A Toast to a new Beginning!
Please note that completely owing to Ink's own fault, this article of Ayesha's was incompletely printed in the current Jan - Mar 2010 Gold Issue of Ink. We are therefore uploading it here in full! Apologies to Ayesha and our readers for the mishap!
By Ayesha Ali Khan
Growing up in suburban Lahore, New Year’s eves used to be a quiet event. Yet excitement for the New Year was evident in the spirit of every child and adult. New Year’s Eve was the celebration of a new beginning. Something to be jubilant about. It was a time for a simple gesture of wishing health and wealth to all, and the best that life could give to all. Indeed, the New Year promised a bright future. Even today, the charm of the New Year’s Eve continues to thrill. Despite the face paced life, it offers a chance for friends and family to come together and celebrate a joyous occasion. It is a new hope harbored into an old fashioned cheer.
It is here, as the clock approaches midnight that spirits are rekindled. However, standing united, facing a new beginning, my peers do stop for a moment and remember the past floating by. True, the year 2009 saw numerous challenges, many battles and much heartache. The economy painted a bleak picture. The woes of a common man mounted to new levels. Our land was in constant grip of terror. We lost many fellow countrymen as brave martyrs of terrorism. Indeed 2009 was a difficult year. It made the transition to 2010 a solemn attempt.
But that’s the beauty of a New Year. A moment artificial yet so profound. It brings a new dawn. It is a chance to redeem oneself. It offers a brand new path to success. It is an opportunity to rise above and make a difference. A new year brings with it the making of new goals, settings your dreams and letting your inspirations be your guiding light. Step forward with good things in mind, leaving behind every bad memory and forgetting all past mistakes. Provoke your inner smile to surface and be thankful for all the hidden blessings, life showers on you.
Take the New Year as a stepping stone for your personal glory. 2010 may bring something positive for each one of us. It may be the celebration of a new life. It may be relishing in the joy of strengthening the bonds with your loved ones, whether old or new. It may be just keeping your head high and maintaining a positive outlook for the year. Or it may be simple contentment knowing that someone out there is looking out for you and that you’ll never walk alone.
Let 2010 be your playground. We have stepped into a New Year with new hope. But remember, we want to walk away from it believing in miracles. Though there might be times, when the silver lining on our clouds may seem to diminish, we must rise above. Dance as if no one were watching, sing as if no one were listening and live every day as if it were your last. Because we will live no other way and we will cherish memory as the only certain immortality.
