Sonya Syed

I don’t believe it could happen to me but it did, my blog for today has vanished mysteriously. So much effort went to it and now all is lost, what a shame! Earlier when I was writing it was 6 pm and I was sitting at our terrace with cool breeze tantalizing the face, and the visual of flowers was soothing to the eyes. I could have stayed there for eternity being lost in nature, not thinking instead observing curiously everything in the proximity as a child who has seen something for the very first time. There is something wondrous about getting a zero or lots of zeroes at the end of a number; it infuses a sense of accomplishment as if one has succeeded in something mammoth. That’s exactly how I feel about completing my 70th day on the blog. It came as a pleasant surprise to the close quarters that I have managed to do it with perseverance, well almost. And now I could also proudly proclaim to have a hobby, something which I regretted not having earlier. Past few days I had consciousl...

Cricket cricket & cricket, T20 is all what echoes today from every corner. People are glued to TV cheering our team on every 4 or 6 and booing on the outs. Families have arranged for special get-togethers to enjoy the precious moments of thrill. Even the electricity department showers their mercy and abstains from load-shading during our matches. We Pakistanis have a love-hate relationship with our cricket team they loose and we take no time to express our anguish & dismay and if they come back victorious then nothing is much intense than the love and cheer they receive from their fellow countrymen. Although for me cricket is an alien territory because unfortunately I couldn’t understand it let alone enjoy it. The only match that I could remember ever seeing was the one that Pakistan won the world cup and Imran Khan was the captain. I didn’t even know who he was until he joined politics and started Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital for cancer patients in particular for the ...

The heat continues unabated. But within the discomfort and the sweltering conditions we see flowers blossoming to their fullest only in the hottest months of the year; nature in its finest expression and so justifiable. Bright, beautiful and soothing to the eyes. Nature’s inherent element of balance, the element of poetic justice, of good and evil intertwined.* A laburnum or Amaltas and Gulmohar in full bloom and in huge large bunches all around our beautiful city Karachi. I was born and brought up in Karachi but all these years I never noticed that the entire city is inundated with trees and flowers. Probably that’s what happens when we remain engrossed in our thoughts, we see but we don’t actually look; we hear but don’t really listen. In the foreground we are interacting with someone or busy doing something but in the background, in our minds, we are always thinking mostly the same, scrapped thoughts repeating over and over again. In case of any unpleasant incident then thinki...

Doing nothing being nothing is such a liberating feeling and also a significant recreational exercise. I was free by 9.30 pm and was at leisure but I decided to rather dwell in nothingness. Writing blog does occupy mind for good 1-2 hours however it does not happen all the time. There are days when I have nothing to share or if there is then due to day’s activities brain and body are more inclined towards rest. It is worthwhile to write when there is an urge to express otherwise simply writing for the sake writing would produce lifelessness. I have been now exercising for almost 9 years regularly Allhumdulillah except for few breaks i.e. when I get disappointed that all my efforts are not giving significant results. Whenever, there is weight gain now and then albeit normal eating patterns I would suggest to get tested for thyroid or hormonal imbalance or metabolical disorder. For many years the fact that I had hormonal imbalance remained undetected and when we found out we were ...

Making choices could be tough at times and when emotions and expectations of others, others that matter to you the most, are involved the process turns far more grueling then it was expected. Please excuse me today for I am in a rather perplexed frame of mind, Martha Beck a renowned life coach said to let go off your thinking and calculative mind while making decisions i.e. stop looking for all the pros and cons while making any decision, instead go with your instincts. If the decision is required from buying a soap to buying a house see how your body reacts to every option, see how the muscle gets tensed or relaxed, get deeply in your body and listen to what its trying to tell you. Yeh yeh all right so I got in touch with my instincts and all, now what? Gathering the spiritual data is not that much of a task but its application into our daily lives is really crucial. Even after knowing confidently what shall be the outcome or what is desired from any situation the realties on the p...

I had one of the most interesting weekends and the Sunday evening was really special when I had to exhibit profusely my negotiation-cum-pleading-cum-convincing-cum-advocacy skills to the optimum level. I was on a very important call with somebody who is equally important and that somebody had to make some very important decisions concerning my academics. At this point it is wise not to reveal the particulars and to talk about this matter later in detail when things are in definite shape, hopefully, InshaAllah. I do not even know how to be thankful appropriately to God for the opportunity that I had been blessed with, irrespective of the outcome of my little tête-à-tête, it is enough for me to explain my side and there was someone who was willing to listen. So thank you God once again. It has almost turned into an epidemic that increasingly teenage girls and in particular their moms are pressing their daughters desperately to have fair complexions. It is a regular for girls coming to ...

What a hustling and bustling day I had, even though it was a public holiday but daily necessities are unable to comprehend this concept so what needs to be done should be done. And then there is a twist in the story, a cancelled get together with family-friends was suddenly rescheduled early morning. It was a meet up that I had been longing for quite a while. The family me and Amma visited has been our friends for so many years now. Quite simple people with even simpler lifestyles, one immediately becomes comfortable in their presence. The lady of the house whom I lovingly call Hameeda Aunty had an accident with her left leg which was badly burnt by boiling water and at the same time her daughter had typhoid. However, now seeing both mother and daughter getting healthy and in their usual high spirits with the leg healing satisfactorily was gratifying. As a tradition prevalent in many of the Memon families, like our friends who also belong to this community, we all sat on floor for...