Forgotten hope

Was there no hope? Had the light forsaken, its longstanding oath, or forgotten maybe, its obligation to shine.

They say that hope is what keeps us alive, what gets us out of bed every morning and what in fact makes the world go round!

On my recent trip to Karachi I met a lot of my old friends, colleagues and class-mates. The thing that struck and disappointed me the most was the dearth of hope that some of them are beleaguered with. Not a day went by when someone did not ask me if I could find them a job in the UK or Ireland and for someone like me, who holds his roots in great esteem, this was a really sad sight.

While I do not deny that things in Pakistan really don't look that good, such pessimism is not going to make things bette - it won't help our country nor the country as a whole.

So why not look on the bright side of things and appreciate the good things we have to offer the world.

I wrote the following piece a few years ago and it talks about hope when all hope seems lost. I believe it holds fast for the current state of Pakistan and Pakistanis. I believe that now is not the time to lose hope; we need to stand together and have our opinion counted heard. We need to move upwards.

The night fell,
And darkness followed,
The time passed,
But day never came.

Yet, walked the earth,
A lonely soul,
Searching for light,
Hoping for miracles.

Was there no hope?
A glimmer perhaps,
Was this betrayal?
Or deception maybe.

Had the light forsaken,
Its longstanding oath,
Or forgotten maybe,
Its obligation to shine.

Was the soul in breach,
Or unwillingly at fault?
Misguided perhaps,
To the brink of violation.

Staring aimlessly,
At the great void above,
But still unaware,
Of the reality befallen.

He turned his back,
With a sigh of despair,
Without a clue in his mind,
And no grudge in his heart.

As he began to fade away,
A speck still remained,
That the light would return,
And banish all seclusions

So will the clouds ever shed,
And let light make its way,
Down a path of enchantment,
Only time shall reveal.

Read more by Faraz here or follow him on Twitter @eff_eche