PLAY YOUR PART. By: Hiba Mazhar

It was a fine Sunday morning ruined by the visit of my father’s cousins from abroad. Before I knew they were going to pay a visit, I had planned to spend the day at home studying for my Marketing quiz. They wanted to visit the Shalimaar Gardens and as an order from my father, I had to be their tour guide. I had no idea what to do about my quiz’s preparation. Being an obedient daughter, I drove my guests to the historical garden.

Culture and Changing Trends

Stepping in the garden filled with beautiful old walls and trees, we were mesmerized by the view of more than 400 fountains rising from the canal and the basin which threw up water back into the marble reservoirs. It is one of the best preserved Mughal buildings standing as it was for the last 400 years. A line of fountains in a water channel stretching  a long way making the sounds of nature more soothing to the ears, we were in a very peaceful aura. The care-takers of the gardens told us that the fountains go through a full maintenance program before every Spring. We all went crazy over the place and started taking loads of pictures. The passion for photography at one end and the exploration of ancient beauties at the other, It really was beautiful.

Being a Pakistani citizen, just try and play your own individual part. Blaming one another is the easy way out. You are only answerable to your own deeds. These buildings need a lot of attention. The maintenance costs are increasing and the government revolutionaries refuse to allot the justified share to this side. A little contribution towards this cause can make wonders. I am doing my part by writing this article and informing you about a breathing view you might want to experience. Why? Because I want our next generation to be lucky enough to see it. ARE YOU PLAYING YOUR PART?

-Author: Hiba Mazhar.

Arfa Karim - The Pride of Pakistan. By: Hiba Mazhar.

             (Corporate and Technology)

Arfa Karim came, performed and conquered. Her credits and achievements are too many to count. She brought together her capabilities and showed that miracles were possible anywhere, any place at any time. Bill Gates, the chairman of Microsoft, passed on positive remarks about Pakistan altogether after meeting with Arfa. She got lucky enough to ace the honor of receiving the World’s Youngest Microsoft Certified Professional when she was only 9 years old (2004). Bill Gates personally invited her to visit the Microsoft Headquarters in the USA. He was so much impressed by this girl that he immediately ordered his HR team to hire people from Pakistan. He never regretted that decision for we have so much young talent in our country. It is just that we are only hesitant to organize and identify our strengths.

                                  

Afra Karim is a shining example for the youth as well as all the elders currently living in Pakistan. She was given the Fatima Jinnah Gold Medal  which she received from our former Prime Minister, Shaukat Aziz. She was also honored with the Salaam Pakistan Youth Award in 2005. Besides, Arfa won the Presidential Award for the Pride of Performance. As I mentioned earlier, the awards and appreciations are just too many to count.

Being the normal yet extra-ordinary little girl, she was a certified pilot as well as equally adept in Microsoft, Cisco and Oracle products. She could present complex technical concepts easily. She was the teacher of hundreds of people, and was particularly interested in finishing up digital divide within her own country. She loved Pakistan and wanted recognition for her country. She would go out and bring in more respect for the citizens to brag about.

People! The question is whether we can fulfill her dream or not? Does this nation owe some respect to all the efforts carried out by Arfa or not? Unfortunately, she remained at (ICU) CMH after suffering from an epileptic seizure and cardiac arrest. After consistent fighting for her life for the next 26 days, she left us thinking, tearful, and with the gift of believing in ourselves. It is time that we take a stand and make the world realize. Our worth. Our capabilities. We are capable to make a difference in this world. All alone by our own selves. With just a little effort and realization at our end. STAND UP, PAKISTAN! :)

-Author: Hiba Mazhar.

Hiba Mazhar.

Hello, People! This is me, Hiba Mazhar. My motto in life is to NEVER EVER RELY ON ANYBODY. You need your stuff done? Do it Yourself! I am a pure feminist and I like doing things my own way. I am a very career oriented person. My biggest wish is to open up an international franchise in my home city (Lahore) and I intend to do this on my own expenses so yes that makes me a man with a big plan. :P  I am always in search of as much work experience as I can possibly get. My best internship was at Barclays Bank PLC where I actually got a chance to see the real cooperate world scenario.

  For me, life is a never ending quest of truth and that is one inspiration that keeps me so close to my passion: Photography. For me, photography is a passion that you can share with the most important people in your life. You can even pass it down to the next generation, and spur their love of this amazing art. It is like music. There are no language barriers or culture barriers. I get to communicate with people around the world with a single image and once I start  getting my  work out there, I am only amazed at the connections I make. I don’t like carrying my camera around the university and prove my worth as the saying goes, “Photography is all about secrets. The secrets we all have and will never tell.”  

*Besides, all my friends know where to get their Facebook profile pictures from. :P

 I strongly believe that every person is born with a talent. Many people have trouble discovering what interests they might have which they might pursue as a career path. What a person considers as fun when they are in their teens can change considerably as their interaction with the world widens beyond their immediate family and friends in their local community. In my case, my friends play a vital role in giving me the confidence I stand with today. Thank you, guys! :'D

Yet another new hobby I have managed to take care of very well is Movie Making. I like playing around with new soft wares and make slideshows and movies. It is a helpful hobby as it also helps me with many of my university group projects. Here is my latest movie on street children:

All your passions apart, you need a firm footing to survive in this barbaric and a never-ending deceitful world. Being an introvert, it always took me a while to bring myself at ease. It also took a lot of effort to gather courage to speak up in public. Now, all my friends reading this know that’s true. :P 

 For the person I am today, it took me 3 internships, 2 online jobs, a bunch of die-heart friends and a lot of support from my parents (May Allah always bless them with health and happiness, AMEN). For now, I am very focused and all I ask Allah Miyan is to give me more and more strength to face any hardships coming my way and make me a stronger person. Amen.

-Thank you. :)