by: Eijaz Mir
The people are busy making money and other comforts, and luxuries of life. The business of crook and cunning fellows watching their miseries and haplessness snatched my sleep and disturbed my peace of mind. Amid psycho disturbance, I decided to leave my premises and started my journey towards the factories that spread the smoke in the atmosphere from their big and giant chimneys. I wanted to feel the conditions of helplessness of people who felt it in the form of heavy smoke of artillery. While observing this horrible scene, my eyes caught the attention of a little girl who was sitting at the doorsteps of a shopkeeper. I was watching her actions and suddenly I noticed that she was whispering some unusual words and sounds from her mouth. So out of curiosity, I approached her and asked her to utter a bit louder what she was. To my astonishment, “She could not speak clearly as she was stammering and I could not understand her. I inquired, “Is she alone in this heavy smoke or is anybody else accompanying her? She tried to talk in a stammering voice, nay nay, nay…, So I half-heartedly understood that the little girl was all alone.
The sellers in the market were catching the attention of the customers themselves by raising their louder voices and inviting people to buy from them. Some people were busy buying groceries and some other stuff for their families. While watching this, the little girl murmured something unusual. So it puzzled me not to get her ascent properly. I was feeling depressed and emotionally broken because the little girl who looked so beautiful was shivering with fear & aghast. I sat down on the dust and gazed at the other children who seemed marrying in the world of their imagination. They were busy playing traditional games and some of them were singing melodious songs. The little children seemed colorful & full of jocund feelings except the poor little girl. It broke my heart into pieces and I felt myself in the bottomless hell. The scene was so disturbing that I could hardly forget it. I left the place and went back to my home.
The miseries of the little girl didn’t allow me to sleep the whole night. I was still thinking about the haplessness and poor creature. Finally, I slept at 4:00 am. She came into my dream and asked me in a feeble voice, “I am a little poor girl from rubble. My parents died of heavy artillery & bombs and I am the one who survived and was taken out alive from the rubble. The little girl was the only survivor in the whole family. She was the same girl who met me all alone shivering with fear, aghast, terrified, and half insane. The tears started rolling from my eyes and I gave her a tight hug. In the despair and traumatized moment, I could listen to the sound of her innocent heart saying, Is the whole world sleeping? The poor girl disappeared with the words, you all humans will be questioned for your silence very soon? I woke up in temptation and my whole body was in sweat. I felt caged by some horrible power and my hands and feet started trembling with fear.
The next day was Eid-ul-Fitr, the festival of Muslims celebrated after the completion of 30 days of holy Month, Ramadan. The whole world was enjoying the festival of happiness and peace, but I was still thinking about the same poor girl in the rubble, the scene of the firing of the heavy machine guns and the horrible cries of the hapless people.
Wars have a deep effect on the lives of people. It snatched our peace of mind and left us in a hapless situation. It took precious human lives and made us helpless, tattered, and broken forever. It is not easy to overcome the traumas caused by these dreadful wars. The unending destruction arising out of these wars left us awed, shocked, and traumatized. The heavy artillery and race of power break us physically, mentally, emotionally and psychologically. As a result, thousands of children become orphans. We can not live within the pangs of such a huge catastrophe caused by illegitimate greediness of power and authority. The power and authority do not mean to denounce the security and freedom of others. I could hear the cries and sighs of little children everywhere. We have not left any stone unturned in mutilating the peace, relief, freedom and security of others. This is all that we have achieved so far in the race for artillery and guns. The smoke coming out from these machine guns and the horrible sounds produced by these dreadful bullets have turned us mentally sick and physically lean and unhealthy. We are not able to survive because the sense of insecurity and lack of peace has mentally retarded us. We have become mentally sick and tired.
As a columnist, I would like to say that if such power continues like this, shortly we are going to witness a huge human catastrophe. In the end, my opinion on this take is to eliminate majestic cruelty. Human lives matter the most and we should take utmost care of this precious resource for the sake of humanity. All humans irrespective of religion, race, and identity on the planet are alike. We breathe the same, we wear the same, and we eat the same. We are one body wearing one uniform. Then why this bloodshed?
The author can be mailed at eijazmir2192@gmail.com
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