In our life, we embark upon so many journeys. The reasons for these trips are various. Some expeditions are self- initiated while some are forced upon us. Being human, we enjoy some, dread some, look forward to some and sometimes hold on to some.
My article today is a special one. It is a commute to my childhood and teenage years. Thankfully, I’m not alone in these rides but have a special companion. Someone who often got scolded for stumbling as a toddler! Who believed in only the truth and nothing but the truth, and so got everyone in trouble! Who played the organ and made me believe we’d rock the world one day! Someone who still enjoys being at the steering wheel and go on voyages! That is of-course my elder brother Farid.
Farid is only two years older than me but when I was younger that seemed a lot. He was adventurous as ever and the day he got his bicycle, there was no sitting at home. I always looked up to him as someone who would be able to come out glorious no matter what. Even when mum forbid him to play outside in the afternoon, he had the nerve to sneak out with my younger brother, who was always ready to follow! I was however, left in the house to guard the secret and manage any misfortune! I did that gladly as the reward was delicious. In the evening, when my mum would ask Farid to get her bread and usual breakfast necessities from the near-by stores, I would get a free ride. It was thrilling to sit on the carrier of a “Sohrab” bicycle and endure the bumpy ride. Faraz, my younger brother would join us as well and normally the ride to the store would be fun. But as soon as the cycles turned around, I would get a dreadful feeling in my stomach. The speed, turns and road humps, nothing was in their control. Only the desire to be the first at the house gate. I would constantly scream at him to stop, cursing and finally hitting him on the back. To this day I remember his giggles and care-free manner ignoring all my requests. Very cleverly, he would press the brakes at the gate saying, “ok yaar, lets stop. She’s getting frightened!” And every time he stopped, I would fall off the carrier! It annoyed him. “How can you fall off a standing bicycle yaar?” It was a funny climax to a chaotic ride!
And then he became sixteen and learning to drive the car became an obsession. Again my intelligence services were activated. We were in Karachi and the closest market was a 5 minute drive. His first few rides were solo. But then I threw a tantrum like all sisters do! He obliged happily as by then he had gained good control and wanted to show-off his skills. And so, the adventure began. We rode off slowly and he kept on telling me to take it easy. My expressions were making him loose his confidence! He was careful with the car and gradually, I too began to observe the commotion outside the window. We drove to the market and he offered to buy me a cassette from the music store. That’s when I got my first ‘Ali Haider” cassette which had “Love Ali” printed on it, for which he teases me to this day saying I had a crush on him! It took us twenty minutes to get back home. But the exhilarating feeling to have gone on an independent excursion has lingered on with us since then. It was a happy beginning to many such rides.
He then got married and joined us in Dubai. I had grown up and was teaching. He being a Banker found a job near my school and so, once again, we were in his car! The mornings were quite scenic. We would get up leisurely. Nobody could guess that we were actually racing against time. We would sit at the kitchen table and he would enjoy his breakfast, sipping tea, reading the paper. I would suddenly declare the emergency and it was all hell after that! We would get in the car and the first thing I would do is play the cassette. And the ride would begin. We would be engrossed with the music and often he would ride over pavements and I would not react at all. He would look at me and we would blurt out laughing!
And then one fine morning, while listening to the thumping beat of A.R Rahman’s “hamma”, we slammed into a car which was happily waiting for the signal to open. All the while we had been enjoying the awesome music and with the windows down, and a feeling of happy togetherness, we completely forgot to look ahead! It was a wake-up call to a somewhat careless ride. Again it’s in my memory for those mornings had a flavour of their own and the rides had a special bonding with roots attached to my childhood.
Today, he thrives on rides. He wakes up earlier than the birds and rides off into the desert in his four-wheel drive. Sometimes we plan long drives with our families and yes, life seems to have moved on for both of us. But like I said, some rides are just unforgettable.
Wishing my darling brother “A Very Happy Birthday!”
:)
ReplyDelete