THE KITE RUNNER REVIEW

Hey friends, so I have been reading this book lately and thought I should write a review about it. This is the most hyped novel by Khalid Hosseini. I got hold of this novel last year, but couldn’t get time to read it.  Thanks to the lockdown that I finally got to finish it and I am really glad to have read an incredible story like this. Read on to know more about the book.

OUTLINE

The kite runner is a story that highlights the elements of friendship, betrayal, guilt and redemption through the characters. It is set against the backdrop of Afghanistan under the Taliban’s invasion.

The story revolves around the relationship between two boys the protagonist, Amir Agha, son of a wealthy Pashtoon man, and Hassan a Hazara servant son. Who used to play and spend time together since childhood, yet the discrepancies in their status always define their relationship and actions. The protagonist’s quest to attain his father’s affection couldn’t stop him from betraying his close friend, Hassan. Little did he know that how his betrayal would not only cause damage to his relationship but also him. The war in Afghanistan separated them. However, the sense of guilt glued to him and kept haunting him as he moved to the u.s leaving his friend behind. Thus, the kite runner is the story of the protagonist’s redemption.

MY OPINION

I have read Khalid Hosseini’s other novel
Like ” the mountains echoed, ” a thousand splendid sun”, but let me tell you that kite runner is by far his best novel and deserves all the appreciation. By the time, I finished this masterpiece, I have already been through an emotional rollercoaster. The revelation of the truth to Amir in the second half of the book was beyond heart-wrenching and made my eyes teary still, I couldn’t help myself from turning pages. The author has beautifully crafted every word and kept his readers engrossed in his characters in such a way that the reader would feel and relate to what the fictitious characters are going through. The emotional turmoil, physical violence, adultery, and the depth of every other emotion that are remarkably projected in this novel, represents the physical turmoil and violence that was inflicted upon  Afghanistan. The author has depicted the social conflict in Afghanistan in his characters internal conflict.

There are a few quotes in the book which I have highlighted so I could read them over and over. Let me share some here and give you a glimpse of what a worthwhile book this is.

1. “Children aren’t colouring books. You don’t get to fill them with your favourite colours”

Yes just because we have bred them, we don’t get to decide everything for them. Let them be the master of their life instead of being a master yourself.

2. “There is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. When you kill a man, you steal a life. You steal a wife’s right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie,  you steal someones right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness. There is no act more wretched than stealing”.

This one hit me hard. Theft is indeed the biggest sin ever. And we know how much damage it can do to one’s life.

3. “Hassan!” I called. ” come back with it”
” For you, a thousand times over”. he said

And this one is the best of all. It brought tears to my eyes. This small yet powerful quote is the epitome of Hassan’s loyalty towards Amir. Despite having various reasons to hate Amir, Hassan has always been loyal to him as a brother.

4. But it’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past always claws its way out.

5. And that, I believe is true redemption, when guilt leads to good.

CONCLUSION

In brief, this is a book that you should not be missing out on. It is going to last in your mind and you would want to read the book all over again. I would highly recommend this book to everyone. If you are looking for something emotional, it’s a must-read. But if you are sensitive and vulnerable then you should avoid reading this book for the fear of getting depressed.

RATINGS:

5/5

GOOD BYE 2020

This year has been a rollercoaster but the good news is that the ride to 2020 has finally come to an end, and we are the fortunate survivors who have made it through with a lot of hassle. As excited as you are, to enter the new year with lots of hopes of things getting back on track, I feel bad to disclose the fact that things might not work like we have thought it through. I know I might be scaring you all, but the fact is that the fears that you have felt this year all along might haunt you in the upcoming year too. Though we should not be hopeless for there is always a light after darkness, so let’s hold onto that hope and be optimistic that soon this pandemic will be over, and things would get normal like we once had.

Before bidding final farewell, I want to tell you that this year has already been marked the worst year in human history, but it has certainly taught us plenty of things which we have ignored. Here are a few profound lessons that I have learned from 2020.

• Life is too short for holding grudges and hatred. Spend quality time with your loved ones because many people have lost their loved one in this pandemic.
• Health is wealth. Covid has taught us that don’t take your health for granted. Eat healthily and take care of your immunity to combat any illness.
• After health, money is everything even if some don’t believe. It does save you in time of need. So change your perception and have some savings for the rainy days.
• Many people have lost their jobs in this pandemic so try to have multiple means of earning.
• Last but not least be grateful for everything you have and above all be grateful that you made it through 2021. Never forget how much of a blessing it is.

Let’s all say goodbye to the year of misery and horror and anxiety and troubles and agony and suffering and sorrow and terror, depression, and what more? I might fall short of words while describing this year, and yet the list of words might not do justice to what we have individually gone through. Nevertheless, we have made it this far so let’s be thankful and pray for the ones who have lost their loved ones. I pray from the core of my heart that may God bless the living soul and rest the dead souls in peace, and give courage to everyone to be strong as we embrace the new year and say goodbye to this long exhausting year.

GOODBYE 2020 AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

BIRTHDAY..a cause of celebration or reflection

Every year we celebrate our birthday with joy and why shouldn’t we? After all, birthdays are supposed to be celebrated with all heart. It is a special occasion to rejoice and cheer our valuable entrance to the world. Though, did it ever occur to you that what exactly are we rejoicing? Perhaps we have accomplished something worthy in all these years and our existence has made quite a difference in this planet. I wonder that could be the reason to cherish. If not, then are you celebrating the day solely because its the day you were born? The fact that you have born is unfortunately not your achievement at all. Every single creature is being born with every tick-tock of the clock. I don’t think its an accomplishment and a reason for celebration.

what I have perceived, birthdays are just a reminder that one more year has gone by and you have managed to survive until now. Even though you are getting older, but you are still breathing which is a blessing as you get to live more.  Besides, it also reminds us that we have got closer to death and have little time left to do something meaningful and worthy out of life. However, when you are a kid, it does make sense to celebrate because you have a long way to go but for adults, I see nothing alluring.

The statement “today is my birthday”  doesn’t seem to fit in the pragmatics of time. It’s been many years since you have born, and yet you say “today is my birthday”. The moment you entered the world was the day to celebrate and the reason to cherish for others. Technically, that was the only day you were born not on every particular day of the year. So, there is no justification for saying today is my birthday because time never returns.

Many people feel happy and special on their birthday. What about the rest 364 days? Have there not been a single day or moment to cherish? Truth be told, we do feel happy for many things around us that we have lost count on. Every day brings several joyful moments to count on. Honestly,  we don’t need a birthday to be happy.

Moreover, Birthdays have become a source of stress for us as a result of social pressure. People tend to celebrate birthdays according to others expectation. The strings of question that are being asked on your birthday like how are you celebrating your birthday? what’s the plan for today? where are you going to celebrate? build pressure on you to celebrate your birthday to please others. Besides, seeing your many friends posting their birthday parties pictures on Instagram and Facebook incites you to follow the prevalent trend blindly.

Birthdays aren’t as special as we make them out to be. It’s just like any other normal day When you have to work despite knowing it’s your birthday. Your boss doesn’t give you a day off or even a half-day. Does he??  You still have to do all the regular work that you do every other day.  To be honest, you don’t feel anything different and special if nobody has told you your birthday at first. Thus, it’s just a normal day.

Towards the end, I would say that embrace your birthday differently this year. Take some time to reflect upon your lives and how far you have come. Spend this day with gratitude and happiness, and above all ponder the basis of your creation and then decide what have you achieved in life so far and make plans and resolution for what lies ahead.

THE CURSE OF DOWRY

Dowry is a common practice from where I come from. Ironically, this is not what our religion preaches, but coming from a culture which has been under the influence of Indian culture, my nation is suffering from identity crisis issues. And thus, practising and following these ludicrous rituals has become a norm in our country.

In my country, the birth of a boy brings joy and pride to the family, while the news of a girl brings shame and financial burden to the family. Not only that, but people make you feel guilty and your status in your family goes down. Perhaps, I m exaggerating a bit, but the fact is that people tend to hide what they feel, though deep down they know what they truly yearn for. Even the most literate people desire to have a son because for them boys are better as they carry the family name. Despite every effort to change this perception, many people still do not want daughters who are still seen as a financial burden because of the matrimonial dowry Even if they do, they don’t want more than one. This ludicrous ritual has made parents life complicated by adding to their miseries. Since the day, a girl comes to this world, her parents begin piling up money for their dowry. The money which should have been capitalized in their education gets wasted, and if God forbade the girl gets divorced, you could imagine the loss.

The dowry that includes many household items, appliances and furniture, is usually given as insurance for your daughter’s safety. It is a promise from the groom’s family to treat your daughter as their own, With that being said, they are expected to do all home chores after marriage which includes cooking, cleaning, washing etc for which she is not religiously and ethically obligated. Despite all her efforts to make her in-laws happy, poor daughters-in-law are never granted the status equivalent to their daughters.
Truth be told, no one treats your daughter as their own. Therefore, it is better to choose a partner who can stand up for you against your in-laws when it’s needed. Rather than choosing the man who demands these mandatory things to rid from his responsibilities. These men are not even good enough to be called man. They would keep depending on others to take their responsibilities. My sincere advice to these men is that please don’t get married when you can not take the responsibilities because marriage is not just to quench your physical desires but also to lift your responsibilities like a man.

The increasing number of domestic violence is due to the curse of dowry. The groom side who kept saying all along for not wanting dowry, taunts and abuse their daughters-in-law later for not bringing adequate dowry. Without bothering how her poor father has managed to bear the hefty wedding expenses by taking heavy debts. Besides, many girls remain unmarried because their parents don’t have adequate wealth to meet the societal expectation.

Moreover, there is a misconception that the custom of dowry is more dominant among uneducated old school people. The fact is that it is the educated and elite class who have been following this custom religiously and are more responsible for spreading this evil. Consequently, many social problems are emerging as a result of this ill custom. Now the question is how long these crazy customs will continue to take its toll on these poor people?

Fortunately, the news regarding the ban on dowry has been passed a few days ago which is a great development. This law should be enforced on real grounds and for those who deny, they should be punished accordingly.

Furthermore, the educated section of the society should come forward and take some initiative to abolish this evil from our society. Boys and girls both with mutual consent should refuse to accept and bring a dowry and pursue the wedding ceremonies in the most reasonable ways. Hence easing the financial burden from poor fathers shoulder who spend their entire life worrying about the expense of dowry.

If we as individuals stand against it, and the government make sure that laws are being strictly followed by everyone, then and only, our society would be dowry free. My humble request to all parents, your daughters are far more precious than these worthless goods. They are your pride, not other property. Please don’t sell them out by giving dowry. Instead, invest in their education rather than saving every penny for their dowry because this is going to help them be a good mother and mother in law in the future.

P.s: Don’t get me wrong. We still have many good families in our society who strictly oppose dowry, and yet give their daughter-in-laws the honour she deserves. This blog is written for the major section of my society who blindly follow this custom and creates the disharmony in society.

Cancer stole my mom.

In loving memory of my mom. Always in my mind. Forever in my heart.

I MISS YOU, MOM

As I m writing this blog, tears are rolling from my cheeks. We all have lost our loved one,s and have endured the agonizing pain of not seeing them again.  Like many of you, I have lost someone whose demise has created a vacuum that can never be filled again. She was my whole world.

Two years ago I lost my beloved mother battling against the worlds ruthless disease i.e.Cancer. Cancer is cruel. Believe me, I have seen what it does to people. Cancer doesn’t run in our family that makes me wonder how she ended up getting this disease. My mother was diagnosed with the late stage of pancreatic cancer in the mid of April 2018. Unfortunately, it had already spread to her liver and there was nothing we could do. Despite that, she had undergone torments of chemotherapy which had done nothing to help. Instead, the day she would undergo chemo, she used to suffer excruciating pain later in the night, and yet she would ask her next due date. Describing the amount of pain she used to endure,  my mother shared: ”  it is as painful as childbirth“. The hardest part was just being so helpless and seeing my mother in pain, yet not being able to do anything.

I remember when I got to know about her disease, I felt the whole world had fallen apart and I was devasted. Instead of bursting into tears and rushing to embrace my mom instantly, I choose to stay calm in front of her and faked my emotions as long as possible. For I know, seeing her kids break down like this, would make her feel worse. She was an amazing person inside out. I regret spending not much time with her. The time my mother was deteriorating physically and mentally, I was attending my brother-in-law’s wedding unaware of her health. The days when I should have been there. I still regret myself for not sensing it. You know what, Only a mother can sense what her kid is going through. Though, she called me but didn’t utter a single word about her being sick. That’s what a mother can do only. They hide their sufferings and pain for not bothering their kid’s peace.

I tell you what, cancer might have conquered destroying her body, but it couldn’t seize her strong will and hope to live the day. Though it was rather painful to see her fighting helplessly against worlds cruel disease,  I still admire her resilience to knock the disease and be a victor. Who else can do this if not a mother?? Because a mother does not fear death, what she fears most is leaving her children behind alone to face the hardships of life. That might be the biggest fear she was holding on and that would be the sole reason for her being a resilient and strong motivated soul.

That glimmer of hope I saw in her eyes, was there until her last few days. Despite getting admitted to the hospital a few days before her death, she stayed positive and wouldn’t give up. However, when it became abundantly clear and she had acknowledged that she would not survive this and that this is the end, she bid her farewell and left us to mourn.

Life can be cruel. It took away the most beloved person from me.  Now I miss her, every day and feel lonely. I am the only daughter with no sister to share my emotions that makes me feel more lonely having no one around to talk. I wish if I could reverse the clock and have some time with her, I would give anything for that. I wish I could hear her voice, smell the scent of her presence, hug her and see her smile again. I have so much left to say, but now I am left with her pictures and memories to miss her. All I can say is that death is inevitable. we all are just travellers here and our destination is beyond this mundane world. Some go early, others go late but ultimately, we all have to go and perish into dust.

CULTURE SHOCK

Moving abroad for your instrumental and academic reasons is not always as exciting as you may have anticipated. Instead, it gets challenging with every passing day. The unfamiliarity of the new culture takes a toll on your mental health and you start getting anxious about pursuing your goal. The fact that you are a stranger in a foreign land and everything around you appears unfamiliar and exotic, evokes a sense of feeling a little lost in the world. The difference in language, food, mannerisms and other cultural elements leads to culture shock.

What is culture shock?
The feeling of confusion and disturbance, that people experience when encountering a culture altogether different from their own, is known as culture shock. It is the common occurrence and anyone can experience it in different ways, at different times and to different degrees.

The four stages of culture shock.
People who choose to live abroad,  are most likely to go through these four stages of culture shock: honeymoon, frustration, adjustment and acceptance. Read on to find about each stage.

1.The honeymoon phase:

As the name suggests, this stage of culture shocks revolves around the positive feeling that people experience initially. This is the most delighted phase where everything around you strikes amazingly beautiful. You enjoy trying new foods, learning a new language, meeting different people and exploring new places. You feel overwhelmed by this new environment and feel blessed to have this life. Unfortunately, these euphoric feelings do not always last forever and soon turn into frustration.

2.The frustration phase:

After the happy phase, comes the frustrating stage. Everything that initially fascinated you, appears awful and unpleasant now. The new food, language, exotic places do not seem to appeal you any more. Suddenly, everything starts getting on your nerve. Even the smallest things would piss you off and you want to run back to you home. Nostalgia kicks in and you desperately want to go back to your land. At this point,  all positive feelings begin transitioning into negative feelings i.e resentment and anxiety. But, with time, these feelings would fade away and make you feel better.

3.The adjustment phase:

Then comes the third phase of culture shock. In this phase, life starts getting better and normal. You get used to a new way of life and feel like assimilating in that environment. That frustration you feel earlier seems to wither away. The more you get familiar with the novel culture, the more life gets easier there. By this time, you are more aware of your surrounding and know how to deal with them. Besides, you have made some friends who help you understand their culture. This is the adjusting periods where you have learned to control your emotions and have that strength to confront your fears and consequently, you start processing rationally.

4.The acceptance phase:

Finally, the last phase of culture shock comes after a long-struggling phase. You enjoy being in their culture and start functioning well. The place that used to trouble you before, feels the most enjoyable place to live now. Though you would never get that feeling of euphoria that you have imagined earlier, yet you feel the strong sense of belongingness to the new land. which makes you feel at home…

Culture shock might be an unfamiliar phenomenon for many of you, but for those who are living abroad, or have been to another country, they can relate to every word of my post. A little advice to my friends who are looking forward to moving abroad is that just be patient and resilient because that’s all you are going to need to survive in a foreign land. It’s ok to experience culture shock but just do not let your emotions take over your intention and ruin your travelling experience.

Does anyone of you has experienced culture shock? Do share your journey and how you have overcome your emotions.

SOCIAL AND ETHICAL RULES

Hi friends. My today’s blog is about some social and ethical rules that we tend to overlook and take for granted in our daily life. However, these are the most substantial code of ethics which we need to follow and practice in our life. Here are a few ethical rules which I want me and you to follow. Certainly, it will provide you with plenty of food for thought. So, Let’s practice what we preach.

• Do not invade someone’s privacy. Learn to give people some personal space. By constant interruption, you are invading their private territory.

• Do not shame people for their height, weight, skin colour. If you are doing it, you are making fun of their Creator.

• Do not throw personal questions on people. Like, do u have kids? When are you planning to have kids? When are u getting married? How much do you earn? Just do not speak in matters that do not concern you.

• If you have borrowed money or anything from someone be it your friend or family, always return it on time.

• Don’t go to someone place without informing them. And if you are going, avoid going to lunch or dinner time.

• Everyone has freedom of expression. Listen to others patiently. You don’t have to agree with others views but that does not mean you need to be disrespectful towards them.

• Give respect and earn respect.

• Do not kiss newborns without their parent’s consent. The small babies have yet to go through all vaccinations and develop his/her immunity. That makes them more vulnerable than us. Therefore do not get offended when a mother asks you not to kiss her newborn.

• Pregnancy, miscarriages, labour, delivery and postpartum depression is a terrifying and yet blessed part of motherhood. Please be gentle and polite with women. Do not compare your situation with someone else, Afterall, we all have different bodies and different physiology.

• Do not breach others secret. when somebody shares something with you, they expect their secrets to stay between you and him. It’s your job to maintain that level of confidentiality and depicts your credibility.

• Do not give advice or suggestions until you are asked.

• Don’t judge people based on your experiences, for you do not what their circumstances are.

In short, mind your own business. There are many ethical codes which I have missed out, but if we could embrace one or two ethics from the list, it would inevitably make your and others life peaceful. So live and let others live happily

P.s: These are the most underestimated and unhighlighted codes of everyday conduct. If you want to add more in my list, let me know through comments.

MOM GUILT

Every night my mind obsesses over the feelings of regret, guilt and inadequacy. It has become quite a phenomenon for me. And it gets worse at night when there is no one around to distract you. That’s when I end up feeling guilty and let myself flooded with the thought of not being a perfect mom and seriously it’s beyond my control.

As I m writing this blog my kids are sitting in front of t.v and eating junk food. My home is a mess. There are toys scattered everywhere. My kitchen’s sink is full of dishes. Everything around me is proof that I m a bad mom. Besides, the thought of being a bad Mom keeps echoing in my head and keeps reminding me that how I have failed as a mother.

Truth be told, I have lost my temper and yelled at my kids several times. I convince my mind every other day for being gentle and patient with my kids, but I always end up losing temper and then regretting it later.

Being a mother is a tough job. I want to tell every mother reading my post, that it is normal to feel that way and I assure you that almost every mother goes through this. Feeling guilty can be a good thing unless it’s not affecting your mental health. It shows your desperation to be a good mom and how much you care about your child. It can bring a positive change in you some time. However, do not let it consume you to the extent that you start feeling depressed.

Most of you have not heard about mom guilt before. It is the feeling that women experience for not doing things right for their kids or not living up to your kid’s expectations. At times the cause of guilt comes within, however, sometimes some external force cause guilt. The people( friends and family) around you and social media play a significant role in provoking the guilt factor.
Working mothers are most likely to get guilt. Leaving your child behind in others hand, not being able to breastfeed your child, not being available when your child needed you most, make you feel awful. Moreover, the cruel posts on the social media about being a perfect mom and the educational programs about mother and child bonding in their early years where breastfeeding being the primary source of a strong bond, make you ponder upon your decisions. And you start questioning the maternal instincts that how could you do like this to your child? How brutal of you to leave your child behind for the sake of money? These savage feelings of guilt make you emotionally paralyzed.

The fact is that We believe everything we see and feel miserable. If you are looking at a picture or a video on Instagram/ Facebook, of a mother showing herself and her child golden time,  do not believe everything. You need to understand that whatever is shown to you is just one side of the picture, what you do not know is the other side of the picture.

Furthermore, do not compare yourself to other parents. I know Its easy to say but seeing other parents doing good makes you feel terrible. You start bashing yourself. That’s where you are going wrong. Everyone’s situation is different. You can not compare your situation to others. The time you waste comparing yourself to others can be utilized giving attention to your kids.

The amount of time you spend with your child doesn’t matter. Many articles on parenting suggest that quality is more important than quantity. So stop shaming yourself. The thing that you have to keep in check is whether the time you are spending with your child has a good or bad impact on children. Rather than blaming yourself, spend some quality time with them.

Towards the end, I just want to say that there are no perfect mothers. No matter how hard you try, you can not do things perfectly. None of us can do our best. Believe me, parenting is hard. It’s a constant journey. Every day you have to prove yourself to be good to be better. So, its ok to have time to look after yourself. Your mental and physical health is equally important to be able to nurture your kids. Thus, let go of your guilt and stop beating yourself up for your wrong deed.

What are your guilty for as a mother? Do comment and let us know.

The English language and its complexity.

English is one of the prestigious languages that is spoken universally. Despite its universal status and prestige, the language is full of complexities and doesn’t make sense. Even if you have mastered the rules of language, you still fail to comprehend the application of rules. There are some rules for pronunciation, grammar and spellings in English, yet sometimes the language doesn’t follow its own rules, and thus makes it more weird and strange especially for those who are learning it as a second language.

The other day while teaching “oo” words to my 5 years old girl, I got speechless when my daughter asked me why “food “and “foot” are pronounced differently and why the vowel “u” doesn’t sound like “u” as in hut and put? Every time I have to tell her that vowels have two sounds. Short sounds and long sounds, but still she struggles in reading whenever she comes across such exceptions.

Lets discuss more frustrating examples and exceptions that make the language more complex.

Here are some crazy homophones in English. The words that sound alike but have a different meaning are homophones.

Like, Eight(the number)and ate(the second form of eat), stake(to kill vampires or something on risk) and steak( the meat) all these words sound alike, but have different meanings and spellings.

Now have a look at some of the homonyms. Homonyms are the words that are spelt and sound the same but have different meanings like
Tear(comes while crying) and tear( to rip),
Bear( animal) and bear( carry, endure),
Break(broke and crack) and break(rest),
see( with your eyes) and sea( the ocean) and many more to spin your head.浪

Then there are some words with the same vowel structure but don’t always rhyme.
cow, low. (ow words)
Dough, cough, through. (ough)
Lead, read, plead. read)

The word ball and doll rhymes but have a different vowel. The vowel “a” is pronounced as “o”. Similarly, the word “fleece” and “please” rhymes but has different consonants and vowels. And the word fleece has a consonant “c” but is pronounced “s” like in “place” too. interchangeable The words “baby” and “pretty” has the consonant ” y” but sound “i”.

Are u already freaked up? Stay put and see more.
If “PH ” gives the sound of ” f”
And “GH” sound in rough is pronounced “f”
And “TION” in potion is pronounced ” sh”.
And the “O” in women makes the short vowel “I” sound
And if “EIGH” stands for ” a” as in neighbour,
Then the word FISH can be spelt as PHOTION or GHOTION.right?

Want some more?
Let’s move on to some of the plurals in the English language. The simple rule for plurals is, we add “s” or “es” at the end. like pen and pens, fish and fishes, mango and mangoes. Having said that, there are some exceptions too. Child and children, man and men, tooth and teeth, foot and feet. Mouse means one mouse and mice means a few of them. Then more than one house, and blouse,  should be hice and prices.路‍♀️

And why on earth some letters are silent as in “Knee, honesty, doubt, autumn, island, Wednesday and the list goes on. As if the spelling wasn’t hard enough to learn, what’s the use of writing it, when it has to remain silent. 路‍♀️Why can’t we just leave them and make the spellings short for learning?臘‍♀️

Confused yet? If not, you will be after reading whats next. The ironies, paradoxes and oxymoron in the English language make the matter more worst. Have a look.
There is no honey and moon in honeymoon, no egg and plant in eggplant, no pine and apple in pineapple, no lady in ladyfinger.

She is pretty ugly, he was a wise fool, I know nothing, A bitter truth, act naturally, open secrets. Above all words seems to contradict each other. Each word looks like the opposite of the other word.

Then there are synonyms rules that not every synonym can be used interchangeably because words carry different connotations that can change the meaning. For example both “notorious” and “renown” means famous, but ” notorious” means famous for doing something bad, whereas “renown” means famous for something good. One has a negative connotation and the other has positive.
The word look, see, the watch has the same root meaning, yet can not be used interchangeably.

Well, that’s enough to reveal the ambiguity of the English Language. Though, there must be some reasons behind these discrepancies, which is yet to be revealed but some other time. All I  want to say that like Arabic and French, learning English as a second language is very challenging. its grammatical structures, pronunciation, spellings and meanings rules that contradict, make it more difficult for its speaker and learners. So show some respect if they speak or write wrong because English is weirdly hard and grasping its rules with exceptions are going to take a long long time.

2020 THE YEAR OF MYSTERY

Like every other year,  we said our farewell to the passing year 2019  and entered the new year with new resolutions, without knowing what’s coming up and what danger we are diving in to. As a matter of fact, nobody had anticipated what threat 2020 might unfold. However, as 2020 progressed, the year started to get worse with strings of deadly incidents i.e. wildfire in Australia, plane crash in Pakistan and Iran, loss of some renown figures like Qasim Suleimani, Kobe Bryant, the explosion of Beirut, floods and heavy rainfall, locust swarm outbreak and the biggest of all, an unfamiliar virus Covid-19, which has now become the most popular and used term,  jolted the whole world with its astonishing effects. What more are we going to witness in 2020? As much as we want this year to end soon, it’s giving us major heart attacks.

Here are some of the major impact COVID has on our lives.

COVID AND ECONOMIC CRISIS

This novel flared up virus has inevitably disrupted everyone,s life which was NORMAL back then. It would not be wrong saying COVID has stuck our lives earlier and still has, but now people have adapted their lifestyle accordingly. Consequently, we see a major decline in the number of cases. Earlier, with the increasing number of cases, the whole world called for a lockdown. Educational, commercial, religious institutions, domestic and international flights were shut down because with the virus out there, it was much needed. As a result, the revenue generation has gone below than average and expenditures have gone high. Even the worlds most developed countries are on the verge of economical crisis. Thanks to COVID.

COVID AND PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT

2020 has been marked the worst year in human history. Despite its low mortality rate, the accelerating spread of the virus has affected people negatively. With schools being closed, no recreational time and being locked at home 24 hours, and not to forget the workload load mainly on women which includes sanitization of each and everything including our selves, cooking everyone,s favourite dishes since no dining out, cleaning with no help, homeschooling and looking after kids, has certainly affected women psychologically. Men, on the other hand, enjoyed this time doing nothing since they were home but the thought of getting unemployed due to the pandemic, glued to them making them agitated and depressed and resulting in domestic violence. Apart from the doctors, who were giving extra services and have given their days and nights for the wellbeing of their patients and unfortunately many have lost their lives battling against the virus. COVID has given a rather tough time for doctors mainly.

COVID AND GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT

COVID-19, where it has major negative impacts on humans, it has some favourable effects on the global environment. Before COVID human beings were so engrossed in satisfying their materialistic needs that they forgot about nature. Consequently, environmental pollution, global warming, climate changes have become major issues now. But as Lockdown restricted the mobility of vehicles resulting in less fuel consumption and industries being closed, no social gatherings or outings to parks, beaches, and other places, there is a vivid change in environment. we have never witnessed the earth being so clean before. Well, where there are many cons of COVID it has undoubtedly affected our environment positively.

COVID AND AFTERLIFE

Talking about life after COVID, it would obviously not go back to what it was before. Our homes, habits, values and practices are going to be affected greatly. With no vaccine and medical cure for the novel virus, it’s going to be an altogether different life. Going back to the old life has become a dream now. The only thing that will please people, is the arrival of the vaccine. But I feel even after the vaccine is out, it is still going to take some time for the life to get normal. Wearing mask, sanitization, social distancing and digital learning and working is going to be a  norm for this and the upcoming year. Forget about going out without sops. Home has remained the safest place in the pandemic. Well, we all should be prepared for the coming year and its challenges because life is surely going to be an emotional rollercoaster so tighten your seat belts up and get ready for the ride.