While our focus for being here is for a family wedding and to spend time with family, there are many other things going on around. Last week we experienced the sight of fighter jets flying over Lahore as a sign of protection in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Mumbai. Everybody stopped and looked up, so you knew it was not a normal sight. That tension continues to simmer but it is nothing compared to the day to day struggle people are having with constant load shedding (power cuts). In Lahore there are up to 14 hours of power cuts a day with it up to 18 hours in rural areas. It is incredibly disruptive because you get an hour of power and then one or two hours of no power, which also cuts the water supply as well. It seems this is caused by a limited water supply being allowed to flow from rivers in India yet a further source of tension. Having said this, that the candle lit atmosphere has been very Christmassy and is a great felling as everyone chats together in the dark waiting for the power to return.
It has been nice to spend another Christmas in Pakistan as the last one was at the same time as our wedding. Having been to a few nativities I was in the mood and although in the country Christmas day was more a holiday for the founding father of Pakistan, the Christians are focused on Christmas. In the morning we went to the Urdu service at the cathedral. There was a lot of security as ever but also a film crew stopped us and asked us what is the meaning of Christmas. I think Irfana of course gave the best response talking about very directly about Jesus and salvation. After the service we went to
visit Irfana’s sister’s grave and her auntie’s grave who recently passed away. The graveyard was full of other Christians visiting their loved ones. It seems that this is a Christmas tradition, which focuses everyone’s attention clearly on the baby Jesus, born to die and rise again. The rest of the day we spent with family and ate a lot as usual.
Saturday was a special day for Irfana and myself as we celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. As the whole country was also commemorating the anniversary of Benizir Bhutto’s death everything was closed and with various rallies going on we chilled at home. In the evening it was nice to invite family over for a meal.
Yesterday we attended the last function of Irfana’s cousins wedding. It started last Wednesday with a Mehndi. This is a sad affair for the bride as she leaves her family but a celebration for the groom’s side as she joins his. After a days rest we had the wedding celebration and then last night the Valima, where the boy’s family puts on a big celebration. Zara absolutely loved the whole affair, dressing up in Shelwar Kameez, with bangles and a dupata (scarf). She spent the whole time running around with all the other children and dancing to the music thumping out.
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