٿئين.“

”تون پاڻ ڇو نه ٿو چڪر هڻي اچين؟ اهو گھر به ته تنهنجي چاچي جو گھر آهي؟“

”ها يارَ، پر بابا جي وفات کانپوءِ منهنجي ڀائرن جو چاچا سان سٺو تعلق نا هي رهيو. ملڪيت جي ڪري اهي پاڻ ۾ ناهن ڳالهائيندا.“

مون ارشاد کي آٿت ڏيندين چيو ته هوءَ ضرور ڪال ڪندي. ان ڏينهن مونکي احساس ٿيو ته ننڍپڻ جي پيار ۾ ڪيتري ته شدت هوندي آهي.

هڪ ٻيو مهينو گذري ويو، پر دلشاد جِي ارشاد کي ڪا به ڪال نه آئي. هو ڏاڍو پريشان هو. مون هن کي چيو، ”تون دلشاد کي چاهين ٿو ته پوءِ تون پنهنجي گھر وارن کي رشتي لاءِ ڇو نه ٿو موڪلين؟“

”مان هميشه سمجھندو هيس ته منهنجي ڀائرن جا چاچي جن سان تعلقات بهتر ٿيندا. مان صحيح وقت جو انتظار ڪندين ڪندين 20 سال گذاريا آهن. پر هاڻي مان امان کي چوندس.“

ٻئي ڏينهن ارشاد ٻڌايو ته هن جي ماءُ هن کي چيو، ”تنهنجا ڀائر گھر جا وڏا آهن. مان انهن کي چوندس ته اهي تنهنجو رشتو کڻي وڃن. پوءِ مان به ويندس. جيڪڏهن مان انهن جي اجازت کان بنا ويندس ته هو ناراض ٿيندا.“

مون ارشاد کي دلاسن سان ٽيڪ ڏني ته هن جا ڀائر رشتي لاءِ ضرور ويندا. اسان جي معاشري ۾ عورت کي فيصلن ڪرڻ جو اختيار گھٽ هوندو آهي. ويچاري امڙ ڇا ڪري ڀلا هوءَ پنهنجي پٽن کان ڊڄي ٿي.

ٽي ڏينهن گذري ويا ارشاد مونکي ڪٿي به نظر نه آيو. مان هن کي ڳولهي ڳولهي ٿڪجي پيس. خبر پئي ته هو شام جو پرائمري اسڪول ۾ وڃي ويهندو آهي. ان اسڪول ۾ هن جون دلشاد سان يادون جڙيل هيون. ”ڇو ڀلا اڃان ته مڳڻي به ناهي ٿي اڳ ۾ ئي لفٽ ناهي؟“ ارشاد کي مون چيو.

”مڳڻي ٿيندي به نه!“ هن غصي ۾ وراڻيو.

مون اندازو لڳايو ته ڪجھه گڙ ٻڙ آهي. ”ڪجھه ٻڌاءِ نه ڇو نه ٿيندين؟“

”يار امان ڀائوءَ سان ڳالهه ڪڍي هئي. منهنجي وڏي ڀاءَ مونکي چيو ”وڏو عاشق پٽ ٿيو آهين! تو ڪڏهن ڪک ڀڃي ٻه اڌا ناهي ڪيو، تون ڇا گھر هلائيندين! دلشاد جو پيءُ اسان کي رشتو ڪڏهن به نه ڏيندو.“ مان ڀائوءَ کي سمجھائڻ جي ڪوشش ڪئي، پر هو منهنجي ڪا ڳالهه ٻڌڻ لاءِ تيار نه هو. هو پاڻ ته پنهنجي زال ۽ ٻارن سان خوش آهي، پر مونهنجي خوشئَ جي هن کي ڪا پرواهه ناهي. رضوان، يار تون ئي ٻڌاءِ ڪهڙي ڪمي آهي مون ۾؟ ماسٽرز جي ڊگري آهي، صحتمند آهيان، ٽيوشن پڙهائي مهيني ۾ اٺ ڏهه هزار ڪمائي ويندو آهيان. الله چاهيو ته ڪا نه ڪا نوڪري به ملي ويندي.“

”بلڪل ڇو نه. سڀ کان وڏي ڳالهه ته دلشاد تنهنجي پنهنجي رت آهي. رت جي رشتن کان ڪي ٻيا ته رشتا وڌيڪ ناهن هوندا. تون پريشان نه ٿي الله سائين ڀلي ڪندو.“

”ڪيئن پريشان نه ٿيان؟ هاڻي تنهنجي آٿتن ۾ ڪوئي اثر ڪونهي. هاڻي منهنجي دل شيشي جيان ٽٽي پئي آهي. ڀائوءَ ۾ اها اميد نه هئي. جنهن طرح سان هن منهنجي جذبات جي مذاق اڏائي مونکان وسري ڪونه سگھندي. ارشاد ڪافي دير تائين خاموش ٿي ويو ۽ اچانڪ مونکي چيائين، ”اڄ مونکي پنهنجي ڪا درد ڀري شاعري ٻڌاءِ.“

”ڇڏ شاعريءِ کي.“

”نه ٻڌاءِ.“

”چڱو ڀلا. هي مون ڪلهه لکي:

دل چري آ تو لاءِ

تون دل کي ڌار نه ڪر.

پيار ڏئي مونکي

پري يار نه ڪر.

کولي اظهارڪر

ڳالهيون ڪل ٻه چار ڪر.

هاڻي اچي مل

 روح رهاڻ ڪر.“

”يار رضوان، تون به مونکي عشق جو سٽيل لڳندو آهين،“ ارشاد مونکي چيو. مان ٽهڪ ڏئي وراڻيو ته هتي ڪير سٽيل ناهي؟ هر ڪنهن چهري ۾ هڪ لڪيل ڪهاڻي آهي. بس وقت سان اسان مان ڪيترائي ڌڪ پچائي وري جيئڻ لڳندا آهن.

”هل، ٻيو شعر ٻڌاءِ.“

”اچ توکي دل جا حال ٻڌايان،

هن اڪيلاين جا کولي باب ٻڌايان.

ياد جو ايندو آهين،

لڙي لڙڪ پوندا آهن.

اچ ته توکي

ان سڏڪن جا آواز ٻڌايان.“

هي شعر ٻڌڻ سان ئي هن جي اکين ۾ لڙڪ تري آيا. ۽ چيائين، ”مان ڀائوءَ کي وري به منٿ ڪندس.“

مونکي ارشاد جي مخلص محبت ۽ اوسيئڙي جو ايترو ته احساس ٿيو جو مان وڃي ان جي ڀاءَ ڪريم سان مليس. ارشاد جي رشتي لاءِ چاچي ڏانهن وڃڻ لاءِ چيو مانس. اڃان مان ڳالهه مس ئي پوري ڪئي ته هن مونکي چيو، ”ڀائو هي اسانجو گھرو مسئلو آهي. اسان ڄاڻون اسان جا  ڪم. تون ڪير ٿيندو آهين اسان جي معاملن ۾ ٽنگ اڙائڻ وارو؟“

مونکي هميشه سنڌي هجڻ تي ناز هوندو آهي. پر ان ڏينهن مونکي وري به احساس ٿيو ته اسان مان ڪيترائي سنڌي محبت جا دشمن آهن. سنڌي ٽوپي ڪريم وانگر مٿي تي سجائي پاڻ کي معتبر محسوس ته ڪندا آهن. پر حقيقت ۾ وڏا ظالم هوندا آهن. نفرتون پکيڙڻ ته ڪوئي انهن وٽان سکي. بهرحال، سڀ سنڌي ائين به ناهن. پر سچ ته اهو آهي جو سنڌي ٽوپي مٿي تي سجائڻ سان يا سنڌي ٻولي ڳالهائڻ سان ڪو سنڌي ڪونه ٿيندو آهي. اصلي سنڌيءَ جي دل ۾ ته محبت جو مچ ٻرندو آهي. اصلي سنڌيءَ ته هميشه محبت جي ڳالهه ڪئي آهي. پوءِ اها محبت خدا سان هجي، ان جي ٻانهن سان هجي، يا ڌرتيءَ سان هجي. محبت ته محبت هوندي آهي. شاهه، سچل، ۽ ساميءَ محبت جو ئي پيغام ڏنو آهي. خبر ناهي محبت جا ويري سنڌ ڌرتيءَ جو نالو نفرتن سان ۽ عزت ۽ غيرت جي نالي تي ڇو خراب ڪرڻ تي اُتِريل آهن. اسان سنڌي ته مهماننواز ۽ محبتي آهيون. محبت ته انسان جي فطرت ۾ آهي. پوءِ هن پاڪ پوتر جذبي جي اهڙي طرح تذليل ڇو ڪيون؟ محبتن جي بجاءِ نفرتون ڇو پيدا ڪيون؟ اسان جو ذري گهٽ هر گهر گهرو اڻبڻت جو ڇو ڇڪار آهي؟ لڳي ٿو اسان مرشد ڀٽائيءَ جي پيغام کي بلڪل پٺي ڏئي ڇڏي آهي.

خير، ڪجهه ڏينهن کان بعد ۾ خبر پئي ته ارشاد گهر ڇڏي ويو آهي. مان پريشان ٿي ويس ڪافي ڏينهن تائين هن جي ڪا خبر نه هئي. جون جي پهرين تي هو واپس ڳوٺ آيو ۽ مونسان اچي مليو.

هن مونکي ٻڌايو ته:

”مان ڄامشوري ويو هيس. مان دلشاد سان مليس. هن جي محبت مون لاءِ ايتري ئي شديد آهي جيتري منهنجي هن لاءِ آهي. بس هن جو پيءُ به منهنجي ڀاءَ وانگر پنهنجي انا ۾ جڪڙيل آهي. دلشاد مونکي ٻڌايو ته هن جي شادي ڪنهن امير سان رٿي وئي هئي. هن خدڪشي ڪرڻ جي ڪوشش ڪئي هئي، پر ڊاڪٽر هن جي زندگي بچائي ورتي. هن پنهنجي پيءُ کان پنهنجي شاديءَ جو حق بخشرايو آهي. هن جي پيءَ هن کان قسم ورتو آهي ته هوءَ مونسان ڪڏهن به رابطو نه ڪندي. دلشاد مونکي چيو ته هوءَ مونکان سواءِ دنيا ۾ ٻئي ڪنهن جي به نه ٿيندي. هن دنيا ۾ نه سهي، اسين آخرت ۾ گڏ هوندا سين.“

بس ان ڏينهن کان وٺي ارشاد جي چهري تي هڪ خاموشي رهندي آهي. گھٽ گھٽ ڳالهائيندو آهي. جڏهن ملندو آهي ته شاعري ٻڌائڻ لاءِ چوندو آهي. هن جو درد هاڻي ان ليول تائين پهتو آهي جتي درد تڪليف جي بجاءِ راحت ڏيندو آهي ۽ اها محبت جي جيت آهي.

Fate or Choice?

Author: Rizwan Ahmed Memon

Our decisions shape our future: sound decisions can secure a bright tomorrow; unsound ones can lead to harsh consequences. Mukaram was 2 years younger than his elder brother, Karam. At a very young age, Mukaram learned that in life, if one could not help oneself, nobody else would. At the end of the day, when one has to face the consequences of one’s decisions, one may be led to believe that such things have been fated to happen. However, it is ultimately our decisions that can lead us to prosperity or to hard times. He also realized that prosperity is only possible through good education.

Both Karam and Mukaram were given the responsibility of running a shop by their elder brother, Muhataram. Karam was happy with the responsibility, but Mukaram thought it was not the right time for him to work. It was time for him to study and learn. However, he was not able to say anything to his brother Muhataram. At the age of 12, he had a good understanding of how to persuade their customers and how to make deals with them. He thought a lot about his future, although he never shared his thoughts with anyone. “I don’t want to be a shopkeeper when I grow up. I need to do something for my education. I will have to make my own way. If I keep going on the path that I am given, I will end up being an uneducated shopkeeper,” he thought.

Mukaram lived in a village called Akil in Sindh, a province of Pakistan. He went to a local government school that did not provide proper education. Due to the abortive check and balance system of the education department in the province, many teachers did not perform their duties well. In Sindh, still there are thousands of lazy teachers who continue to earn their salaries every month, while completely neglecting their responsibilities to teach their students. There are many ghost employees, whom the students have probably never met in person.

It was not easy for Mukaram to leave the shop completely. He went to the school every morning, but he did not really learn anything. After school, he ran the shop until nightfall. He waited up until his 8^th grade, but nothing changed. “I will have to take some steps myself now. Otherwise, I’m going to waste more years,” he said to himself, while he washed the potatoes for the shop.

One afternoon, when he came back from school, he said to Muhataram, “I want to enroll in a coaching center in Larkana City. Going to school here is nothing but a waste of time. I don’t want to run the shop for the rest of my life. I want to attain a higher education and become a lecturer.”

Muhataram was aghast when he heard this. He went silent for a moment and then said, “I don’t know much about coaching centers.”

“I have already chosen an institute. It won’t cost much. You just have to go there with me once. It will only take an hour or two.”

Mukaram was admitted to the institute. He went to school in the morning for one or two hours, then he returned to the shop and sat there until around 2 in the afternoon. Afterwards, he went to the coaching center, which was a good distance away. He had to cover some of the distance on foot. He would reach the city from their village riding vans that were very old. He found it troublesome to sit on the vans and to walk on foot, especially in summer, but Mukaram put up with all the hardships and continued attending his classes.

His brothers could not stop him from doing what he wanted; they could not distract him away from his dream of completing his studies. Once a man decides to do something for himself, persistence makes it easier to achieve his goals. After some months, Mukaram joined the computer center too. At that point, he had become confident enough to take further steps on his own. He spent very little time working in the shop late in the evening, much less than he used to. After a year, Mukaram also started teaching the children in his neighbourhood, so he did not have any time left to spend in the shop. Karam used to fight with Mukaram because he did not dedicate more time to the shop. If Karam had done like Mukaram, Muhataram could have somehow managed the shop himself. Sometimes because of financial problems parents want their children to earn money. While good education can be difficult for parents to afford for their children, they should still make extra efforts to educate them so they won’t have to live their entire lives in poverty. It is the duty of every parent to ensure good health and education for their children.

After ten years, the three brothers went their separate ways. All the three were married and lived separately. Muhataram became a government teacher; Mukaram became a writer and a lecturer; and Karam remained a shopkeeper. Among all the students from Mukaram’s class at the village school, he was the only one who made it into a university. Almost all the children from Mukaram’s school had to earn and work. Mukaram was not an exception, but he changed his future with his good decisions. His classmates said it was his fate, but to him, that wasn’t the case. He said, “it was my decisions and efforts that determined my fate.”

In life, you may not be given a lot of opportunities to learn and grow. Nevertheless, you still have to exert the effort to change things for yourself. After all, it is your life; you need to take care of it because no one else will. One day everyone has to take his/her own way. With time, you have to carve your own path to reach your aspirations and achieve your dreams. Aim high and never lose the passion and desire to learn and explore new things. This will bring you success and will make you an inspiration to many. 

The Magical Mirrors

Author: Rizwan Ahmed Memon

(All Rights Reserved: RizwanAhmedMemon.blogspot.com)

People often take magical concepts for granted. They think that these are myths or lies of the past. However, the concept of magic is as old as the universe. The great sages of the past not only believed in the magic, but they also learned it. Like other common people, Nooro thought of magic the same way until he found three mirrors.

Nooro was an architect and his ancestors were very famous for their construction skills. In his village, Akil, there was an ancient Haveli (a mansion) of a woman named Neengar, who had died two centuries ago. Neengar was a rich landlady of Sindh, and she was interested in the royal culture of Britain. Her Haveli looked like an English castle. The landlady was inspired by the castles of the UK, so she wanted her Haveli to look like them. She even imported unique and expensive articles from England to make the Haveli look like a real castle. It was very capacious. Many rooms were just locked because there was nobody to live in. The landlady had only one son, Basha, who had been living in the mansion with his wife. They had a son named Asad who went to England for studies and continued living there after his education. He even did not attend the funeral of his mother. His old father suffered from loneliness for 15 years and passed away in longing to see his son. After hearing of his father’s death, Asad returned from England with his family after forty years to take over ownership of the mansion. The castle had become dilapidated. He wanted the palace to look new again. He asked the caretakers of the mansion to advertise in the newspapers about the reconstruction of the mansion and waited to receive the grand construction companies’ proposals for the mega construction project of the mansion.

“Sir, perhaps you shouldn’t change the shape or design of this castle. It is an inheritance. However, you should make the necessary repairs.”

“You are right. This mansion should remain the same design. By the way, who built it?”

“Nooro’s ancestors. Nooro is also a good builder—a chip off the old block.”

“All right. Invite Nooro to the castle. I would like to meet him tomorrow.”

When Nooro was a boy, his grandmother, Fatima, used to tell him about the three magical mirrors in the castle of Neengar. Each mirror had a magical property. The first could see all things in the past. The second could show hidden forces like ghosts and the third could tell the future.

Nooro never believed the magical mirrors existed. He would ask his grandmother whether or not she had seen them. His grandmother used to tell him that she had never seen any of them. Akbar, Nooro’s grandfather, would tell her about the powers of those magical mirrors. Akbar had not only worked on the construction of the Haveli, but he had been the head of all the attendants of the castle. He had discovered those mirrors after the landlady’s death. Akbar never used the mirrors because he thought it would be a breach of trust. “I would like to see those mirrors if I get a chance,” Nooro often said to his grandmother. Because of the strong security in the castle, Nooro had never got a chance to enter the castle.

In the evening, an attendant of the castle came to see Nooro. “Hey, uncle Bakhshal! It’s been a long time since I saw you,” said Nooro, hugging him.  Bakhshal was his father’s friend and helped Nooro’s family after the death of Nooro’s father.

“I have been sent by Prince Asad. He wants to get the mansion repaired. He has invited you to the castle tomorrow.”

“What? Really?”

“Yes.”

Nooro was going to get the chance to enter the old castle after four decades. The Prince was a generous man. He said to Nooro, “You will be given a good reward if you return the castle back to its original state.”

“Sure, your highness! The attendants have to tell me the exact shape of the castle, and I will do the repairs. Well, I don’t need any other reward but only three mirrors from this old castle.”

The Prince laughed at the Nooro’s demand. “Look at him, folks! He asks for three old mirrors instead of gold and silver!” All the attendants of the castle laughed at him.

“The demand is accepted. You can take any mirrors out of the castle,” said the Prince. Nooro started collecting the mirrors. He found many mirrors in the castle, but he did not make a hustle. He recalled what his grandmother had told him about the mirrors. He said to Bakhshal, “Help me find the mirrors I tell you. The first is a circular brown framed mirror with a handle. It is about 8 inches and has a dark brown trim. It gives a clear reflection of the blue sky. The second is a circular frameless mirror. Its size is 11 inches and it is a concave which magnifies the image being reflected. The third is almost identical to the first, except it is cracked and broken. This mirror has an amber trim and severe crack in the bottom half, which detracts from the overall aesthetic.”

Bakhshal was surprised to hear the instructions he gave about the mirrors. “How do you know about these mirrors?” he asked Nooro.

“It is a long story. Let’s find the mirrors first.” After a long search, they eventually found the mirrors.

“Why are you looking at these mirrors so closely?” asked Bakhshal.

“I had heard that these mirrors are unique,” Nooro replied. He took the mirrors home, and he tried hard to recall the spell which was cast on the mirrors. He couldn’t remember the spell which his grandmother had told him, so he just kept the mirrors at home.

Nooro finished repairing the castle, and the Prince was very pleased with the work. Nooro kept trying different spells for a month, but in vain. As a consequence, he got very angry and dropped the framed mirror on the floor. Luckily, the mirror was not damaged. However, the frame was broken and a white piece of paper came out of the frame. The paper read: “Mirror, mirror of the castle. I order you to show your power.”

“This is it. This is the spell!” shouted Nooro. He hurriedly cast the spell to the mirror he dropped. That mirror could see all the things of the past. Then he cast the spell to the frameless mirror. It showed the hidden things and ghosts. He checked the third mirror in the last. It could predict the future. It could tell what will happen in the coming two days.

         

Nooro was beside himself. He had become one of the most powerful men on the planet. He was able to see the past, ghosts, and the future. Nooro kept the mirrors to himself for three months.

He realized that if these mirrors were given to the prince, he would utilize them for the betterment of the people and the world. So, he decided to tell the secrets of the mirrors to the Prince and return them. Nooro did not know that the Prince would reward him with the whole castle because of his honesty and trust in the Prince. (The future mirror could predict the future for only two days.) When Nooro told the secrets of the mirrors to the Prince and the attendants of the castle, nobody believed him. Then, he took out the paper with the spell written on it and began reading. Nooro continued casting the spells on each mirror and showed the Prince and his attendants the power of the magical mirrors. The prince could see his sick grandmother through the magical mirror which showed the past.

“How did you know about these mirrors?” asked the Prince.

“Your majesty, when I was a kid, my grandmother used to tell me about these magical mirrors, a secret that my grandfather had told her.”

The Prince gave Nooro golden coins as well as silver, and he said to all the people there, “Today we have become so busy that we don’t have time for our elders. In fact, what our elders can teach us, we might not be able to learn by ourselves. I wish I had spent more time with my mother and my father so that I could have learned something worthy in my life.”

After a month, the Prince called Nooro and his family to ask them to live with him in the castle, with the royal family.

MY OLD RELATIONSHIP

My Old Relationship

Author: Rizwan Ahmed Memon

IBA Community College

Khairpur, Sindh, Pakistan

May 13, 2016

My dear daughter,

            Your papa misses you so much. My little fairy, your papa has faced separation many times in his life, and when the pain of separation starts to hurt so deeply, I pour my heart out through words. My relationship with loneliness, separation, and pain is old. It started back in 2010 when I went to university. I had to leave my mother, friends, and my village. Then when your mother stole my heart, I went through the pain of separation for four years. Now, when I am teaching at IBA (Institute of Business Administration) Community College Khairpur, I am facing separation from you and your mother.

            I sometimes think that I shouldn’t have left my previous job as a lecturer at SZABIST because it was in our native city Larkana. I could come home every day after college. But when I think about the workload that I had there, I feel I am better at IBA college. But at IBA, the only chance I have to see you is on weekends.

            When I moved to Khairpur, you were just six months old. But you still recognized me and felt so happy when you saw me after six days. One day when you will be grown-up, you will read these letters and feel the pain that I am going through without you.

Your papa,

 Rizwan

Please Do Tell Her by Rizwan Ahmed Memon

Self-imposed Limitations

Self-imposed Limitations

Author: Rizwan Ahmed Memon

It was a working day, professor Qurban was getting ready for college early. Last night, when he was looking at the Student Learning Outcomes / Specific Learning Objectives (SLOs), he thought about a topic related to beauty. “My students will like this topic since they are grown-ups. I remember when I was in my Intermediate, I liked such topics, too,” he whispered to himself. Qurban opened the Internet and searched for some audios about the topic “beauty”.

As Qurban reached his class, he looked lively and passionate as always. “How are you today, dear students?”

“Fit and fine, sir!” replied the students in unison.

“Okay, today we are going to have a listening class. So let me first distribute the handouts of Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs).” After distributing the papers, Qurban asked the students to listen to the audio first. When the track ended, he allowed the students to read the MCQs for two minutes. “Now I will play the track for the second time. After that, I will give you 15 minutes to answer the questions. Got it?”

“Yes, sir!” said the class.

After teaching the class, the professor went to the canteen to get some tea. One of the students, Junaid, followed him and met him on the way to the canteen. “Sir, in the track, we were told some tips to be beautiful. The speaker talked about how to get white skin and how to get a beautiful, strong physique. Sir, I have neither a white skin, nor a strong body. Will any girl ever like me?”

“Of course! I’m surprised how you asked this.”

“I asked you this because I’m always feeling inferior.”

“Oh, come on. You’re not inferior to anybody. Look, Junaid. Physical beauty is not everything. Some girls and boys believe that having white skin is a must. That’s why they spend lots of money on beauty parlors, to get attractive looks. However, the most powerful form of beauty is simplicity and humbleness.”

“As long as you have a good heart, good intentions, and a passion for doing anything, you will achieve anything you want. Come with me, let’s drink tea.”

They both talked about the importance of beauty and simplicity while sipping the tea. “Let me tell you about myself. When I was your age, I was surrounded by beautiful and rich girls in my classes. Well, none of them could win my heart. The girl who became the queen of my dreams was a simple, country girl. She had no formal education. She didn’t even know what a semester was. I married that girl and I have a happy family. It was her simplicity, her humbleness which inspired me. Above all else, physical beauty doesn’t last forever.”

“Sir, John Keats said: A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”

“Well, he was a romantic poet. The romantic poets live in an imaginary world. Poets rarely accept reality; they just say whatever they want whether it is true or not.”

Qurban understood that Junaid had low self-esteem and that it takes time to get oneself out of it. “Look, when I was your age, I used to feel that way too. I considered myself mediocre. In fact, I was the most efficient student in my English class. I was a tall boy with a charming face. The reason I thought little of myself was that my classmates bullied me all the time because of my height. They used a lot of derogatory terms like “camel jockey” and “potato”.  It was because of all the bullying that I felt inadequate. However, with the passage of time, I developed self-respect and self-confidence. Because of those boys, I had confined myself to the classroom. I never played on the playground. I would sit in the classroom even during the breaks. See, if you don’t respect yourself, how can you expect others to respect and value you?”

“You’re right, sir.”

“We will talk about it next time. It is time for me to go and teach another class. Now then, let’s head back to the college.”

The next day, it was Sunday. The college was closed. After jogging early in the morning, Qurban sat on the grass in the lawn and logged into Facebook on his smartphone. Once online, Junaid messaged him. “Good morning, sir,” said Junaid.

“Good morning! You’re up early.”

“Yes. I couldn’t sleep well last night.”

“Why?”

“Sir, I want to get an A+ in English this year. Is it possible?”

“Great! Yes, of course.”

“How? For the last three years, I haven’t ever gotten an A in any subject. I’ve always felt that getting an A in Agha Khan Board is impossible for me. This examination board is so difficult, you know.”

“Junaid, in this world nothing is impossible. We just need to work harder and harder. We might fail two or three times, but that doesn’t mean we’ll always fail. Thomas Edison failed several times when he was working on the bulb, but he eventually invented it. Before Edison, the bulb was something impossible for many people.”

“Sir, I will study seriously from now on.”

“You must! This is how you will get an A+.” After Qurban’s comment, Junaid went offline. For the first time in his life, Junaid had decided to work on his weaknesses: his low confidence, low sociability, low goals, and low self-esteem. He felt lucky to have found someone who could understand him.

It was spring season, and Qurban went into the class on time as always. “Before I end the class, I have to make an announcement. As you know, the winter is over, so in March, the college will celebrate the annual Sports Week. You all should register in different sport competitions within three days,” the professor said to the students, then left.

In the evening, when Qurban came out of the teachers’ hostel, for jogging, he saw Junaid in a kit. “Hello, sir.”

“Oh, Junaid. Looking great!”

“Thanks, sir.”

“I guess you’re going to participate in the Sports Week.”

“That’s right. I have never participated in the past, but I would like to this time.”

“That’s wonderful!”

Junaid had become enthusiastic and joyful. He now understood that every chance, every event was important. His teacher played his role to make Junaid an enthusiastic, energetic student. Many of us impose limits on ourselves without any reason. We all must take some positive steps like Junaid so that we can live a memorable life.

When It Rains

by Rizwan Ahmed Memon

She alone weeps

In the corners

In pain sobs

When it rains.

Asks the wanderers

If he remembers

The past nights

When it rains.

She alone waits

Stares the trees

Recalls the memories

When it rains.

Writes she letters

Away he miles

No his replies

After her toils.

She herself collects

Removes her tears

Ends her cries

When it rains.