Adil Najam
This Father’s Day brings a mixed bunch of feeling for me. I am traveling for work and literally thousands of miles away from my three kids. Missing them, and missing them especially on Father’s Day. There is nothing in the world that compares to parenthood – the greatest of joys, and the greatest of responsibilities!
On the other hand, since I am in Pakistan, I am with my own father on this day; and a time and an age comes when you start cherishing those moments more than you ever did before.
I thought I might put my kids photograph up today. But, actually, those photographs have been up on ATP since Day 1 – if you look at my ‘hum daikhain gay‘ video, the three kids ‘jo daikhain gay‘ who appear right at the beginning, are my own!
So I went back and re-opened the post I had done last Father’s Day. It was not about my kids. It was about the millions of father’s in Pakistan. What I wrote then, I think, is still valid and worth repeating. So, here is the post in full.
I know we are supposed to put cute and cuddly type of stuff on Father’s Day. But being a father is serious business. All the more serious in developing countries like Pakistan.
This picture was taken soon after [the 2005] earthquake, but you can see a scene like this — a desperate father frantically trying to get urgent medical attention for his child — ever day in hospital wards across Pakistan.
Happy Father’s Day, Everyday!
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MESSAGE FOR PAKISTANI MUSLIM COMMUNITY LIVING IN USA
HJ, when do we NOT celebrate families , have you seen any occasion or festival that is NOT family oriented ?
start from the birth, the whole family is in the hospital , then the aqeeqa, then the birthdays. take the initiall inoculations, then the admissions to school, may it be chaand raat dinners or eid lunches, may it be the summer vacations, picnics, going out to eat at restaraunts, movie watching, galas, festivals , we see hoardes of families coming and going together and enjoying themselves ( sometimes getting on each others nerves as well !! )
Not that i have anything against these Fathers/Mothers/Grandparents/Teachers/Gardners/Pet s etc days !
I have heard before this argument about Fathers Day and Mothers Day being “not from our culture” and western imports. Granted they are not from “our culture.” But it is such a *bad idea* to celebrate the importance of the two most influential people in our lives? Just because its “western?” It the same problem when people say that the shawlar must be above the ankle to pray: What’s more important, where the shalwar falls or the prayer itself? Think about it, folks.
In any case, I have plenty to celeberate about my father. As a father of two young kids, I now realize it has to be one of the toughest tasks in the world. My father – in the trying circumstances that he lived – did his best and that I am proud of. And celebrate.
Just an aside, many cultures celebrate family. In Japan, they have 15 public holidays. Among them are: Young adults day, people’s day, children’s day and respect of the elders’ day.
We say we are very “family oriented.” How do we celebrate our families, I ask?
HJ