I am sitting in the living room with my brother and sister, humming to the sound of a generator. It is already my third day here and I will tell you this, time flies even when you aren’t having fun. Our neighbourhood here in Karachi, Pakistan is the best thing that happened to us. I live no further than a 2 minute drive from my closest relatives. In three days, the furthest I have gone is 0.1km.
Sometimes I can’t believe this is home, this is where I was born and lived for the first 9 years of my life. The world is a completely different place from what it was back then, in 1988. So much has changed, but yet I feel so comfortable in the city where danger grows each day.
Some of you may be wondering, why on earth would you go to a place that is so unstable at the moment. Well, primarily I am here to visit my grandmother, the only grandparent I have ever had the chance to me. Secondly, my dad enjoys it here and is celebrating his 60th birthday tomorrow.
You may also know that not too far from where I am, there have been serious floods and many have lost their lives. There was also a plane crash and 152 people died. Shortly after, a political leader was killed and the city I am in was in an uproar. For 3 days, everything was closed and people weren’t able to get from point A to point B without the fear of losing their lives.
Back to the sound of the generator. I just found out that the city runs on a schedule of when we will be without electricity, 11am-12pm, 5-6pm, and 9-10pm. My dad says its a good thing; the poor are given a notice and can work around. We are fortunate enough to have electricity at all times thanks to the generator.
This brings me to another point about being home. The simplicity that existed when I lived here. I look at children these days and they can’t go a few hours without checking their Facebook or texting a friend. When we lived here we looked forward to socializing with our friends, attending Karate classes, going to the market, and playing outside. What happened to those days?
This is home. No matter how dangerous it is outside, I still feel comfortable. Maybe we are immune, maybe we are ignorant, but if we all live in fear, where would we be today?
