http://Brohi.tigblog.org/ What's on the minds of young leaders from around the globe? en-us http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/662159
Mom, did I ever mention how great it feels to see you in the kitchen?

Mom, I even love the way you scold me when I step on the rug with dirty feet

Mom, I love to get sick because of you to love me so

I love to get my ankle bruised so that you may hug me to make it sooth

Mom I love it when you wake me up in the morning

I adore the smell of what you are always cooking

Mom did I ever mention how proud I feel to walk by you?

Mom, I love the way you hold my hand when the roads are busy

Mom I love it when you say I m your little girl, when I know I m not little anymore

Mom, I do things slow to make you say hurry! hurry! hurry!

Mom, do you know I was awake last night when you thought I m asleep and kissed my forehead?

Mom, have I ever mentioned how nice you look in pink ?

Mom, have I ever told you how much I love your sound when you talk?

how much I adore the orders you give?

Mom, have I told you how soothing it is just to see you?

Mom have I ever told you, you are the one whos especial for me?

Mom, I really care when you say I don't?

Mom have I told you how much I love your presence?

Mom have I let you know how much I love the hugs you give?

Mom have I told you How much I LOVE YOU........?

Mom, because I do..................I really do.]]> Sun, 10 May 2009 07:48:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/662159 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/600481
Honor killing is one of the hideous forms of violence against women, which snatches away their right to life. pledge to raise awareness on it to end the crime.

http://commit.tigweb.org/1079]]> Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:20:00 EST http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/600481 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/538323
Though Violence against women takes a dismaying variety of forms, but the worst form which snatches away the lives of millions of women each year is “Honor Killings”. Each year, uncountable amount of women are killed, burnt, sold, exchanged and handed out to different tribes for compensation for a conflict in the name of honor.

According to UN about more then one thousand women are killed in Pakistan each year in the name of honor. These are the cases that are reported but thousands go unregistered and unnoticed. Despite having different laws about the criminal custom, signing on declarations and participating in conventions, Pakistan has not yet been able to make even the smallest change in the lives of women living under tribal codes of honor.

PDI like other many organizations in Pakistan has been actively engaged in working towards putting an end to this inhuman act. From advocacy to empowerment of local women in rural areas, PDI has also been part of various regional and international movements.

Since January 2008 PDI had launched an online campaign, WAKE UP!!! Campaign against Honor Killing that recruits international Change Agents. Since then WAKE UP has been the second vibrant online campaign against honor killing to reach out to more then three thousands of people from around the world and use innovative approaches of media as a great tool to bring positive change.

http://tinyurl.com/6j2dtm

http://tinyurl.com/65hsap

Just Recently Oxfam Australia and PDI joined hands on the practical launch of WAKE UP and today in a an Assembly organized by PDI Khuzdar at Khuzdar , Balochistan on the International Day of Elimination of Violence Against Women, PDI and Oxfam Officially declare the launch of WAKE UP!!! Campaign against Honor Killing.

WAKE UP targets youth, local communities, organizations, media and policy makers. Using effective ways of advocacy it highlights the past mistakes and new approaches, not forgetting to learn what went wrong from all these years of Law making.

It is in its initial stages of reaching out to the stake holders and needs as much as support from all of you, It is about time a dilute action be carried on the merciless customs!

For more information or support please contact me at khalidabrohi_traditional@yahoo.com

Khalida Brohi
]]> Tue, 25 Nov 2008 05:09:00 EST http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/538323 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/515727
my project Youth and Gender Development Program has recently been selected as a finalist in the Ashokas social entrepnuer competition, but it needs your votes to get to the end!

Please vote for Youth and Gender Development Program on the following link, you have to login and can vote for three!

http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/competition/staplesyv

Thanks!

Khalida Brohi]]> Mon, 03 Nov 2008 00:11:00 EST http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/515727 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/471023
It was a fine day in July when I received the letter of my acceptance to participate in Human Rights and Advocacy Training in Darwin, Australia.

It was a ten day training course on Indigenous human rights, along with field visits conducted by a well known training program based in Sydney, Australia called the Diplomacy Training Program (DTP).

How ever the news was sudden, and it took a while to obtain my visa and then to book the flights, I ended up having the longest journey of my life.

This wasn’t my first visit to Australia, being selected in Oxfam Australia’s three year program, Oxfam International Youth Partnership; I had visited Sydney in October 2007 for the launching ceremony of the partnership. That time I had only one transit and this time, I was having the journey around the world!

I had to fly to Bangkok, then to Singapore, Bali, Perth and finally to Darwin. The travel was long, but awesome! I came across so many new places, new people and new experiences. I had the time of my life!

Finally at the destination, I met the participants coming from the Asia and pacific, there were people from Thailand, Burma, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, PNG, Philippines and Australia. It was wonderful to see the different accent, languages and ways of life among them. All of us were accommodated in a university called the Batchelor Institute promoting indigenous education in the Northern Territories of Australia.

The next day the training started, Sarah Pritchard took over the sessions and introduced the human rights frame work and the universal declaration on the indigenous human rights. It was when we had a chance to give presentations on the main issues of indigenous people in our countries, I was surprised at the results as all the issues seemed interconnected, it reminded me of the concept of the “shark and the little fish” in all the countries. Just like Pakistan, indigenous people in all other countries suffered Land Privatization, Bonded Labor, lack of CSR by the Corporate companies was the one of the main issues faced in the Asia region and the responsible bodies were as always ADB, World Bank and the other Multinational companies, which were the sharks.

The connection in our issues, and the same pain we all had brought all the participants close and it wasn’t only two days that we were all a family of 30 people.

The phase of Advocacy in Human Rights campaigning has started by now, and we were learning to design web pages and to reach out to internet to disseminate information to the vast level. It was a great experience. During the sessions we were given time to surf and research on what ever topics and then prepare presentations on that, I did mine on what is climate change, its causes and effects. It was another big issue the indigenous people faced.

Finally the day to visit the local communities of Northern Territories in Australia came and we were all overwhelmed with excitement. I tried to visualize how the people would be, remembering my own lands in Baluchistan where I come from, the mud houses, the cattle, the small kids with the smiling faces, women fetching water from far off places. I couldn’t wait!

The beswick community was all we could have imagined, the same poor people with simple living, but fortunately enough they didn’t face much problems as indigenous people in Pakistan did, Off course once again it shows how responsible the Government of a country is.

We traveled on ships along the rivers to the Katherine Gorge, where we were shown the paintings on the mountains done by indigenous people about hundreds of years back. They were paintings of animals, peoples and shapes with deep colors of red and yellow on the hearts of mountains. It revealed the stories of their lives, both free and difficult at the same time.

The days ahead we were introduced to campaigning and media skills in advocacy for human rights. Fortunately I got a chance to talk a whole session on my experience in campaigning against honor killing. The next day I was told that I and another girl participant Joy from PNG were to be meet by people from an institute in the South Australia as they wanted to discuss our campaigning skills and ask questions in using the media. I was delighted as the meeting was a video conference, and it was my first ever time to experience it.

Finally the last day of the wonderful ten days was celebrated by a solidarity night, we were all asked to prepare a dish form our country and perform something. Everyone was wonderful, they were all expert cooks, but however I wasn’t bad and Pakistan has good flavors! I made Biryani and got great comments. As for the performances, there were dances, songs, dialogue, games, stories and as for me, I tried my poetic skills.

Training ended finally and it was the day when every one left, we all were sad at heart, it was as if we were leaving a happy family. But the thought to go back to our home lands was something to look forward to and that’s the main thing that keeps things going…………there is always something to look forward to!!!

Khalida Brohi]]> Fri, 05 Sep 2008 03:29:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/471023 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/441055
It was wonderful knowing at first that we are going to be a part of this grand event(World Youth Congress) at Quebec, and when actually CIDA financially supported us all, it was one of our dreams come true.

All we wanted was to be present when all the 600 experienced people from around the world were there, but having all the preparations done, we were unaware that our passports were refused of visas of Canada!

It hurt to know that the third world countries are NOT given much chance to prosper, they are left back to realize even more of what they are lacking.................two young activists raised there voices against this all and proved that we are not yet to be giving up!

Our requests are to the embassy to move back from Pakistan, if they don't want Pakistanis to enter Canada! there is no need of them to be associated in Islamabad then!

In the last I would like to say, that its proved enough now that, though talking a lot about development of these left out countries, there isn't much effort put into it to make it a reality for these countries to be one of the developed!!!]]> Tue, 29 Jul 2008 03:30:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/441055 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/438815
I met Shum (that’s what she says we should call her) by luck, hummm…well not like she was just standing there and I went out to make friends with her. We are actually part of a same program for community service and youth empowerment.

She is one of those perky girls that catch your eye and you are at them just there. At first as it seems the only thing matching between us were our birthdays, we both being the same age actually had our birthdays in the same month. Hers is October 9 and mine is October10! This brought us close before knowing we were total negative of each other.

If I would like apple punch she would go for a coke, I would wear blue she would make a face of disgust, if I would say short hair is good she would go for the longest in the world.

Even being from Karachi we communicated mostly by emails and that was the hardest part. I spent half an hour reading the “haf u gt 1 ov the buzzy daz 2?” and finally realizing she means our hard working days of the year that is the exams! Several times I would print her emails and try to make out the words which were half letters and half numbers!

Coming to our hobbies I mainly lay down cozily reading a book or drawing out sketches when she says she cant live with out her TV and is obliged to go and sit in front of the huge screen munching on what looks like a pack of cheetos. Sometimes it gets on my nerves the way she eats all she wants and is always the beautiful structure of bones and flash, and when it comes to my eating, if I eat a paratha in the morning I m so sure to gain a pound by the evening!

We went to Sydney together to attend an event of the program and in first days I began to have one of those, I-feel-like-an-alien feelings roaming around in between bunches of goras and goris, and there she was in jeans perking up and laughing about with her new friends looking as if she might have been born in Sydney.

So what’s the actual dress you wear back in Pakistan? one of our friends asked eyeing my clean shiny dupatta and shalwar qameez and sitting beside me shum in her usual denim and shirt.
Hee he, umm…well our actual national dress is shalwar qameez but some of the people love dressing the way they do I answered. Well! Shum jumped up, “I would never dream of wearing shalwar qameez for long even in Pakistan”! she said, Which was so true I thought, visualizing the skirts and those beautiful dresses she wore. (I actually annoyed her, but it was one of my silent campaigns against globalization that I won’t change my culture no matter what!)

Of all the things we do together some are really important and that is thinking of our futures, like I have the oldest written-down-mission on a paper I have saved for long time which Starts with the heading that says “MY MISSION OF LIFE” and ends with a commitment which goes like this , “A Daughter, A sister, A citizen and A woman must remembered!” And as for shum!!! well, yes she has her plans too, few months back she was off to start a huge Asian network and which was later changed, then she was planning to start a new project, a month ago she was planning on going to off to Canada, and now?.........well now she says she would see when the time comes!
Coming to the point it’s hard to match the two of us, but you know what we think? We think we are a match made in heaven! Both of us are inseparable and would never dream of leaving the wonderful friendship. We respect our diversities and love our selves and besides you know what they say, contrast is always good!!!

After all, we are same-in a different way!!!
]]> Sat, 26 Jul 2008 03:15:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/438815 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/385597
Life is not something just to live, it’s a matter of feeling what we know, do and want to do. Life is something to “possess” to actually be conscious of. But as it seems that people including me have lost what it means to actually be living. We are robots, if not fully but are going to turn into. We are sensing life as something to must do this, must do that, eat and sleep. When life is not just waking up in the morning and sleeping at night.

Just for a while stop and think what life really means to you and you will find out the time you haven’t taken out for your family, the meals you haven’t cooked, the ice-cream flavors you haven’t tasted and the love you haven’t spread. Life is about sharing, about relationships, its about what you give and get in return in the end happiness for each of you.

I m always waiting for wonderful things to happen which to me are my inspiration but until today I haven’t ever realized I MYSELF m the inspiration to me. I can actually make wonderful things happen, I can make so many people happy of my being, I can take many chances, I can have so much fun! It’s because it’s me and my life and the world around me.

I have taken the time to stop of my schedules and think about what life matters to me, what about you?

]]> Mon, 09 Jun 2008 05:40:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/385597 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/383981
But right now, as it seems, writing down things is the last thing I could ever think of. Life has become plain, becuase there are always new shows, new cloths, and there is always almost EVERYTHING!
and thats the main reason of my life to be turning out boring, I m having access of everything. today I was wondering how totaly interesting a life of a girl in a village might be, doing new things and actually fighting hard to get rights and what she needs, when we are having everything at our hands.

I wish I didn't possess what I do, because possessions have made me forget how beautiful life is! ]]> Fri, 06 Jun 2008 06:01:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/383981 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/377819
Well I must say that starting a revolution has never been the answer to the unending questions about changing things about the world which are affecting us both negatively and positively.

Change is a word that leads to think of like if from turning purple to green. but change when it comes to atitudes, beliefs and thoughts is a challenge for all of us. The first ever change begins within. as the greatest poet put it in the last stanza of the most known poem,

" lying on my death bed I think "
if only I might have changed myself first

The verses have more power then they actually show, its clear how things begin within the person itself. "Dont wait until the world to signal you that now its ok to make change, BE the change". I keep telling myself and reminding myself, that every single second is as important as the flight might be missed if not reached at the airport, the sun will be up, the last train might have left and the last chance we might have gone.

Khalida Brohi]]> Mon, 26 May 2008 09:10:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/377819 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/363325
Manzoor Ahmad the co-manager of “Yes to Sports-No to Drugs” Project, called off a small meeting before going off to the ground where we were having our ceremony. He wanted to make sure the things that were supposed to be in the ceremony spot were delivered or not. The meeting proved that we are having all the arrangements really smoothly.

I couldn’t make it to the ceremony because of something but Manzoor was there and he ensured everything goes nice and great.

Yes to Sports-No to Drugs, was something which was really famous by now, everyone that is anyone in Khuzdar knew about the events taking place these three days and it made us proud to have to hear people talking about the project.

The final day started just wonderful as the young volunteers made there way to the same sports ground making things ready for the chief guests to arrive, the impatient young people gathered around enjoying the superb opportunity of finding something different then usual.

Things were all set as Manzoor Ahmad took hold of his place and announced a cricket tournament of some famous teams of Khuzdar. The match was wonderful, and caught so much of attention and

when it was finished manzoor was all ready to initiate the ceremony formally when a person came over to him and asked that he has to share something. He was happily allowed and he began his story, he was actually a reporter in a local news paper and had heard about the event, being from Khuzdar himself, he was hearing the inspiration that was in the air from days and all was against drugs, he said he used to smoke and gave a second thought to his habit when the PDI campaign came in the scene. “Now I have made up my mind, I will not smoke from now on”, as he said this, a great big cheer went up on the ground. Our first ever result of the event was speaking the words of success.

The ceremony was a hit, the chief guest who was Program officer FM Baluchistan, Sultan Shahwani and Mr. Naz Brohi, Chairperson Press Club, Khuzdar. They addressed the young people of the negative aspects of drugs and distributed cricket items to more then 50 teams. Some of the youth came over promising never to touch chalwas or gutqas again, and in the last a big cheer ended the ceremony which was “Yes To Sports-No to Drugs”!!!!


]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 04:22:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/363325 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/363323
We got to the abandoned ground near the community which was to be made into a sports ground for youth of Khuzdar. As we were just planning on how things are going to be carried out a whole troop of youth were coming towards us holding brooms, waste bags and other cleaning stuff.

Our amazement was something to behold. Soon all the young volunteers were working together and cleaning the area with enthusiasm and spirit. It was so wonderful as the kids smiled and worked together for a same cause, to get all of themselves a sports ground which will be there best place to hang out.

The two young leaders were giving out instructions and helping out in the stuff, a lot of kids joined a while later. It all seemed more like a ceremony, where everyone was happy working together.

Just before the afternoon, the ground was all ready, it didn’t look much like a reall sports ground but the hard work has given great results and the place was an open space to play any sport. Everyone was smiling, and feeling the same victory of effort and pleasure of doing something together.
]]> Tue, 29 Apr 2008 04:21:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/363323 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/362905
It was finalized that we have 30 young volunteers that are all ready to implement the project but still we needed to check things for the last to make sure our service day that is 26th April will go finely. It looked like that everything was ready, the brochures, banners and the cricket items. We had so much of time spare to us, Farida suggested we should not waste 25th of April and would do something rather interesting and then it struck me, we had actually published 1000 brochures instead of 500. I suggested that we should go around the local community of Khuzdar and distribute the brochures to the local youth.

Manzoor Ahmad accompanied with the three young leaders went around in schools meeting with there principals and telling them about the campaign and distributing brochures. The amazing thing was the school principals requested if their students could participate in the event too, we couldn’t have resisted that and promised some of their students join in the cleaning event that is the service day on 26th.

I met with the young girls of Khuzdar by going off there homes and meeting them in small groups and talking to them about the wrong impacts of the drug they use called the huqa.
The other volunteers scattered around town meeting people and informing them of the campaign and what’s it about and distributing brochures.

Finally I met with the crew in the afternoon and we shared the whole day with each other. It was really inspiring the way the young people from such a conservative community responded in enthusiastic manner. Our spirits were high and we were all looking forward to making this GYSD in Khuzdar a hit!
]]> Mon, 28 Apr 2008 02:49:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/362905 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/360795
The UN reports that more than 1,000 women are killed in Pakistan in the name of 'honour' every year. According to the latest survey in year 2007 1,317 women in Pakistan were killed in the name of honour, about thousands which are not registered. The law seems to be deliberately blind to these incidents and there hasn’t been any serious action taken on this. Read all about how Khalida Brohi is helping to end silence on this issue within Pakistan and internationally.

Violence against women exists in many forms, affecting the women mentally and physically. But the worst form which snatches away the lives of thousands of women each year is honour killing. It is the name given to the crime carefully wrapped under the veil of customs which is neither Islamic, nor any other religion might promote it. Honour killing is the inhuman act which even though it is present worldwide, has been denied existence.

The hideous custom is a dark reality in Pakistan , from thousand years, women suffer in the form of death, which to their men is restoration of there honour. Women slightly suspected of conducting an illicit relationship, face hideous forms of death. They are stoned, bullet shot, beaten until dead, and attacked by axes, by their brothers, fathers, husband and even cousins.

Women keep on being a victim to the vicious custom which is more of a business used to take over lands, other women, solve money matters and to ensure men still have the power against women.

“S was killed by her brother just because he had a fight with the neighbourhood boy and killing his sister gave him a chance to say that they both had an illicit relationship”.

“A girl was brutally murdered by her father on “suspicion” of illicit relationships in Sukkar this February. The father chopped the body and interred it without a proper burial ceremony.
The accused Pandi Jatoi used an axe to cut the body into pieces. The girl cried and tried to prove her innocence by holding the Holy Quran.

Police expressed their ignorance about the incident. However, some sources in the police confirmed that their colleagues were deliberately concealing the matter”.

The killing of a woman in a community leaves the others psychologically threatened. Under the customs the killer ought to be more proud and satisfied to have done such an honourable act. The question is, what kind of an honour is it to kill a mother, daughter, sister and wife?
There is no answer, in fact there hasn’t been any answer to it at all, women keep on being the slaughter animals used when needed. Criminals run free and the crime is denied with the name of honour.

Now, when we believe the world is taking a turn in modernization, there are still women who fear day and night they might be killed on no basis at all. Women live in the shadow of weapons to their heads, they are slaves to their own households. People decide whom to kill and when, and find even the late service of dinner a reason to thrash the women with axes.

Honour Killing does not have any honour in it; it is just killing and plain killing. It’s a criminal act and must be regarded as such. The law, state and matters should wake up and see what’s happening to women who don’t even have a voice to call for help. There is no estimated end to this crime, but the end is possible if the matter is taken seriously not just an issue to be talked about on International women’s rights day.

Khalida Brohi]]> Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:33:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/360795 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/357365
This is one of my usual trips to Khuzdar, Baluchistan, there is always something to know and learn. The journey is of 6 hours and that is enough to get a lot of what a person wants. To me which is like observing and thinking.

But the true journey began when we would have crossed Karachi and today it seemt more like an impossible thing to do. Our car was on the way to do it and we were in middle of the usual bustle of Karachi roads. Busy People were on there way to there lives, there issues and there remaining work to do. As it was the morning time, most of them were off to there works, one girl was standing in middle of starring man on the bus stop to wait and wait for the bus. Some women were trying all there best to cross the road, as the woman clutched to her baby and looking much at the small child and holding him to herself tightly, she didn’t give much importance to the roaring traffic that was there, she just cared if the baby was OK.

Our car was finally out of Karachi after an hours struggle, the busyness of the roads has subsided and now the people across looked more calm and more to them selves. But suddenly we came across a rally of PPP, some people indicated us to go the other way as there was no chance of us to move past the dancing crowd. We crossed it, and let the journey continue.
Some time after, we were crossing a village like area, it was a busy place and people were engrossed in shop keeping, kids run past, women bought fruit, songs in Pashto, Sindhi, Siraiki played. The place looked like as the people are planning on not returning to there homes, they had calmness on there faces which said everything was OK.

Coming out in the open, we faced another rally which was silent and people were slowly moving further, the flags said the rally was of a “Pir,Murshid”, and these people were the followers. We continued our long journey, and after two hours we were in the areas which were more familiar to me then any thing, huge mountains faced us, lonely trees in the isolated grounds waved slowly, and the sun was hot. This was something which I loved, the mountains, the lands, and far away the hints of water in the open ground. The hotness of the weather was giving back the memories I had right from my child hood, it told me that I m close to the place I was brought up.

The car moved down on the zigzagged road, and the mountains were becoming larger and more wonderful. I could see the things which I longed desired to watch even having to see every year, a few women were carrying buckets, and other stuff filled with water and seemed to go to nowhere, as there wasn’t ay house to be seen as the eye could see.

Moving further, I caught site of some kids playing, it was amazing as because the area was totally isolated with huge mountains and rocky lands. The car was moving slower and I could see them trying to chase a small bird, the bird toppled off on the tree and they tried to jump up to catch it, a huge wind came and the bird flew off leaving them starring off in the air and going nuts by laughing. I wondered if they knew that the country is in crisis, that our politicians are having a clash, that people are being burned alive, that people are being shot right here in the same country, but obviously they didn’t knew of it and I wanted it to remain the way it was.

A while later we were crossing the area where the floods had passed the roads a few months back, leaving evidence of corrupt work, when I had seen the hundreds of buses halted at the point because of no help and no assistance by no one. The scenes were so fresh of the children drenched with sweet from the hot weather, crying of no food, many patients have fainted, and there had been no sign of helpers from any side. The media people were no where to be found, when it is thought that they are even faster then the issue effects people. We moved further with just about completing the journey.

Sceneries passed, steep hills, huge mountains, lonely houses, open grounds, finally reaching a place which was more like a prosperous place, the grounds were green with fields, there were tree and happy kids, our car made way from the middle of the village, a tractor passed us, and I heard what the driver who was probably a farmer was listening to Benazir Bhutto, the sound was of hope and a belief that there will be democracy in Pakistan, smiling to myself I was all ready to have great 10 days ahead in Khuzdar, Baluchistan.

Khalida Brohi
]]> Mon, 14 Apr 2008 08:39:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/357365 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/356591 Ever remember oh dear father
Cradled in your hands was once your only daughter
Your eyes were sad, your voice have shook
Glint of love did shone in your first look

Things changed the very moment of my life
Your features changed, boring like a knife
I looked toward you with doubt and hope
Clutched your dear hand for support

I had come in the world knowing not
What misfortune with me I brought
Life hold realities for me
To know and learn and to see

To eat my food I had to wait
It was one of my assigned fate
I waited till me brothers were done
I sat there hungry, sometimes having none

I worked in the house when my brothers played
I never mentioned but oh father I was sad
I gazed towards them misty eyed
It was when night came, I cried

Doing chores and fetching water
I ran about obeying each order
Days have passed, much in vain
Until one day when I was ten

Exhausted in the field work of all day
I wished to rest and there I lay
Tired I was, my eyes had closed
Not having known what fate they hold

Awoke at once when I felt being dragged
I saw you and for mercy I begged
Seized I was in your hands
I was a sinner, I slept on open lands

The hands that cradled me once before
To me, they belonged to you no more
My heart stopped just at the time
And I was killed for an unknown crime

Khalida Brohi
]]> Sat, 12 Apr 2008 04:47:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/356591 http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/356235
I m the girl of an indigenous family in interior of Sindh, with three brothers guarding me. I haven’t seen much of Sindh accept for our house and grandfathers near our village, though grandfather says that it’s a place which is blessed with surprising things and I understand what he says, its about the trees we make swings on, about the rivers running down near our houses, but then again there is this other thing I don’t know much about. Grandfather says, there are houses on top of houses, grandfather says, there are vans driven by women, grandfather says there are girls who don’t wash dishes but go to a place to learn and learn!

How surprising it is………..I end up hours of thinking everyday, on the bank of this river, right here where I come to wash cloths

But today! It was wonderful, amazing I didn’t think about these surprises, but I found out about everything which has been confusing me from all this time, today I walk towards my home with the answer I long wanted and it is this that………………….my grandfathers eyesight is weak!]]> Fri, 11 Apr 2008 07:13:00 EDT http://Brohi.tigblog.org/post/356235