‘From grandma with love’

Islamabad : Reading story books to children to put them to sleep is a good custom still carried out by many mothers or grandmothers, though it is slowly dying out just as other customs, traditions and methods that the older generation were familiar with have faded away – lost to technology and modern ways and means of doing what has to, or should, be done.

So it was good to see that old customs and traditions – and the manner in which they were carried out - have been collected in a delightful booklet titled, ‘From Grandma with Love’ written by Sufia Shahid (former television presenter and media person). She has explained in detail how various vendors/repair men and other workers made life easier and convenient for us. Some were regulars, like the ‘dhobi ‘(clothes washing) some came by calling out their area of expertise and were called into the house to do what they had to do, then went on their way. No hassle – just agreeing on the cost of the work!

There is also a chapter on how mothers, grandmothers or other females in the family made toys like dolls from scraps of material; or fashioned utensils and other things from mud and clay – fun activities that children enjoyed. Not to say anything about how grandparents also enjoyed the interaction as well reliving their own childhood! In her foreword the author says, “What do grandmothers do when their grandchildren live far away across the oceans in a world very different from her own? She either tells them stories from her childhood, or compiles them in book form for a lasting recall to be read by her grandchildren, their friends and all other children who are also not familiar with all that grandma's world had to offer in her younger days.”

The stories have been penned in English to make it easier for those living abroad to understand and the illustrations and design of the booklet are good but there is one drawback – the print is too small which makes it difficult to read – especially for older people. I guess this difficulty will be overcome and forgotten with the pleasure of reading about the ‘good old days,’ and then answering questions that will surely arise when the children of today hear the stories of our old fashioned ways!

If you are interested information is available at sufiashaq@hotmail.com