What went wrong?

Sitting idle at home, due to the visit of an important foreign dignitary, gives one ample time to revisit the past when we were young and in school and such visits did not necessitate a curfew-like atmosphere. Our school was very close to Sharea Faisal in Karachi and it was always in the welcoming troupe whenever some foreign dignitary visited the city.

The students were taken to stand on both sides of the road for hours with small flags in hand under the scorching sun, waiting for the procession to pass. But those were better times when there were no security concerns, no muggers on the road, and one could peacefully sleep with their doors unlocked. All has changed in the last forty to fifty years. Will those golden days ever return?

Malik ul Quddoos

Karachi