Birday

-
"Happy Birday, Baba!” The emphasis on the chicken in that birthday wish was not lost on me. Although I appreciated my kindergartner’s signature artwork, I couldn’t help but cringe inwardly when I thought how fast the fortieth was approaching. 
When I am in a thoughtful mind frame, especially on my birthday, words are conceived. I tend to shy away from too much fanfare on my birthday. I feel that it should be a subtle rejoicing and reflecting of what I have gone through the previous year and preparation for the next. The icing on the cake, no pun intended, would be to spend that day quietly with a few near or far, but dear ones. But then that’s me. For some, birthdays are of grave significance: to be CELEBRATED and indulged in—decadence then has no limits. Thus, conventional wisdom for me would be to give it the importance it deserves on a case-by-case basis.
Should I be sad that there is one less year to live or be happy for the potential opportunity that still exists to improve myself and maybe the lives of those around me? Being an unconventional wannabe, I wonder, what if I go around wishing people a sad birthday? Will they take offense? If I am the person at the receiving end, then I will find it most amusing. Happiness and sadness, for the most part, come from within me and I create and maintain those states.
…But rather than expanding on the whys and why nots of birthday galas et al, I decided to take the opportunity to thank my friends, family, non family and non friends — all out there (on the omnipresent Facebook in our lives) — for wishing me a happy birthday (on the omnipresent Facebook).
I wanted to savor that moment to acknowledge my mentors, teachers, students, friends and family for their whole hearted support of a nascent idea over a year ago that became larger than life for me. I was humbled that new people, young and old were interested in coming on board: some to assist, others to enjoy the ride, and not to forget, a few stragglers thrown in for good measure.
And above all Noori’s birthday card was a potent reminder that the simplest, yet most elegant, reason to rejoice was staring me right in the face! It was the love of a child.

So happy birday, indeed, to me and to you, my love.
[from the Kindergarten Diaries]

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Of Cigarette Packs and Elephant Dung

-
Image
Where can you go to see the following? (1) Creative photography on cigarette packs. (2) Innovative co-existence with elephants. Answer: Sri Lanka. Last summer, my family and I went on a week-long sojourn to Sri Lanka. That it happened to coincide with the heat wave in Karachi needs further explanation, in case you think I created a respite for myself primarily because I wanted to get away from angry sun gods. Truth be told, I felt guilty that I was vacationing in a tropical environment while the heat-facilitated death toll rose in Karachi… Anyway, after that trip, there was a strong urge to write about the island. I'm not a travel writer, but after experiencing the ‘wonders of Sri Lanka’, I couldn't stop myself from telling you about that land. Although considered a ‘developing nation’, there were aspects to the country that completely defied that label. As I was visiting from Pakistan, the analogy thus created was insightful. A runner's tale "Are you a
Read more

Ada's Asthma Adventure (Biloongra 3.0)

-
Image
[Doodle credit: ChatGPT-4] In a cozy little house lived a lively eight-year-old girl named Ada. She lived with her brothers, Chike and Kunle, her caring Mama and Baba, and their playful kitten, Biloongra. They were a happy family, always laughing and playing together. One bright afternoon, while playing with Biloongra, Ada suddenly felt a tightness in her chest. Her asthma was acting up again. Baba's smoking often made it worse, even though Mama worked hard to keep their home clean and free of smoke. “Mama, my chest feels tight,” Ada said softly, worried. Mama quickly fetched Ada’s inhaler while Chike opened all the windows, letting in fresh air. Each puff from the inhaler made Ada feel better, like a cool breeze on a hot day. She took deep breaths and felt the relief. When Ada felt better, Mama and Baba sat down with Chike. “We need to make our home safe for Ada,” Mama said firmly. Baba nodded. “I’ll start smoking outside and try to quit,” he promised. With these chan
Read more

Biloongra: the Next Generation (aka Biloongra V3.0) part I

-
Image
Part I  Meet the Biloongra family members.  BILOONGRA. The central character Biloongra is a fun-loving, compassionate, and mischievous kitten. The exact breed is unknown, but is likely a Persian (tortoiseshell kind), and looks like a much younger version of Luna (my Persian cat, picture below). Biloongra is special because he can talk. Thus he has the ability to comment on his human family members and their peculiarities, irrespective of any coherent responses from them.  Note: for the cultural contextualization of storytelling, Biloongra remains Biloongra i n all languages or dialects, unlike the rest of the characters!  NOORI. The little girl around eight years old, I believe, is the main human child character. Biloongra and Noori have a special bond because like Biloongra, Noori is fun, carefree, forgetful, messy, loving, and caring. They tend to get into trouble together. Noori is assertive and outspoken. She does not take crap from anyone. She fights for her rights and those of
Read more