Monday, April 03, 2006

exits and arrivals

exits
29 th march '06, Karachi, Pakistan

they say the house was visited lately. the guest had wings which hovered over the door.
he knocked with a gentle tap. so gentle that even the host did not wake up.
he did not mean to wake anyone up afterall it was the middle of the day and it would b rude to do so. so he tiptoed his way through the room of the sleeping man evading the eyes of his wife who stood beside him in the room and invited him over. the sleeping man accpeted the kind invitation and walked out the door.

he left behind a woman whose life revolved around him, black n white photographs of them together, pictures of his children and grandchildren, his books, a house which resonated memories of their lives together, his body which at the age of 80 had begun to show signs of deterioration--- his whole world. they say the courage of life is a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of the final moment, but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tradegy.

f's nana left the world quietly in his sleep. he was buried the same day at maghrib.
"nones death comes to pass without making some impression, and those close to the deceased inherit part of the liberated soul and become richer in their humanness"

arrivals
dec '05, NY, u.s.a.

just a few mths back in another part of the world an embryonic seed had grown inside his daughter. she was the bearer of life. and finally dec of '05 she gave birth to a beautiful baby boy. they named him omar.

exits and arrivals
29th march '06, TO, Canada
30th march '06, NY, u.s.a.

as soon as we heard the news f decided to take aunty to meet his sister in NY. the 7 hr long drive was quiet and restless. on arriving aunty n b khala met and shared their sorrow, talked at length about aba jaan and nostalgia took over. sorrow slowly turned into laughter as happy memories were shared. but the one tiny soul which brought life to this sad moment was omar. unknowingly, without any deliberation or effort he brought a smile to everyones faces. his smile, hs eyes shining, looking, observing and absorbing, his feet kicking at the joy of life, his tiny hands reaching out. this newness of life, this smell of freshness, this ray of hope, this little face of heaven, this little arrival of love and life at the exit of another. the sun afterall sets to rise again, autumn is followed by spring, and the stirring of life is bringing death alive.

this goes out to my nana who parted from us Feb '04, to my dadi, to my chachas who dies a very youg death and all those loved ones who have left us. we remember u for all that u lived for, what u stood for and what u were willing to die for. May your soul rest in peace. ameen


6 comments:

Kat said...

The post couldnt have been put more beautifully....may all the souls that have in any way touched our lives, rest in peace....amen!

Abbas Halai said...

hey s,, i already spoke to f, but i wanted to pass along my condolences as well personally to you. hope you guys are doing better. strength comes in the knowledge that he is in a better place.

jammie said...

you know the funniest thing ive noticed in my recent years of "realizations" is that births and deaths come very close in contact- usually when someone passes away another life is born- it really makes the whole cycle of life so real- that despite everything, life *will* go on...

much love to you in this time- hope you all find the strength to get through it, stronger.

urbaNiche said...

thank you all for your condolences..!!

insiyasyed said...

really sorry. :( been through much this last one week too.

and sara is SO spot on. Aunty passed away but a little one is 'coming soon' :)

vintage said...

this was so beautifully put that i dont think anything i say could justify it.

*observing a moment of contemplative silence*