Getting connected with a Sindhi across the border...

On Sindhi Global network I got connected with a Sindhi from Pakistan, who gave me some insight about the Sindhis living across the border. He sounded distressed that we are divided over the religion and all the educated Sindhis migrated and only the uneducated landlords stayed behind who only saw their own benefits. He was wondering if we could be united again by common language, culture and tradition. Our forefathers were driven out of their comfort zone and left to fend for themselves. What do we know about what they left behind? And will the youth of tomorrow care? Our parents left penniless, leaving behind their wealth, their emotions and their language. They carried their culture and their tradition with them, but we must not forget that they went to a strange land, and adapted to it. What can you do with Sindhi language in a foreign land? Can you do business? Can you survive without learning to speak in their common language? I have never been to Pakistan to view the life styles of the land and we have little knowledge about the traditions and culture followed back there….we have no communications with the Sindhis living beyond that border, so in what way can we identify with it? We have heard stories, lots of them from our parents who lived there….they would speak about their happy memories in those narrow lanes…about the food they enjoyed, about the traditions that they followed but are they still there? We have no idea. The media paints a different picture. We teach children to speak Sindhi at home (and it sound cute when a three year old speaks that language) but to live in a society of various culture, we learn different language, and we need to, but adhering to the language is difficult. We don’t have schools and colleges to promote the language, nah, not in a foreign land. But can we do something about it now? What we can do now is just to be a good human being and waste no time in making a fuss over what we have already lost. We don’t want people branding Sindhi and saying nasty things. We don’t like people says that “Sindhis are fighting crabs” or “Sindhis are like that only” or “You are Sindhi if you…..” we want to be remembered as a good human being, each one of us are unique in our own way…not somebody to be ridicule at. We need to move on. If we can revive the language, then we can do so…but to be on practical side, it is better not to expect much, because the youth of today have already adapted to the foreign land and they need to speak in the language which is for their progress. We are Sindhis who are successful, who concentrate more on business or jobs and are peace loving people. We mind our own business and have no land to fight for. We still have culture and traditions which we do follow and it is on that string we can all hang on…… However, he send some interesting videos that were worth watching.. pleasant to the ears (Sindhi music) and pleasant to eyes…..(Sindhi folks back home) Watch some Sindhi Videos 'HERE'
It is fantastic

Lonliness

Living alone on your own terms is a win-win situation… At the end of the day, calm and peace reigns and we count our blessing when we see a squirming couple fight for space. Loneliness is the state of mind that is not proportional to the being single or married nor is it proposional to the number of people that you may be surrounded. It is something you feel when you can’t find somebody to agree with you, to share your thoughts or help you when you need them the most. But it is not always the spouse who fills that void. It can be filled by anybody whom we allow that privilege; it could also be a best friend or a family too. To overcome loneliness, it is best not to wait for somebody to drop in and dilute our emptiness but to go out there and venture into this wild world, erase the loneliness of a friend (spouse or a close friend) and spread the joy and happiness and then see your own self bloom.

Six Events...lets participate!

In January, I plan to take part in 'Six events'. What I like about these events are that they can be done from any part of the world……we have only to execute the performance at any hour of the day and record the duration and time and sent it to the composer. These timings and durations will go to writing a new piece of music in late 2008. Performers should constantly listen to the sounds around them, they are hearing a very unique composition. Also, anything at all of interest should be documented, if something happens (someone accuses you of acting suspicious, a pigeon sits on your head, you fall asleep, you trip up....) please write this down and email them to six_events@yahoo.co.uk Event one BUS Monday January 21st # On the prescribed day you should board any bus, at any time. # The length of your journey should not be premeditated. # When you are ready, alight the bus. # You should record the times you boarded & alighted the bus. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Event two ROAD Tuesday January 22nd # On the prescribed day, walk down any road. # You should clap your hands together once, at any point. # You may walk at any pace, but must record the name of the road & the duration of how long you walked for. # It is at your discretion to how long you walk for (at the end of the road, you could turn around & walk back.) *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Event three BUILDING Wednesday January 23rd # On the prescribed day you should enter any building. # Discover the building for a duration of up to one hour. # Sit down at least once & close your eyes. # You should record the time you entered & left the building. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Event four SUPERMARKET Thursday January 24th # On the prescribed day you should enter any supermarket. # Walk down every isle at your own pace. # On your way round you must pick up any item for less then Rs10 # Go back to your original starting place, in the supermarket. # Before paying for your item you must move one other item in the store to another place, an incongruous position on another shelf. # Pay for your item & keep your receipt* # You may not own the bought item, it must be given away or thrown into a bin. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Event five PUB Friday January 25th # On the prescribed day you should enter any pub & ask one person any question you wish. # You should request a glass of water, you should not drink it. # Leave the pub. # You should record the time you entered and left the pub. *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* Event six PARK Sunday January 27th # On the prescribed day you should enter any park # Sit or stand on a green area for any length of time # You should look up to the sky at least once. # You should record the time you entered & left the park. Now, won't that be fun..imagine how many people around the world will be doing the same thing as what we are doing....actually we dont have to doing on all the days, but we could try atleast for one day...... Would love to know who else is doing? Will you?

attending offline meeting with Global Sindhis

There is a Global Sindhi Network of which I am a member. We interact on line, sharing Sindhi culture and customs and many other things. And sometimes we meet offline in some restaurant to give a face to the name and interact. After nearly a year, I was finally able to make it for this month’s meet, and surprisingly at the same venue…at Chembur Gymkhana, the only difference was the venue being busy with week-end diners, the pool area was packed and we had to dine in an AC den, in a group of only seven. I was wondering where the others had fizzled out? There is a high percentage of lurkers on the GS, who are very much interested in Sindhi culture, and have happily joined the group, but if the sharing of knowledge is just absorbing the information, without any input or opinions, then, it won’t be long before this thread dies too. To be the member of any group, we make our presence in print or presence, which unfortunately (I am sorry to say) it lacks here, on this network. But, the dinner was fun with Haresh Tolani’s anecdotes which kept us in splits. We opted for veg meal of harbara kababs, spring rolls and ghatiya savories that I drowned it with virgin mary. The main course comprised of dhal, rotis, mixed veg and paneer and dessert was delicious flan and fruit topped with ice-cream. The meeting was good, smaller group, more interaction with discussions ranging from internet trade, business on net, different internet social networks and films. There was not much discussion on Sindhi culture except practicing few words and quizzing our knowledge on typical Sindhi words. One Sindhi word which Sonu C said, was unknown to all of us……. It was almost 12 when it was time to go home, Haresh, Bina and Sonu B were kind enough to drop me in Bandra, even though it meant re-routing their trip…the friendship has just begun.

Live-in maid has AIDS

My cousin tells me that her maid has AIDS and I am shocked. ‘So what do you plan to do?’ I ask her and she says that she is in dilemma because she is undecided. It is the question of humanity versus responsibility towards her family Her maid was not well for some time, so she took her to the doctor, who suggested that she take some rest and then told her in confidence that her maid has AIDS. She consulted several of her friends and most of them (including me) advised her to fire the maid immediately. We are afraid that she might cut herself during cooking and may pass on her virus. It is a different thing when we were living alone, but with a responsibility towards family and children, it is difficult to take any risk. That was my first impression. On a second thought, is it right to fire the maid just because she has the disease that we cannot handle? What if she were a close family member instead? Would we toss her into the streets and stone her? Would we burn everything in the house that she touched? And what happens to her? Wouldn’t she squirm from rejection and shame, with fear crippling her psychologically and leading her to an immature death? Choosing to support the maid after termination of her job may be a better option but it may not work very well for everybody, it is only a matter of choice. When we allow social pressures to make our choice than we do it out of guilt, or sacrifice without realizing the cost to ourselves or to our loved ones, eventually it drains us completely; emotionally and physically. On doing a little research and debate, I realized that I am really misinformed about this disease. First of all, there's a distinction between being HIV positive and having full-blown AIDS. By the time it morphs into AIDS, the person may not be well enough to handle that kind of job and might require evaluation then. The most common ways to contract AIDS is through unprotected sex and drug use (sharing needles). Nowadays people with HIV Positive can live for years with good medication and proper healthcare and that can easily extend to 10-20 years before her daily life is compromised. HIV virus isn't transmitted through normal physical touch, kissing, sharing the same toilet or eating from the same plate. It is transferred through blood, through sexual contact, or by sharing needles and breastfeeding. If we fired all HIV Positive people they would die of starvation rather than the virus! In the world we live in, we have an obligation to be educated on the basic facts of HIV, as it is a fact of life. On this day “World AIDS Day’ December 1st, let us be educated and not be afraid of this disease because ignorance emits fears, and fears are contagious. HIV can be avoided if we are careful. It is important to practice safe sex. It is important to make sure of use of a single, disposable needle in doctor’s clinic. It is important to make sure that we don’t have HIV before donating blood. With proper education about its prevention and medications, we can avoid the panic reactions and discrimination and choose a better options to live the life of dignity and happiness. Sincere thanks to the members of ‘Comfortable in my own shell’ to Pallavi Bhattacharya, Shannon Hill, Nina Choudhari, Madhumita Chakraborty, James Smith, Jack Huber and Kathy B. Thank you for sharing your views.