Reminiscing with an Old Heart

[What happened to being somewhere called the right place at a time which may appear to be the right time in hindsight?]

I do not like this idea.

[What’s wrong with being prudent and cautious?]

This was a million dollar question. I am not convinced on the answer.

[Just that people must learn to realize that there are times when they have to make choices. Those choices may not appear to have a substantial impact at the time, most times, in fact, no impact at all. But what is important is that we keep making those choices because we keep ourselves and people around us alive by doing that.]

Choices are important. Not everyone is blessed with choices in their lives. The ones who have the privilege have to be more responsible. Also, it`s not everyone`s cup of tea to be responsible in life. Many people are not even exposed to the idea of being responsible.

The thought on gambling has some weight. I think it goes back to the concept of ``being responsible``.

Wonderful reading owing to the pent up pain which is not made explicit in the story but which undoubtly hovers over the mind.

Your father must be a very wise man. His rationale behind religion prohibiting gambling , has quite stuck to my mind.

Indeed our life is based on taking chances and making choices; sometimes for the better and at other times for the worst.

Kind Regards.

This is inspiring. For reasons you will know later.

Excellent, Dr. Riazi!
Your friends have been telling you all along that your English prose is much stronger than your Urdu ghazal.
C.

PS What`s the wisdom in writing under two different names? I am sure there is a reason. Love.

Very poignant article!! Nicely written as well..

Life is all about taking chances. The problem is that it is a function of where we are in our lives. If you are starting out, you can take a lot of risks without much to lose. If you are well settled, it is that much harder to take risks because you end up affecting multiple lives and there is so much to lose. Nevertheless, no risk no gain.....

Afrasiyab:

Such amazing clarity in the face of imminent death...you have indeed given us a wonderful glimpse of not just your father but of an agile human mind, especially one that is subsciously aware of the end.

Half a chance is not merely a gamble regarding life and death but of living and dying. It is not a decisive moment but an ongoing struggle. Its being half gives us a sense of hope or doom; the choice is ours.

Finely written, I particularly marvel at the absence of `sentimentality` to give the conversation a certain sharpness. The poignancy lies in the unstated obvious...

regards,
Farzana

This was an example of fine writing. But only if this could have been a bit longer. But then maybe not. Anyways it really read smoothly.

afrasiyab:
brilliant.
wisdom, ensconced in poignancy and pathos.Superb! Eagerly waiting for the second one.
What do you mean by ``Drawings from memory``; Drawing as in `sketches` or in `extruding`?