If you ask me, what a good evening is like? I'd most probably say, a walk at the beach with some chai (tea in Urdu) with great company. Simple as that. Hopefully, it shouldn't be as hot as it is in UAE these days, and all is good! I know a lot of people love the beach in this weather, but it is way too hot for me! I have always felt a strong bond with the sea, and somehow it just calms me when I'm troubled, and humbles me down when I need it! I miss the sea these days, and I thought of writing about it ... And these are my thoughts :)
Every morning I drove to work, deliberatelyOn the road that unfolded along the sea.I’d take walks at dusk to watch the sunHushed to sleep in the embrace of the sea.By its waters, I would spend my long hoursWith a friend, sometimes with just a cup of tea.To find peace, in the lullabies it sings to meTo meet wisdom, in its boundless beautyOh, to feel one, with the sea!
Humans have always found an affinity with the sea. Whether it is, from thousands of years back when the greatest human civilizations began around seas, or in the current time, to spend a day at the beach, to swim, to take a walk along the corniche, to sail on a boat, share thoughts with a sweetheart on its shores, or sometimes to simply stop by and spend time in solitude, when one likes to think over things, to reflect on ourselves or to find solutions to problems and situations. I believe there is a deep connection between the waters of the sea and the people of the earth.Within the sea, lies an uncertainty that is reminiscent of our lives. Our lives are uncertain. Where religion and culture provide guidance and direction, it does not confirm on what our lives entail. The future is always unknown. And when you sit on a patch of sand or on rocks that stand against the tides, all you see is a vast and unknown territory. Uncertain of what lies beyond. Unsure if it is safe or dangerous to be tread on. The sea, its size and vulnerability, really open up to so many possibilities of what lies beyond it and even within it. But it also reminds us not to be arrogant or conceited, for we are to the sea just a droplet of water. Its endless size and strength, should humble us down.
So, do we find a sense of peace and hope at the seas?I think it is part of our nature to want a certain uncertainty in our lives. It makes us terrified as well as hopeful for the future. Because when you already know what is coming forward, what would the thrill, the excitement, the pleasure of not knowing be. The surprise element, the risk element, we love it. Of course, we love to plan too, but you can only spread your cloth as much as you can draw it. You can only reach out as far as your hands go. To know the rest, and to experience it in its absolute possibilities, we must move forward. We must take a step ahead. We cannot go back, for its all been seen and done. All other directions, except for the one that takes you back, move you forward (of course we choose to plunge in or deviate from actually moving forward. It all depends on us!). Forward into the sea of uncertainties but hope always resides within us. The boundless sea of nothingness and everything is a sign of hope. The sun sleeping in its cradle, for the moon to shine in its glory is hope. And for the sun to rise again from the depths of the sea, like a new day…The very fact that we don't know what is coming tomorrow, and to somehow secure this untold future in our own ways, man has accomplished so much in terms of science, industry, art and technology. Every single moment of this life, dark or light, left or right, the blink of an eye, is hope. And until man does tread on pathless ways to find his path, until he keeps venturing into the unknown to find what there is, there will always be hope in this sea of uncertainty.
Ramadan Kareem! :)
