Sonya Syed

I went for the renewal of my national identity card today, I didn’t have a clue that it expired months ago. It appears that although I am living and breathing in this world, yet I am completely oblivious to its requirements. Besides the long line of citizens at NADRA, everything was unexpectedly organized and proper. Once I got my token, it all went smoothly and my picture on the new I.D. card would be far less scary then the one I had on the previous card. During past few months I am fully engrossed in myself and a personal project which I am working on. I am seeing but I don’t have a vision, I am hearing but I am not actually listening; yet life moves on. Japan’s earthquake was and is a devastating experience to endure; nevertheless, the tsunami and ever lasting after shocks of high-prices in Pakistan are far more soul and mind shattering. Away from the moments of my oblivion, I was asked to buy some grocery and as I went to the cooking-oil counter to get a 3-liter oil bottle...

There was a discussion on TV about the definition of success, there were intellectuals, journalist, lawyer and they all gave their views. However, the best reply came from Dr. Mehdi Hassan who said, “ if a person is deeply satisfied and at peace in his life, even though he does not have the worldly luxuries, then this is Success ”. Someone added that one is successful when he/she is the absolute master of their time and they have the freedom to meet only the people they like to meet. I for one absolutely agree with Dr. Mehdi’s definition, I have heard of and seen several people who apparently have flourishing careers/businesses/practices with money pouring onto them from sky; yet their personal lives, their relationships are a misery. On the other hand, I have also seen spiritual people who are always sick and broke; then this is not even success. So what success is actually, that we all run for throughout our lives. A homemaker/housewife believes that her single friend who has a ca...

It is always a joy to see the children following the footsteps of their elders, learning from their experiences, doing what the elders did and avoiding whatever they avoided. It is also fulfilling to witness children finding their own paths in life independent from their elders, sometimes making mistakes on the way and learning and succeeding. Nevertheless, it is painful to witness the conflict between the elders and the youngsters. The elders desiring that their progeny should follow them under any circumstances, irrespective of the latter’s interest. Parents have the instinct to protect their children; they simply cannot bear the thought of their younger ones getting hurt in their way to life. However, this protection could, at times turn into possessiveness. If the offspring does not have the desire to follow the lifestyles or profession of their parents then serious conflicts arise within the family. It is understandable that the parents desire their children to follow the profes...

Finally, the day came when I shall have a tête-à-tête with you all. Quite a few days have passed since we last came together. I cannot give any excuse for my absence besides that I was mostly overwhelmed by sleep in the late hours of the evening and to concentrate on anything was rather tough. Moreover, one should have something proper to say or else the post would be full of the ramblings of a sleep deprived mind who is writing merely for the sake of writing and there nothing significant to share. Craziness of cricket due to the world-cup is in full throttle in Karachi these days. Everyone is glued to their TV screens whether they are at home or at work. Luckily Pakistan has won two matches and the air is filled with joy, even the people like me who are not sport enthusiasts or have almost negligible knowledge of cricket are very much affected by the intensity of attachment with this particular sport. It is also amazing to witness that how the country of roughly 170 million peopl...

What would you call this condition, when you want to do something, has time to do it but when you actually sit down to do it you simply lack the drive; when 10 things are on mind and you end up doing none if it. Anger, frustration & irritability are undeniably the obvious outcome of such a perturbed mental state. I have taken up few tasks and the depth they require overwhelms me and simply drains my energy. I could not escape from whatever I needed to do so I stopped doing everything all together, prayed and then focused all my attention on my breathe. At first, the breathing was so irregular that I could hardly breathe. As I concentrated on my breathing within seconds I noticed it becoming soft, regular & subtle. I knew that now I had a proper supply of oxygen to my brain and everything was handled rightly and in much less time than I estimated. I did whatever I had to, plus I had the time to watch my favorite TV show and do a host of other activities. You would have not...

Missed missed two days of the blog and the kind of guilt pangs I get are inexplicable. What to do when choices are need to be made between rest and my favorite activity, the blog. I had to see the bigger picture so I decided to make some choices, hence rest prevailed. After clinging on to my clothes for some time now, both old and new ones, I have finally cleared up almost 75% of my wardrobe with another 10% due. I could not believe how much lighter and joyous I feel. I have been stocking some clothes since college years, the ones which promised durability and wear-ability. Now all I am left with are few modest belongings in my closet, and it feels superb! Early morning after having breakfast I was sitting in my balcony enjoying the sun and a phenomenal weather and absorbing vitamin D or whatever it is suppose to give; relaxing and thinking that it is a perfect time to go to the beach. Alas, not every wish is to be fulfilled. I had a person in my mind and I was t...

I am thrilled to see how perfectly girls and ladies have their hair these days, at the same time I am scared to observe what kind of irreparable damage they are doing. Blow drying and straightening have become a norm these days hence unrealistic standards are being set for beauty. I cannot comprehend is this due to the bombardment of beauty images prevalent in the visual media today or is it because we are not happy with what we are blessed with. Slight curls or waves in hair and there comes a social pressure to straighten your hair and even worse to re-curl your hair and that to using hot curling irons to give a certain type of curly look. Being the daughter of a dermatologist, I unfortunately on regular basis come across girls with either extreme thinning of hair or partial baldness and especially in the front portion of the head, a look which people with hypothyroid have. It’s a regular to see teenage girls with such destructive attitude and I apprehend that when they’ll be in their...