Most people think that for Christians the great feast is Christmas which is celebrated with great fervour and enthusiasm, and has now become very much of a commercial event for Christians as well as other people. In fact, the tie up of Christmas and New Year has added to the popularity of the feast. However, the greatest feast for Christians is not Christmas but Easter. Easter celebrates the passion (suffering) and resurrection of Jesus. How do you explain the Easter message to a non-Christian? That is a somewhat difficult and troublesome task. For Christians, love is the benchmark and they are called the bearers of love. Of course we fail to live up to these high standards in our lives but we are encouraged to try and try again with God's help. We are called to put into practice what we believe in. The hallmark of a true follower of Christ is selfless service and giving.

You are probably familiar with the story of Mother Teresa; she travelled thousands of miles from her home in Albania to Calcutta. As if that wasn't enough, she left the convent to go out and care for the homeless and destitute single-handedly. What possessed her -- a young Catholic girl -- to give up her home, family and comforts and spend her life looking after the poorest of the poor? It was love which made her do that. She toiled for many years and only much, much later did she achieve fame and publicity. Closer to home we have the example of Sister Gertrude Lemmens.

I'm sure those who live in Karachi have heard of Dar ul Sukun. This home for the physically and mentally handicapped children was founded by Sister Lemmens who came to Karachi on a visit from her native land, Holland. In the 1960s when she came, special children were thrown out by their families and would live on streets in pathetic conditions. She took pity on these children and loved them, while their own parents and families had discarded them like rubbish. She was so moved that she decided not to go back to Holland and stayed here. Dar ul Sakun opened in 1969 and Sister Lemmens ran it till her death in 2000. Sister Lemmens also opened Dar ul Sakuns in Lahore and Quetta as well as other institutions that look after the old, polio affected girls etc.

These women were amazing; they gave their lives to alleviate the pain and suffering -- both physical and mental -- of the less fortunate; the people whom we, who enjoy the good things in life, ostracise and oppress, if not directly then through other ways.

On a more personal note I remember my great aunt, my grandmother's sister, who was a nun. She died some years back after a life of service in remote areas of the country. She joined a religious order that took her to places like Sukkur, Narowal and if I remember right, Kotri. In these places she was involved in taking care of the poor people, assisting in childbirth and other medical problems. She used to wake up as early as 6 am in the morning and would often go to sleep at around 2 am. Towards the end of her life, she was transferred to Karachi at the Dar ul Sakun. Once she brought with her one of the inmates. The boy was named Umar and he was one of those who are called 'rat children.' At first I was afraid and ill at ease, but my great aunt's attitude and Umar's friendliness allayed my worries and I learned to see him in a different light. I could not look at him with the love and understanding she had, but my fear and dislike disappeared. I can recall Umar and the other children of Dar ul Sakun, standing teary eyed at her funeral; the love they had for her in their hearts was clearly expressed by their tears.

A day of Silence

Can be a pilgrimage in itself.

A day of Silence

Can help you listen

To the Soul play

Its marvellous lute and drum.

Is not most talking

A crazed defence of a crumbling fort?

I thought we came here

To surrender in Silence,

To yield to Light and Happiness,

To Dance within

In celebration of Love's Victory!

From: 'I Heard God Laughing: Renderings of Hafiz by Daniel Ladinsky.

lone feather,

Swirling, twirling, dancing

On the gusts of wind

Oblivious of its destiny.

A puppet,

Drooping, performing, acting

At the hands of fate.

With no bequest to abscond,

The ruthless play.

A blossom,

Wilting, fading, shriveling

Bidding farewell,

At the end of season spring.

Myself,

Subjugating, trouncing, shattering

After the lost battle,

Of love and passion.

I feel so close,

To these metaphors of tragedy,

A meaningless life, an ominous fate

Is all they have

Akin to me.

Below the roof of the

Azure sky,

Assembled, sighs of the

Rivers, lashed hard by the sun,

In a protest to block its rays and

Shed tears of resolve,

Holding each other, jumping together.

There were no strings attached,

No memories,

No flashbacks

For it was like never before...

The walking stick; a Eucalyptus branch

and I, alone, alone,

all, all alone,

with me, myself

and a hundred thousand lithe dancers,

clad in gold

dancing,

whirling

twirling,

making way for me,

from no where

to no where

and telling me, how some things ought to be grand

without beginning,

without end!

So farewell then, for now

thus to meet;

at the bleak intersection

where love embraces death

and faith combats reason

entwined with the painful affliction

of decaying ecstatic desires

amidst the battle of memories

gloom and elation

and sweet intoxication

of the relentless glow of dominance

Even the most inexorable fire

is bound to perish,

Even in the deepest holes

hangs a rope of escape,

Despite the engulfing darkness

the sun is giving rays of light,

Amidst the hopelessness in reason,

Still lies hope in the hearts.

Trickles down the throat

Blood seeping in his veins

Guilt is stuck for long...

He coughs up some blood

Is it really blood?

Silently,

He suffocates

Light in his eyes

Blurs away

Another door stays open

Yet, no one

To this date

Knows

The real truth!

Like a silken thread the shiny rays entered my eyes,

Blinding me of the fury that caused my blood to rise,

Looking like an angel standing among the folds of disguise,

Approaching so delicately as if treading on ice...

I have built a castle of cards

with the hope to reach the top -

I am standing with open arms

to welcome the morning breeze

Once again!

Lying in the partial darkness of my room,

I consider myself enrobed in a costume,

Not the one I like to see,

But what other wants me to be.