There are some connections between boys and tires.

My son turns over it to see the tires clearly and playing with it. Here he was 1 year and 9 months old.

There are some connections between boys and tires. I am not joking. It’s true. You will see from childhood they will be fond of tires. Whenever they look for any toy they will choose where it contains tire. Like car, bus, motor cycle etc. And when these kids play, the first thing they pull out is the tire. When boys grown up their main topic of discussion is vehicle, which has tires. I don’t know what psychology works with it, but they are like that.

One day my sister came to our house and Tameem (my elder sister’s son) shown her a car and said “see I have got a new car, it still has tires”. Means whenever a new car he got the first pull out its tire, so none of his car has any tire. But that new one was still with all pieces.

My son likes to see how tires move. His favorite playing style is lying on the floor and move cars. So that he can see clearly how tires moves.

My son turns over it to see the tires clearly and playing with it.

We have adjusted our life with traffic condition

When a visitor (may be from outside of Dhaka city or foreign) came in this city (Dhaka) the first thing they had to face is the traffic jam. Kids cry, they can’t sit in one place and wait hours. Adults have no choice but wait. Now a day whenever we plan to go to any place the first thing we can think about is the traffic condition. In which way we should go, when, which date, try to complete all work within walking distance, etc. Everything has its own effect on our daily life. Traffic condition also has some. Good thing is our patient level getting high and higher every day by keep waiting on roads.

রাস্তাঘাট সুন্দর করে রাখতে আমাদের সমস্যা কোথায়?

আমাদের দেশের স্বভাব হচ্ছে। আমরা যখন কোন কাজ করবো, তা সবাইকে জানিয়ে, ডাকঢোল পিটিয়ে করবো। যতক্ষন না কাজ করবো, তারচেয়ে বেশি সময় ধরে তার চিহ্ন সবাইকে দেখিয়ে বেড়াবো। সবাই যেন বোঝে কিছু একটা হচ্ছে।

ঘুর্নিঝড়ের আগেই দেখেছি, রাস্তার ড্রেনের কভার খুলে, ম্যানহোল খুলে খুব পরিস্কার করা হচ্ছে। কিভাবে বুঝলাম? সব ড্রেন আর ম্যানহোল খুলে ভারি কংক্রিটের কভার রাস্তার পাশে বা প্রায় মাঝখানে রাখা। ম্যানহোল আর ড্রেনের সব ময়লা (কালো আর দুর্গন্ধময়) পাশেই স্তুপ করে রাখা। সাড়া রাস্তা জুড়ে। অবস্থা দেখে খুশি হলাম (না না ডাকনা খোলা রাখার জন্য নয় বা ময়লা স্তুপ করে রাখার জন্য নয়) জলাবদ্ধতা হবে না। ঘুর্নিঝড় এসে চলেও গেছে। এখনও রাস্তায় জায়গায় জায়গায় একই অবস্থায় রাখা হয়েছে। মনে হয় এখনও সবাই দেখিনি, কি কাজ হচ্ছে এখানে। 

সব সরিয়ে পরিস্কার করে আবার ঠিক মতো রাখতে কি খুব বেশি সময় লাগে? রাস্তাঘাট সুন্দর করে রাখতে আমাদের সমস্যা কোথায়?

Now we can’t see anything through window

Shafeen (he was 1 year and 9 months old) studying on the desk in front of a window, on those days he could view the road and other sights from this window. Now we can see only wall.

The city (Dhaka) is changing every day, very rapidly. When I was a child I have seen many low places in every area which looked like a pond. On those days when people looked for land they first asked is it a high land (where rain water won’t stand). But things changed a lot. Now people felt lucky if they get any land which is near Dhaka. Inside Dhaka and empty land, became impossible. Houses are made with the least gap. In some houses you can touch other building if you just expand your hand through your window. Our life is becoming like a farmed chicken. Where we had to live in a small space and spend the rest of the life in there and then some day die.

Shafeen (my 4 years old son) use to sit on this desk (once it was my reading desk) and study (in his own way) and play. Sometimes he just sits and looks outside and sees the cars on the road. Those days are gone. Now he can only see a wall. No chance to get any sunlight.

“Mohasen” cyclone is coming towards Bangladesh.

From left Saif, me and Shafeen in the water of Bay of Bengle

“Mohasen” cyclone is coming towards Bangladesh. This is a common situation for our country (Bangladesh) because of our geographical position. As ocean tide flow in Bay of Bengal, this cyclone will turn in the same way. We all know why these cyclones happen. Still, we don’t think about global warming, don’t think to save green. So, we have to face this situation. And finally mostly suffers the poor people. Now this is morning in Dhaka city and rainfall and with cold windblown started. We understand that the cyclone came near. Let’s see where it goes and how far it moves. When we can’t stop the natural disaster, we have to know how to live with it.

Enjoying time with mothers of my son’s school.

We went to Shafeen’s class mate Eshaan’s home

In the morning all of us faces rush our, had to get up early and get ready, then woke up our kids, make them ready, fed them and out to school. No time to take breakfast. Then we had to stay in school till the class finishes. You can understand how hungry we can be. So mothers decided we will buy snacks and everyday one of us will be responsible to pay. Two of us go out from school and buy food for all of us. Our common snacks are Singara (in hindi Samose), Porota and mixed vegetable, porota and omlette, chicken roll etc. Sometimes some mom brings food from home, like jorda, noodles, pitha, chicken curry with porota etc. Sometimes we visits home of mummy’s who stayed near school. Then take their home made food. This is a different life which only mothers can have J I like them all.

"প্রেম করতে চাইলে এমন ভাবে করবেন"

অফিসে কলিগরা বসে চা খাচ্চিলাম আর গল্প করছিলাম একটা চা-বিস্কুটের দোকানে। এক সময় প্রেমের প্রসংগ আসলো। এক কলিগ বললেন, প্রেম করতে চাইলে আমার বন্ধুর মতোন করবেন। একদিন ও বিধ্বস্ত হয়ে আসলো, বলল, মেয়ে ওকে ছেড়ে চলে গেছে। তারপর শুরু হলো মহা কান্নাকাটি। ওর লাফালাফি আর কথা শুনে অন্য বন্ধুরা ভয় পেয়ে গেল। কি জানি কি করে বসে। সুইসাইড না করার চেষ্টা করে। সারা রাত কেউ না ঘুমিয়ে পাহাড়া দিল আর শান্ত করার চেষ্টা করলো। ভোরবেলা মহাপ্রেমিক ঘুম থেকে উঠে একদম নরমাল। ব্রাশ করে, গোসল করে নাস্তা করলো, নিজের কাজকর্মে মন দিল। মাঝে মাঝে আবার গুন গুন করে গানও গায়। সবাই অবাক। এই হলো এর  প্রেম!

ইদানিং একজনের কাজ কর্ম দেখে হঠাৎ এই ঘটনাটি মনে পড়ে গেল। তাও ভাল, ভাল থাকলেই ভাল।

Dancing happiness

Shafeen with new dress, he was 1 year and 9 months old

Who doesn't like to have new dress? When I was a kid (school going) I really wanted new dresses. But our parents didn't like to invest more than enough money on new dresses. So I had to wait for long time. More over me have an elder sister. You can imagine now, my condition. I had to wear her old dresses. But Allah helped me. I became taller than her and get rid of this situation. And Whenever I get new dresses I use to wear it and then go in front of a mirror and then dance. Yes, I liked dancing very much. I had heard in my childhood I use to dance everywhere, whenever I felt happy. Dancing with new dress is really a good feeling. Now in this age, I really miss that dancing happiness and also new dresses ;)

My mom, Sufia Ahmed

This picture had been taken at my elder sister’s marriage ceremony.

Here I mentioned my mom’s name, because I wanted her to be known with her own name, not as my mother. She has born in Faridpur. When she was in class 9, her dad wanted her to be married. To stop that marriage she cut her hair. And she succeeds.

Then she came Dhaka and joins in nursing course and completed 4 years course. In those days she has to send money to home to help her father’s family. That’s the starting. My grandparents are no more now. But still my mom keeps helping to all her siblings wherever they need.

Then she completed many more training including family planning. She became the trainer. This quality gives her opportunity to go to Saudi Arabia. On those days I and my elder sister came in this world. At first she couldn't take us, she has to go alone. I was very young, below 3 years old, so can’t remember anything. But she use to cry for her babies for whole night with our pictures. After some processing she could took us to her place. Later my father also joined us.

After five years we all came back to Bangladesh and my mom build her own house. Where we are living now. So, still I am in her shell. She raises her 5 children, gave us good education with extra cultural activity. Still she cooks, do gardening, and maintain building and everything. She is still work like a young woman.

I salute you mom. I wish I could do something for you (sometimes I cooked food and gave her; in some cases she said my cooking is very poor). 

What is the position of your wife in your family?

I have seen, when a baby girl came on this earth how much happy her father became. They don’t understand what to do, to make this baby girl happy. It’s like an angel. From his heart he raises this baby day after day. What happen when some other family hurt this girl after marriage?

When you hurt your wife (mentally, physically or economically) do you ever think she is also a princess of some other person? You want to give the best for your baby girl. But your wife’s turn come after all expenses. After marriage a princess became a home slave with a day. Nobody will care for her any more; she is the unpaid slave to take care of all. Well people feed her; she has to be alive to work. She will get food after all other family member’s meal. Because it’s her duty to clean and complete other job after taking the meal. Moreover she will be reminded many times that she is taking food which is earned by some other person.