Last Sunday was the Fathers Day and this time I did not have a father to call and wish him. It finally dawned on me that this day is now meant for me. Although I have been a father for the last two decades, and the kids do their best every year to mark the occasion, it always seemed that, at least in my family, it was reserved for my dad alone. Any thought of my sharing the day would have been disrespectful to him.
So this Father's day has a new meaning for me. Instead of the ritual wishing to Dad, this year I am reflecting on his life and times ...
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Sunday, April 12, 2009
US shows its might in Pakistan
Pakistan may be downtrodden but its Prime Minister still commands due respect from foreign dignitaries, including U.S. Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke and Admiral Mike Molin. One can only imagine what they would do for President Zardari!!!
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Obama comes to Ottawa
President-in-Chief Obama is coming to my town, Ottawa, on his first foreign visit as the US President this Thursday, Feb 19, 2009. Canada is a safe place for any new US president for his first visit to get his feet wet (in February though, he will only find ice!). Since he is new to Canada, here is a primer on Canada for President Obama.
You will be received at the airport by a white portly man and an elegant looking black lady. No, they are not a couple. So don't greet her as "how do you do, Mrs. Harper?" She is Michaëlle Jean, our Governor General. You may want to practice pronouncing her name with those two funny dots in there. You and she have something in common. No, I am not referring to the colour of skin. Like you she is also Commander-in-Chief -- of Canadian military. Sorry to rain on your parade this way, however Canada had a C-in-C who is not only a black but also a woman long before they started asking the questions: is America ready for a black President? Is America ready for a woman as a President? She is of Haitian decent so you may want to impress her with a few words of their language. Just Google for that on your blackberry.
The white guy is our PM, Stephen Harper. Don't call him Stevie or even Steve. He does not like that. He likes to be called The Right Honourable Stephen Harper. Right, because he is the leader of the right-wing conservative party. To answer your Republican friends back home, you may find it useful to know that this conservative PM, who was also the head of a tax payers advocacy group not too long ago, after inheriting huge budget surpluses from the previous Liberal governments has now agreed to run $40 billion deficit.
When you hear about the meltdown in Ottawa, it does not mean the stock markets have crashed. It means the snow is melting due to unusually warm weather in the +2 to -5 degrees range. That's right, that is the definition of warm weather here.
Anyway, Welcome to Ottawa! Our hands might feel cold on handshake but our hearts are warm in welcoming you here!
.
You will be received at the airport by a white portly man and an elegant looking black lady. No, they are not a couple. So don't greet her as "how do you do, Mrs. Harper?" She is Michaëlle Jean, our Governor General. You may want to practice pronouncing her name with those two funny dots in there. You and she have something in common. No, I am not referring to the colour of skin. Like you she is also Commander-in-Chief -- of Canadian military. Sorry to rain on your parade this way, however Canada had a C-in-C who is not only a black but also a woman long before they started asking the questions: is America ready for a black President? Is America ready for a woman as a President? She is of Haitian decent so you may want to impress her with a few words of their language. Just Google for that on your blackberry.
The white guy is our PM, Stephen Harper. Don't call him Stevie or even Steve. He does not like that. He likes to be called The Right Honourable Stephen Harper. Right, because he is the leader of the right-wing conservative party. To answer your Republican friends back home, you may find it useful to know that this conservative PM, who was also the head of a tax payers advocacy group not too long ago, after inheriting huge budget surpluses from the previous Liberal governments has now agreed to run $40 billion deficit.
When you hear about the meltdown in Ottawa, it does not mean the stock markets have crashed. It means the snow is melting due to unusually warm weather in the +2 to -5 degrees range. That's right, that is the definition of warm weather here.
Anyway, Welcome to Ottawa! Our hands might feel cold on handshake but our hearts are warm in welcoming you here!
.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Mubarak to Barack!
Today, Barack Hussein Obama became the 44th President of the United States of America and the first President of the planet earth. There is no precedent for someone to assume this awesome responsibility with so much support domestically as well as internationally.
It was a moving ceremony in Washington, D.C. When asked for his reaction, the out-going President Bush said he was touched by the scenes of millions of people who came there to say goodbye to him. He also disclosed that he is retiring in Texas where he will spend his time searching on Google Earth to find WMD in Iraq.
VP Dick Cheney, on the other hand, is expected to apply for disability pension tomorrow!
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It was a moving ceremony in Washington, D.C. When asked for his reaction, the out-going President Bush said he was touched by the scenes of millions of people who came there to say goodbye to him. He also disclosed that he is retiring in Texas where he will spend his time searching on Google Earth to find WMD in Iraq.
VP Dick Cheney, on the other hand, is expected to apply for disability pension tomorrow!
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Sunday, January 11, 2009
Growing-up
When does one really grow-up?
Ask this simple question and you will get a variety of answers, such as:
When one turns 18 or 21.
When one reaches the legal age of majority.
when one completes schooling.
When one marries.
When one becomes a parent.
...
I think I've found the answer.
I recently lost my father, more than 20 years after I first lost my mother. At 93, his departure was not unexpected, yet there is no diminishing of grief and sorrow in the family. Although my father was inactive for the last few years, yet his just being there as a family elder was a source of comfort and inspiration for all of us - his children, grand-children and great grand-children. It is the first time in my life that I am without that loving, caring, protective parental cover over me. And now, when I am in my 50s, married for over 25 years, two adult children, over the peak of my career, it finally dawned on me that I have now grown-up!
.
Ask this simple question and you will get a variety of answers, such as:
When one turns 18 or 21.
When one reaches the legal age of majority.
when one completes schooling.
When one marries.
When one becomes a parent.
...
I think I've found the answer.
I recently lost my father, more than 20 years after I first lost my mother. At 93, his departure was not unexpected, yet there is no diminishing of grief and sorrow in the family. Although my father was inactive for the last few years, yet his just being there as a family elder was a source of comfort and inspiration for all of us - his children, grand-children and great grand-children. It is the first time in my life that I am without that loving, caring, protective parental cover over me. And now, when I am in my 50s, married for over 25 years, two adult children, over the peak of my career, it finally dawned on me that I have now grown-up!
.
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