Birthdays Galore: Eemaan's and Hamza's Birthday

Week 50

December 8, 2014

December 14, 2014

1.     Preamble:

There is a saying,"A child needs a grandparent, to grow securely into an unfamiliar world". I know this couldn't be but true, for grandparents love their grandchildren more than their own children. 14 December is the birthday of two of our eldest grandchildren Eemaan (daughter of Hasan and Tania) and Hamza (son of Omar and Sadaf) with a difference of full one year in their ages. Eemaan will be fourteen and Hamza will turn thirteen this day today. We may not be rich and famous in actual sense but both of them together have made us feel that we are. We look at them growing up and marvel at our fortune and Allah's blessings. Eemaan lives with her parents in Lahore and Hamza in Karachi. We will try to relive and celebrate their birthday through this blog. Both Eemaan and Hamza have filled a space in our hearts, we never knew was empty. We, the entire family of ours adore them!

2.     Family Event:

2.1.  Celebrating Eeman's (Born: 14 Dec 2000) and Hamza's (Born: 14 Dec 2001) Birthday:

Eemaan's coming into this world was for us a special occasion as she was our first grand child. It also coincided with my promotion as the chief scientist in the PAEC. I also remember Eemaan's birth, for another reason, for it was soon followed by another family jubilation, the wedding of Omar and Sadaf. Happy arrival Eemaan into this world, for you and us alike.

The birth of Hamza too is fresh in my mind, for in anticipation of his impending arrival, we had travelled by train to Karachi from Rawalpindi, where like Eemaan, he too was born. On the train we had a particularly interesting gentleman travelling with us, who made us laugh (of course not on his face) a lot. He told us he had worked in France with Alcatel, which he persistently pronounced as Alqatil. That has engraved and etched so strongly on my mind that I can not possibly forget, it was Hamza's impending birth and that we were going to Karachi to be with Sadaf and Omar. We learned of Hamza's birth when we reached Hyderabad and when we finally alighted at the Karachi Cantt station, we were all in smiles ready to celebrate and have high five with the new comer. 

From her childhood, I can recollect that Eemaan was a particularly difficult child to be fed. Tania who had to endure it, would remember that more than any one of us. She was and is a lovely child never the less. Hamza had tremendous memory from a very young age. He remembered in those days every thing from the models and makes of the cars on the road to the type of cars different members of our family then had. Travelling with us in our car, he would keep shouting by looking at various passing cars, their names and makes. For example on seeing a Suzuki Cultus he would clap with joy and loudly proclaim,"Bari Mama's car". His love for cars have however shifted to the planes since! Now he maintains a collection of many a planes to savour his hobby. 

Eemaan is an avid reader of books. Both Hasan and Tania have helped developing and cultivating this remarkable habit in her from an early age. I understand that by this fourteenth birthday she would have already finished reading most English classics. It certainly has helped her in gaining knowledge besides enhancing her personality. In addition to reading books, she travels too. She has up till now been to Thailand and such European countries as France, Spain, Holland and Germany besides several times to Saudi Arabia to perform Umra with her parents.This too has served her well from the viewpoint of gaining knowledge. Hamza too would soon be going to perform Umra accompanied by his siblings with his parents. 

Both Eemaan and Hamza are doing very well in their studies. Eemaan is presently in class IX and goes to Lahore Grammar School while Hamza is in class VII and attends the Army Public School in Karachi.

Not too long ago, I came across a dictum,"Elephants and grandchildren never forget" and I couldn't agree with it more, as I myself have not forgotten even a minuscule of the sweet memories of my Nana Abba and Nani Amma. I never happened to see my Dada Abba and Dadi Amma but I'm sure had I seen them, the time spent with them too would be extremely cherish able and would have added to the treasures of my life. I can not find a picture of Hamza with Anjum and myself straight away but I have in my album a picture of Eemaan with me. Eemaan would tell me when and where this picture was taken. That would be the test of the above quoted adage!

Happy Birthday Eemaan and Hamza. I hope to be able to see both of you flying high in the sky and sure if I live long enough I will insha Allah. Keep smiling our very dear grand children. May you both have great future (Ameen).