Since returning to Pakistan and particularly, to Karachi, my outlook on a lot of issues has changed. I realized I've become callous... not necessarily by choice but by circumstance. A few years ago, a picture could reduce me to tears and I wouldn't be able to sleep for days at a time... Over time, I've become inured to the suffering around me... It sounds awful, yes, but to maintain your sanity it's sometimes necessary to just shut your eyes and take a deep breath.

Last night on the way back from the airport, there was firing at Shahrae Faisal... I thought at first they were crackers until I saw people ducking by the roadside and cars speeding up to avoid being targeted... And then, I realized, it's normal, it's a part of life and it no longer bothers me... A person from, say, Copenhagen would probably be traumatized by the incident but Karachiites... we just accept it and move on. Once upon a time, I used to love this quote:

"To love. To be loved. To never forget your own insignificance. To never get used to the unspeakable violence and the vulgar disparity of life around you. To seek joy in the saddest places. To pursue beauty to its lair. To never simplify what is complicated or complicate what is simple. To respect strength, never power. Above all, to watch. To try and understand. To never look away. And never, never, to forget." Arundhati Roy

Now I can't seem to relate to it any more :s