Another 14 August... Another day when the country goes all green. Flags on terraces; stalls of green badges and balloons bearing the name of Pakistan erupt at every nook and corner; government officials visit Iqbal's and Quaid's tombs as an azadi day ritual; an official holiday or 'nap time' as perceived by many; channels broadcasting day long transmissions (this year endless string of tajziyas on Azadi March) with companies focusing their adverts on one-day-patriotism; youngsters in cars with ear splitting woofers where 'Jeevay Jeevay' is played on repeat and adolescents rode their motorcycles, one-wheeling across the roads... Yeah, Just another 14 August! A day set aside to taste The Pakistani feel.
But some visionaries still sit back and think what happens after the 14th?
We still stand in the mid air with nationalities and sects to worry about. We go back to the heated argument of Nawaz's and Imran's fan clubs' growth and decline when the fact is that we still live in a country where energy crisis drives us out on the streets to burn everything down... every bit of what we just decorated a day before. The evil of illiteracy constantly drains out life from our future prospects while others just sit back on their couches, passively watching the TV and occasionally making hateful remarks about the corrupt system or just passing the blame on the infamous external forces. The common man, a bread-winner is once more plunged into the dilemma of low incomes and inflated prices. And we youngsters log back to Social sites to upload Dp #IndependenceDay and show our patriotism by hitting the like buttons while daydreaming about leaving this country and getting a Canadian Nationality someday.
We still stand in the mid air with nationalities and sects to worry about. We go back to the heated argument of Nawaz's and Imran's fan clubs' growth and decline when the fact is that we still live in a country where energy crisis drives us out on the streets to burn everything down... every bit of what we just decorated a day before. The evil of illiteracy constantly drains out life from our future prospects while others just sit back on their couches, passively watching the TV and occasionally making hateful remarks about the corrupt system or just passing the blame on the infamous external forces. The common man, a bread-winner is once more plunged into the dilemma of low incomes and inflated prices. And we youngsters log back to Social sites to upload Dp #IndependenceDay and show our patriotism by hitting the like buttons while daydreaming about leaving this country and getting a Canadian Nationality someday.
Yes I hear you young lad, you point out, "What are we suppose to do then? We can't sing Dil Dil Pakistan all year around, Right? Can't paint our faces shrek-like-green all the time or shout 'Pakistan Zindabad' at each other on random occasions!" You are right we probably can't but it's sad to notice that we are the people who have mistaken patriotism as Independence Day Celeberations!
And oh yes, among us are some individuals who worship certain political parties and think screaming 'Shair aya Shair aya'/ 'Chalo Chalo Imran k sath'/ 'Zinda hai Bhutto' at rallies will crown them as diehard patriots. I'm afraid to burst their bubble but patriotism has deeper meanings than that. Surely enough, we have freedom of choice and complete right to support our favourite party. But this is just a part no doubt an essential one of the big picture. Many of us confuse our political commitment with patriotic spirit. This kind of tunnel vision is fueling up the fears of national disintegeration.
No doubt there are times when we all stand together, cheer together, gasp together and pray together. The times when those 11 men in green shirts are battling with an international team far in the Cricket stadium of some foreign land. These are one of the few occasions when we feel the awakening of our national pride but once the match is over, it again stretches itself, rolls over and falls to a deep sleep with a tag on its door which reads 'DO NOT DISTURB UNTIL THE NEXT MATCH... (Incase of emergency like 'Pak vs India' match bang out the door)'
Yet again I get to hear, "So what are we suppose to do, then? Stand for elections as an azad umeedwar? Take bullets on my chest in Karachi saving some innocents? Or join the Pak Army and take part in Zarb-e-azab?"
Sadly when we are asked to rethink the word patriotism, our mind paints us a heroic picture of a gallant Juwan who is all ready to become Shaheed-e-Milat in the very next instance. The tremendous sacrifices of our national heroes are without a doubt an epitome of the true spirit of patriotism. But it doesn't imply that patriotism should be thought as something which just can't be practiced by us because we happen to belong to a non-political family where no one ever joined the army before. Case closed. Patriotism was never meant for me.
So this Independence Day, let's just redefine the word, patriotism. To start off with, you are quite blessed to be literate enough to read through this AlreadyGettingWayTooLongBlog post. So being out of lucky literate 58% of pakistani population even if you just pursue your higher studies and manage to get yourself a good job then believe me you have already set the wheels in motion. You've entered in the loop of economic activity where you earn some and spend some... and are actually adding up to the National Income!
You might like to start your own small enterprise and beter enough, make jobs available to handful of others too. Actually the real patriotism begins when you get yourself a National Tax Number and pay your taxes irrespective of how corrupt the government seems to be. We, the nation of one of the fastest growing population have mere 2% responsible citizens who pay taxes. You can't blame the system or ask for your rights when you are not ready to give your country it's due share.
I see patriotism in the one who stood up to turn off that extra fan in the next room. And despite the fact that the person is a billionaire, he still conserves electricity to reduce the load back up in the Grids. You are the true patriotic hero when you place a call at the WAPDA helpline and inform them about those 'Kunday' you recently noticed, hanging on the main line which can be an act of infamous power theft.
Patriotism is when you care for your mohalla and you start managing your waste instead of dumping it in the nearby empty plot.You make a considerable contribution when you allow your maid's child to get a free of cost tuition from you. You definitely standout when you spread hope and happiness in the glum environs and you are a nation friendly person when you give out a little hospitable gesture to the visiting foreigners as little as a small welcoming smile! You change perspectives when you respect your friend with Suni/Shia views. You make a heart warm with joy when you ask your Baloch/Sindhi/Pathan/Punjabi friend about their customs and show interest in 'how things go' back in their province. Your patriotism kicks back in when you take out that dusty biography of national leaders like Qauid-e-Azam or honest to the bone political figures like Liaqat Ali Khan and start reading through the pages which mark the story of struggle to glory.
Every little step counts... Painting the poster plastered walls of the city; stopping people from vandalising your national assets when they visit them; emptying up excessive water from a flower pot to minimise Dengue Mosquitos' eggs; distributing free life-jackets at the Clifton beach and talking about your heritage, literature and national history with your friends while sipping away coffee... Every bit of it IS what I call Patriotism. I could have gone a long way listing down every example illustrating care and love for your fellow country men and how you once divide your love it only multiplies but lets just get to the heart of the problem. The problem, I'm afraid is you... is me.
Lets just take a moment off from our hard to catch life and instead of bringing a national inkilab lets just start thinking about our own personal inkilab. All you have to do is just go to the doctor which has an address 'your mirror' and sitting in front of 'Doctor You', diagnose all of your personality ills one by one, mark them down and write yourself some prescriptions which ask you to take a healthy dose of positivity on daily basis and prescribe yourself to follow a strict diet called 'my ideal personalities and their traits'. The best way to set your life in the best possible direction is to idealize someone. It can be your dad, a national hero, a public figure or some philosopher born in the 18th century! Or it can be all of them... Set a direction for yourself and start treating personal development as a life long project. Because I strongly believe it all starts with You... The moment you realise 'I' am the change the world is looking for that's when not just your nation but the whole humanity takes a leap towards the idea of a perfectly harmonised global community.