Some pictures + a thousand words

I'm sure most of you have already noticed that this will be a different than usual post. Photography is one of those passions that almost everyone has but not all get to pursue it. Fortunately the basic need is a camera; need not be the professional SLR one. A simple digital one will do for the time being. Click away amateurishly. Who knows, your passion might die there and then. At least you won't call it 'abandoned' anymore. So yeah as I was saying, this is different from my usual philosophical interpretations (read self-created). The following are some random images I took round my house. To be honest they have sort of a philosophical take too. Anyway here they are; random as random can be:

Straightforwardly, this is a junction of a blue wall and an orange wall. This wall deserves the honour to be on this cool blog because it is highly responsible for the unsurpassed creativity that Sara Q is famous for. It's the blue actually. It gives ideas; and not just for writing the blog or poetry or my journal. There have actually been a few "eureka" moments as well (don't ask). The orange is this happy colour. It's like this stimulant; I look at it and start feeling positive. No idea if that's actually been proven scientifically or not. The 'blue' theory is true though.

This here is the ‘Centaurus’ under construction. Named the ‘landmark of Pakistan’ (honestly, how many landmarks are there?) this multi-something project promises a seven star hotel, a luxury apartment complex and a mall complete with a movie theatre et all. Anyway, this is not a promotion, it’s just this huge building that will have all the fun stuff mentioned above but as of now, for someone like me only two things matter concerning this project; whether it’s going to block my sun once completed and second is understandably the security of the workers involved. This is actually an after hour shot. Usually you can see tiny, speck size construction workers moving about. What would seem like an impossible feat to us is a livelihood for them. Oh yeah, count in diversion of traffic as a concern too.

For antique lovers: this is an antique! I found this lying somewhere in the house and gave it a new status when found out that it was more than a hundred years old. It is a sort of an heirloom too actually. On further investigation on its origin I was told it was actually passed down to my grandmother when she got married. And so it resides on my fireplace. People say it's dumb to get attached to materials but i say it's not the materials it's the memory or the person associated with them.

An original Harry Potter collectible. The 'Knight Bus' that could take you anywhere as long as it was on earth. When I mention Harry Potter people always seem amused. Little do they know Harry is not about a young boy waving a wand and saying a few words. Harry Potter is a concept, a getaway from this weird humdrum of life. It sort of transports you to this other world which might be a fantasy place but it follows the same principles we follow; right and wrong, good and evil. life and death. Just like we have to make sacrifices in this world to get a happy ending, same goes with Potter. What can I say, the concept will never cease to have its influence on me. :)

Thick black rimmed glasses are actually the most stereotyped thing in the world. Words like ‘geek’ and ‘nerd’ have always been associated with them. It’s like people never realized there were actually eyes behind the lenses. It became easier when ‘anti-glare’ ones were introduced though. Though this stereotype stays I’m happy to see that glasses have actually experienced a rebirth in the western world. And well lets face it; fashion travels super fast eastwards. Big names are seen sporting dark rimmed spectacles on the red carpet and award shows. So just like the world is starting to get over the ‘size zero’ concept I guess glasses are gradually getting a new meaning. There was actually a girl my junior who was a total 24/7 black rimmed glasses person and she was the most sought after female of the batch. I guess there is still hope for that minority. :P

I guess we all know that the human heart has always been associated with the concept of love. What I don't get is that the heart is this spongy thing with valves coming out of every direction. Then how come the 'heart' associated with love got this shape. Well I know a spongy thing with valves though totally amazing would look a bit strange on greeting cards and teddy bears. However, as to how this shape really came into being is a total mystery to me. Please enlighten me if anyone else knows.

The classic question; is the glass half empty or half full. How do you see it?How would you want to see it? A total optimism/pessimism choice.

An African man and woman carry water buckets on their heads. The one on the left is the woman. If you look closely you can see she's also carrying a baby. It is more prominent in the shadow rather than the original piece.

This is actually a figment of the "Flag movement" I talked about in an earlier post. The fact that our flag is an integral part of our lives as Pakistanis. It is more of a 'back to basics' concept. First realise how the flag came into being because it is humanly impossible to imagine the whole country in such a manner. A simple glance on the back of the car can provoke thoughtfulness or a realisation of our true identity. Maybe a humble reminder that no matter how much screwed up we are these days we are still ONE. Just like Talha A.B reminded us of our blessings in his last post.

A lost cause? Something we had but don’t have anymore. It’s surprising how much we Pakistanis look up to cricket to boost our ‘terrorised’ spirits. Unfortunately, like my co-author said the whole political/social instability seems to have gotten them too. Nothing seemed to go right this season; as if there was this dark cloud looming overhead. Like some curse.

Anyway, this equipment you see here is in every Pakistani home irrespective of economic situation or gender configuration. Yes, even I’m a self declared cricketer :D.

Street cricket is like this getaway and even a platform for getting ‘discovered’. It’s not just some leisurely activity. It can mean war; tournaments, challenges, a fight for glory b/w 2 different sides of the neighbourhood. Yep THAT serious. In the current situation it has become this outlet for rage. In many cases disappeared completely thanks to parents worrying over security. The latter has actually caused the young generation to go totally couch potato. Whatever exercise they got in these meager two hours is now kaput. Great! Now we have another potential evil to get rid off; obesity.

A lamp. With a light bulb. Emitting light that is obviously not needed right now so I’ll just switch it off. Somehow, under the country’s current electricity deprived situation it is unfit to fashionably photograph a lamp. This was a lucky first shot.

A mirror. Chemical composition has something to do with silver I guess. Obviously, it reflects our appearance but what else does it do. It helps us feed on narcissism. Sometimes elevates our appearance related insecurities. For some it is an obsession (think on the lines of Snow White; ‘mirror mirror on the wall…..remember?) It shows us who we are in our own eyes, even if we try to hide our truths, good or bad. It’s actually our own self looking at us in a ‘are you sure’ manner. Mirrors help us gain confidence too, its like looking yourself in the eye, accepting what you see. Like Talha A. B puts it; you need to bathe in your own glory sometimes. There are many superstitions surrounding mirrors but let’s not scare our minimal amount of readers away. Add in magic too (the mirror of ‘Erised’ in “Harry Potter”). The terms ‘mirror’ and ‘reflection’ are used as metaphors to convey love, telepathy and understanding too. As writes a local poet “He saw her as no mirror could reveal her to herself”. (The rest is unimportant and explicit)

Surprisingly this picture was taken less than a month ago. This is a tree right outside my house and it's surprising because now its all green and 'springy'. I was strolling in my driveway one day when i noticed the myriad of colours behind this tree. It was near sunset. I quickly ran in for the camera and captured it, afraid that the light will go bad. Weirdly yet logically i see the same array of colours in the backdrop the next day, same time. It was then I realised that this was like an indirect second chance. I mean, even if my batteries had been dead I could have easily caught this image on camera the next day or any day for a while, before the backdrop changed course due to weather. Somehow it seemed appropriate that this picture should mark the end of my post.

On first glance this leafless, apparently dead tree against a subtle sunset gives this forlorn look but the fact that it stays in the same position all year round, grows leaves, sheds leaves, its background goes from dull to bright and bright to dull gives a lesson in itself. It’s here to stay. Just because it braves against all forces of nature doesn’t make it any more lifeless than us. It makes it strong and steadfast.

And like I said, if nature is so forgiving that it provided the same pattern and array of colours the next day then why can’t we, as humans be forgiving. What’s so great about us? Who do we think we are? Why can’t we give someone a second chance, or nature or situations or events? Everything! To be honest most importantly why can’t we give our own selves a second chance, a break perhaps?

I’ll let you guys sleep on it. Remember it is only when you learn to love and accept yourself that others learn to love and accept you. Think about it.

Until next time, Sara Q is signing off.