Nostalgia of Marching Tune Auld Lang Syne

"Auld Lang Syne" is a famous Scottish song, usually sung and its tune played to bid farewell to the old year at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve. But is also usually played and sung at the goodbyes like graduations or even funerals, and as a farewell or ending to other occasions. Its eloquent verses are really heart moving and bring back the nostalgia of past associations and times spent together, specially under similar environment. 

Auld Lang Syne in English simply means "old long since" or, more idiomatically, "long long ago". In fact Auld Lang Syne is remembrance of the days gone by. the days gone by, or simply the old times. While this rather unusual Scottish word is popular in the civilians on gathering and reunions of old pals, it has since assumed a wider usage in the military and the military bands more often than not play it on farewell parties, or bid farewell to fallen friends and specially on military parades, when a contingent is departing after a spell of training or even leaving for combat.

Why I am sharing this song today, I will tell a little later in the post. But if you are not acquainted with this song, read the poetry below: 

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And auld lang syne!

Chorus.-For auld lang syne, my dear,
For auld lang syne.
We'll tak a cup o' kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.

And surely ye'll be your pint stowp!
And surely I'll be mine!
And we'll tak a cup o'kindness yet,
For auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

We twa hae run about the braes,
And pou'd the gowans fine;
But we've wander'd mony a weary fit,
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

We twa hae paidl'd in the burn,
Frae morning sun till dine;
But seas between us braid hae roar'd
Sin' auld lang syne.
For auld, &c.

And there's a hand, my trusty fere!
And gie's a hand o' thine!
And we'll tak a right gude-willie waught,

For auld lang syne

Auld Lang Syne evokes an undeniable sentimentality, a disorienting nostalgia, an instantaneous affection for the people around you at that exact moment; loved ones and strangers alike.” it evokes a strong sense of nostalgia and reflection on the past, particularly related to cherished memories, lost loved ones, and the passage of time, making it a deeply sentimental song

Herein under is an emotionally charged video of acquaintance never to be forgotten with a tinge of nostalgia with the song Auld Lang Syne playing beautifully synchronized with the scenic expressions:

Coming to why am I sharing this video today. The associations of men in uniform are something that one can never forgot throughout one's life for comradeship is the company and friendship of others with common aims. Men train together and then leave to fight on diverse frontiers, sometimes never to see each other again as treacheries of battlefields consume many of them who departed amid laughter and hearty handshakes and embraces. And this song befittingly fits on military departures in every sphere.

Military academies around the world are one such places where boys in their teens join the rigours of the military life, completely different to the lives they have lived before. Here they undergo strict military training, whether it is raining or snowing, whether it is mud filled trenches or freezing cold winds piercing through one's body when standing on a sentry duty while all his comrades take a nap for an eventful day ahead. They still laugh and cherish the memory of each day that passes by.

And then a day comes when they finally prepare for their graduation ceremony, smartly dressed in the military tunics and marching into the drill squares. After the routine rituals, awards of medals and the coveted sword of honour, the passing out cadets from ranks in the middle of the drill square and slowly move out of the drill square on the tune of Auld Lang Syne beautifully played by the military brass band.

I too once marched on this tune, some forty two years ago, and the heart wrenching tune of Auld Lang Syne made me both sad and happy: sad for leaving such a prestigious institution which transformed us from raw college boys to military men and officers and for leaving the comrades to meet later on battlefield or in training camps, and happy for finally being successfully and proudly joining the armed forces of the country. The nostalgia of marching on Auld Lang Syne remains fresh for as long as a man in uniform lives or later as a veteran. This feeling can only be felt, cannot be explained.

Now herein under watch the passing out cadets of Pakistan Military Academy, located in Kabul near the city of Abbottabad. Listen to the tune on which passing out cadets leave the drill square on the beautiful tune of Auld Lang Syne. For decades the tune is being played during passing out parades held twice a year:

It was a similar day when I too was among my comrades slowly leaving the academy with a tinge of nostalgia that still remains afresh even till day. Some of my comrades have fallen in these forty years, and one's heart laments on their loss for we have once been together, laughing, enjoying and caring each other when undergoing training at the military academy.

I do not know who out of my batch mate remains to be the last one alive, but I am very sure if he ever listens to Auld Lang Syne, he will have tears rolling down his cheeks for there will be no one to share the memories of the days we shared together.

To those listening to this and maybe feeling the void that I feel for those that I Love and lost I pray that every coming day brings to you only health, happiness, and Love.

Photos (self) | Resource Reference: Wikipedia If you like Jaho Jalal, please follow us on Facebook

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Once in a while

Have you ever been avid Niel Diamond listener? Well from my teen age I have been and listening to his beautiful melodious voice and captivating lyrics still resound in my memories. 

And once in a while I listen to one of his popular songs: Once in a while. And when I do, the beautiful lyrics of the song take me into my nostalgic past - a time when we five brothers lived our childhood and later the teenage with our loving parents. I t wasn't long that we all parted in search of our future leaving the two most beautiful people that ever came to my life - my parents. And since then, it was only an occasional calling on as the dictates of our employments could not afford us longer stints with them.

And then time started to pass by faster than we could imagine - we had our families as once our parents had. And age started to set in we were growing in our age while our parents was growing old, fragile and then days came when the took their heavenly flights one after the other - leaving behind the nostalgia that still clings to my memory: those 78 RPM His Master Voice recodes and the gramophone that my father had and from it we listened to the English songs of 1950s and thereafter till the age of LPs came, or going to school making friends and then our father taking us to Shezan, a local thriving restaurent, on our birthdays and in the process making us learn the table etiquettes when in a hotel and even how to address a waiter and registering an order.

There is much more to say that keep coming back from memory hard disk every once in a while till my eldest brother Gul Hameed Bhatti, a renowned cricket journalist and analyst, and our dear sister in law Razia Bhatti, of Herald Tribune, later the Herald and then founder of the Newsline - famous English magazine of Pakistan, also took their buses to heavens. And leaving behind their memories forever with us brothers and their children and the people who knew them.

The presnt is becasue of the parents, siblings, friends and people we once had and knew. And when they are no more, it is only peeping back in our past and reminisicing the memories of the days when everyone was around - when life had parents and when life was fun. So do look back in your past once in a while frequently for it is those days which are trasure of life.

If you care, you may now lsiten to the beautiful song that complelled me to write this post:

Photo: My family (less the fifth brother who wasn't around when this photo was taken i 1978 - Lahore).
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Find us on Facebook

Last year I got a phone call from London, England - the person on the other end bombarded a lot of questions that only someone who knew me in my teens could ask. I tried to recall my memories of some four decades and even old and was still engrossed in guessing when the caller introduced him to me: Zahid Masood Khan, a class fellow of mine since 1966-971. He found me out from Facebook - that was the start of many more pleasant encounters.

And then a chain of events started. A few days back I got a call from another classmate Tahir Aslam from Lahore, followed by Khaleeq from Saudi Arabia and the chain kept on connecting. And then I found a friend tariq Hashmi in Holland, Rashid Mahmud and Dilawar in Lahore. 

Meeting my friend Tariq Hashmi (second from left) in Groningen, Holland 2014 - flanked by our sons

And as if that was not all - I also got connected to a classmate working for Habib Bank in Bangladesh. It was really amazing as the chain is still connecting. I met all those in Pakistan recently as the came to my home in Islamabad and I went to Lahore to meet some. Not only that I went to Holland to meet my friend Tariq Hashmi and suddenly my memories and nostalgia brought me back my yesterdays - once more.

But that is not all still. Another surprise was yet to come till a few days earlier. A few years back while in Islamabad with my younger son, I passed through F-6/4 sector, a place where we lived from 1966-1971. Though we actually lived in Lahore, we visited our father in our vacations, who was then heading the Interpol Pakistan. I had some vivid memories of the place, so I decided to go to the house where we once spent our vacation.

In 1966, the area where we lived was fresh, clean and well maintained. The smell of fresh paint could still be felt when we occupied our flat 27/7 in 1966. But the landscape had changed and did not not present a healthy look with unkempt hedges and long grown grass. But for me its was still a place where I had spent earlier part of my teen. I asked my son to take a photo of me while I stood in front of the flat 27/7 (above).

I never knew someone else living so close to us would be watching this photo. I shared this photo too on Facebook and specially on page My Home Islamabad. Many people liked and commented on the photo - and then someone asked me if I knew her father. Well I never thought that someone lived so close to us and I replied: I wish I could - we did not have Facebook then. She liked my remark and that was all.

But then another comment came - this time naming her father: Umar Daraz Khan. And that was a bullhit. Yes I knew Uncle Umar daraz Khan, we called Uncle UD Khan, who lived on the upper story of oflat. And I instantly replied and was reconnected to my past. Children of Uncle UD and we were of the same age and had a wonderful childhood/teenage. The next comment was a bit sad as I was told that her parents and only brother of our age have since boarded their heavenly flights. 

Much that I wanted to meet my father's friends, but that four decades is a lot of time and obviously my father and his friends were in their 50s at that time and living beyond 90 is a lesser of all the probabilities. But finding their children was really amazing and a wonderful coincidence. Suddenly my mind was floating in Islamabad and the street where I lived (I wonder if you have heard this song or not - from once classic My Fair Lady).

This is the wonder magic of Facebook - do you have any such coincidences?

Read more:
School days friends - Lost and Found

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It was a moonlit night (Not) in old Mexico

Last night was the full moon and it always fascinates me to go out and enjoy its majesty and might. So as usual I went out with my new Nikon Coolpix L820 camera to test some night shots of the full moon. I did not have tripod and it took me a while to shoot some palatable moon shots.

And while I was taking the shots, suddenly an old song recoiled from my memory: Speedy Gonzales

For many Speedy Gonzales is a cartoon of modern times - but people of my age who listened to the 78 RPM records in the 60s, Speedy Gonzales was a famous Pat Boone song that still vividly resides in my memory.

The song stared with a narrative that said:

It was a moonlit night in old Mexico. I walked alone between some old Adobe haciendas. Suddenly, I heard the plaintive cry of a young Mexican girl.

And then the song started with a shrilling voice of a young Mexican girl followed by the song that goes like this:

You better come home, Speedy Gonzales
Away from tannery row
Stop alla your a-drinkin'
With that floozie named Flo
Come on home to your adobe
And slap some mud on the wall
The roof is leakin' like a strainer
There's loadsa roaches in the hall

Speedy Gonzales, why don'tcha come home?
Speedy Gonzales, how come ya leave me all alone?

Spoken in a male Mexican accent: "Hey, Rosita-I hafta go shopping downtown
For my mudder-she needs some tortillas and chili peppers. "

Your doggy's gonna have a puppy
And we're runnin' outta coke
No enchiladas in the icebox
And the television's broke
I saw some lipstick on your sweatshirt
I smelled some perfume in your ear
Well if you're gonna keep on messin'
Don't bring your business back a-here

Mmm, Speedy Gonzales, why don'tcha come home?
Speedy Gonzales, how come ya leave me all alone?

Spoken in a male Mexican accent: "Hey, Rosita-come queek-down at the cantina

They giving green stamps with tequila!! "

Does this narration compels you to listen to the song? Well to some yes may be. So here it is for those some who are attracted to listen to the voice of the young Mexican girl or for those who have listened to this song in their teens. Here i t goes:

I am sure next time you see a full moon, you will be reminded of Speedy Gonzales and the plaintive cry of a young Mexican girl !!

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School days friends – Lost and Found

Google and Facebook are excellent places to find lost friends and classmates. It has been more than four decades since I left my school and had since lost contact with some of the classmates and friends with whose good company I once enjoyed. Going to the college and joining a professional line which took me to a new place every two years, it was not possible to retrace my footsteps and find some familiar faces.

Thus more than four decades passed. Technologies changed and the Facebook and Google made it possible to find people provided they too were active on these two major social media networks and search engines.
While in school, we were a group of few friends out of which many went out of the country in search of better future. In early 70s, the means of communication were not as good as these are today and thus we lost contact with each other. Since Rashid Mahmood (read more about him in the end) and I were in the same profession, we met once or twice in the 80s but then lost each other.

Farhat Qayyum Naz: 43 years ago (left) and now (right)

Farhat Qayyum Naz who had gone and settled in Sydney Australia, came once in 2008 and I met hin Islamabad where he was staying in a hotel. That was the first meeting with him after school and since 2008 Facebook is the only contact with him.

Zahid Masood Khan: 43 years ago (left) and now (right)

The first 'overseas' contact was established last year when I received a call from England and I heard a rather familiar voice I had last listened to some 43 years ago when I left the school. It was my friend Zahid Masood Khan who found me out on the Facebook and then through a common friend found out my cell number and made contact.

 Tariq Hashmi: 43 years ago (left) and now (right)

Through him, I got in contact with another friend, Tariq Hashmi, presently living in Groningen, the Netherlands. And when I recently went to Germany where my younger son Wahaab Jalal is studying in the Kiel University of Applied Sciences, I made it a point to travel to Holland and meet him. 

Left to right: My younger son, Tariq Hashmi, Me and Hashmi's eldest son at Groningen, Netherlands

And soon our two families got along with each other as we two knew each other many many years ago. I have already written about this reunion in one of my earlier posts: To Netherlands – to meet a friend after 43 years.

And yet again one day I received a message on Facebook from a school days friend Muhammad Khaleeq, messaging from Doha, Qatar. This added a a third friend to the list. Khaleeq came to visit me a few months back and we shared some of the best memories of school days.

Me with Khaleeq with our 43 years old photos

And as if this is not the end. I also got in contact with yet another friend, Malik Tahir Aslam, who had left for another school while we were in the 9^th class and last night he came to visit me and I met him after 45 years.

Malik Tahir Aslm: 43 years ago (left) and now (right)

Tahir (left) and I (right) as of last night

This really has been a great experience, meeting one friend after the other. 

There is yet another friend, Rashid Mahmood, that I found on Facebook and have sent him a message to re-establish the lost contact. We were together till eight grade, when he left for the prestigious Cadet College, Hasanabdal. Although we once met thereafter in our professional lives in Karachi, but that was long time back in early 80s.

 Rashid Mahmood: As of now

And the telephonic contact with Rashid has finally been established and he promised to visit me by this month end. This would almost complete my list of friends and I do hope that we all someday meet in Lahore, a place where we last met to share the nostalgia of the good old school days and those four decades that just went by in between our Lost and Found quest.

Tahir Mirza: 43 years ago (left) and sometimes from now (right)

And before I forget, let me recall my dear friend Tahir Mirza. He was a gem of a person to whose house I often went and played vinyl records on his radiogram. His father was a man of taste and class who would often come in and would chat with him. Tahir was close to Zahid Masood, myself and Tariq Hashmi. So when I first established contact with Zahid Masood, I asked about Tahir Mirza. But was saddened to know that he had already flown to his heavenly abode in 2008. I wish he was still here with us but perhaps this is what the Nature had planned for him. Be blessed, good old Tahir Mirza - may we all meet in Heavens one day.

There are still many classmates and friends I still vividly remember. Some of these being Tanvir Hayat (the genius of our class who always topped), Bashir (who was a math wizard), Iftikhar and Dilawar, with whom I used to partly share my way home after the school through Anarkali and famous Paisa Akhbar Road. Then there was Mazhar ul Haq, who later went to NCA (National College of Arts) to do architecture as did Farhat and I recently found him out through my cousin Ibrar Bhatti who is also graduate of NCA. I sent him a message and got a prompt reply. We hope to interact more on Facebook, as he said in his message.

Mazhar ul Haq: 43 years ago (left) - thereafter (centre) and now (right)

So this is how the digital age and the social media is helping out people to find friends, specially those lost since long and bringing them closer yet again. Have you ever found friends through search engines like Google or social media network like Facebook?
Updated 10 June 2018:

I had just one more surprise yesterday when I received a call from a lost classmate Iftikhar. We used to walk back from school through Anarkali where he lived while I continued on foot to my home on McLeod Road.

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The nostalgic eateries of Lahore

Not for many reasons, my family finally decided to settle in Islamabad, specially its rather friendly weather. But this could not take away my longing and love for Lahore – a city where I was born and grew up as a young man. The nostalgia of those roads, bazaars and places that I once walked thus always takes me back to Lahore every couple of months. And I find myself young again amid friendly and familiar environs. I try to foot the places which were once my usual routes to my school and later the college. I would save on the money given to me as bus fare to eat whatever came my way, and I enjoyed both the walking and eating.

The last weekend again took me back to Lahore to attend wedding of a friend’s daughter. And this gave me yet another opportunity to find out new eateries specific to Lahore. In fact, you don’t have to find places to eat, as every corner of Lahore has some specialty that one cannot resist to devour. For sophisticated and the rich, MM Alam Road in Gulberg has dozens of restaurants offering variety of packages to choose from. Here one can find all sorts of traditional, European and Chinese cuisines prepared to suit the local tastes, beside the much liked burgers by the young. The environment created by some suit the kind of food being served.

As for very indigenous foods, there is no dearth. Mozang, Main Market (Gulberg), Wahdat Road, Gawalmandi, Lakhshami Chowk, Anarkali and Gari Shaoo are some of the areas where hot, spicy and sizzling food is available till very late at night. Cuckoo’s Den near the Lahore’s Badshahi Mosque is yet another place where one can enjoy innovative food, coupled with the view of old Lahore, the Lahore Fort and the Badshahi Mosque.

My sons are equally fond of visiting such places with me and enjoy eating the food more or less the Lahori way. Remember, in one of my previous posts, the Lahorites eat KHABAS not merely Khana. You go to someone’s place and you will be entertained with whatever is available in the kitchen. And you would eat as you normally do, probably a little overeating as well. But when you think that all is over, the host would announce, “Let us go out and EAT.” Appalled of this revelation, and despite your pleadings that you had had enough at his place already, you will be taken to any of the areas mentioned above. And when the order would be placed, you would almost turn pale, as no one in his right mindset would be eating all that which would have been just ordered. This is when Khana becomes Khaba. So when going to Lahore, have a heart of a Lahori lest you are caught off guard. And don’t forget to drink a full glass of ice cold “Lassi” after the dinner, in one gulp called “deek” in local language.

This time, after a nice and decent dinner amid pleasant environment of MM Alam Road, I took my family to Wahdat Road for some real stuff. And before I could locate any real place, my sons’ eyes fell on Shahi Pathoorays and I was told to stop. We ordered two plates initially, but then there was no ending. Each plate had two Pathoorays, and we ordered God knows how many. But the crispy fresh from the oven heavily oiled Pathoorays with spicy chickpeas and pickle were heavenly tasty. You have to eat these to know the taste.

Next time, I will take them to Mozang for Qeemay walay Parathay (greasy breads stuffed with minced meat) eaten with curd. And when winters come, I may take them to Garhi Shahoo for one of the best fried fish in Lahore. Just the mention of all this makes me hungry and forces me t go to kitchen to find something for munching. A true Lahori has his appetite never quenched.

Related Reading: Khana, Khaba and Eateries of Lahore

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Time changes

My friend SAJS is very nostalgic about his past – his childhood days when he would jump in the canal flowing next to his village, like all others kid of his village did in the summers. He would watch children playing pebbles, a favourite game in the villages, or perhaps he also joined in and bagged all the pebbles from others (or perhaps lost all of his own and went sobbing home).

When he grew up, he was put to the village school that was the day when a writer was born far away in a small village near Mandi Bahauddin. He would often write small words on the sand, which probably made a theme for him to write a book later in his literary life. He had a passion for reading and writing since his childhood, I would say and this is what reflects from most of his posts. Perhaps for this reason, he loved writing letters and sending eid cards to his friends and family when he moved out of his village for higher education. In one of his recent posts, he has expressed his love for these greeting cards and has also displayed a greeting banner I once drew and posted on the notice board of our academy where we both happened to be undergoing training.

Now that the times have changed, and so have the habits and way of life of people even in the rural areas. People who once used to listen to the songs from the Urdu and Punjabi films on the radio and commentary on cricket and hockey matches played in and foreign lands are now glued to the 24 hours run TV channels. Listening to radio is no more the priority. During Shirazi’s youth, the black and white PTV only aired its programmes from 6-11 PM with a weekly break on Wednesday perhaps. We had few good prgrammes to watch everyday rather than the Urdu dramas full of family feuds and intrigues by the otherwise not-doing-anything women folk of our families.

Those were the days when life was simple and compassionate. People loved to write letters to their near and dear ones and waited for the postman to deliver the replies or “re” of todays. And we also send greeting cards on Eid. Children would throng the greeting cards stalls opened on every corner of the street and buy cards on behalf of their families. And am sure so did SAJS.

But now times have changed, as these change in the lifespan of every generation. Fashion has changed too. We now see women wearing long shirts, lose from bottom, as did women in the 50s. The LPs that we grabbed in our youth and played on the turn tables have been replaced with CDs and even USBs directly inserted into car AV paying devices or even stored in the cell phones. While once we waited for the post man for letters and eid cards - now we wait for SMSs and E-Mails instead, as technological developments have overtaken human emotions.

This change is necessary as inertia in life leads to boredom and stagnancy. So let the life take its own course. But at the same time it is also good to recall old memories and feel nostalgic about it as this is what remains when one has gone past its prime youth.

So say good bye to old habits, traditions and way of living - who knows what is in the store for next year?

Related Reading: Greeting Cards

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End of 9/11

Well the 9/11 is almost over – isn’t it?

Yes, it is finally over. The Eid ul Fitr that we celebrated on 9/11 (lest you thought of something else). The first half of the day was spent in the usual rituals and the later half till evening was consumed in sleeping. The last part in the evening was a bit social with friends and relatives coming in and we going out.

But there wasn’t any fun. I remember the days when we were kids and the Eid day used to be a day full of celebrations. A day prior to the Eid, we used to polish and still re-polish the newly bought shoes and make them shine like mirror and would hardly sleep due to excitement of the following day. On the Eid day, we all five brothers would board a Lahore Omnibus Service, a beautiful efficient service that succumbed to mismanagement and later closed, to Shalamar Gardens for Eid prayers. Although we had mosques closer to our home, but we would go to Shalamar Bagh for a little fun besides the ritual offering.

An Eidi of one rupee used to be a fortune. A bottle of Canada Dry, the drink is long gone now, but during those days, it was very much in. The bottle cost six anas and we still had ten anas more to eat junk food or even buy some sweets and chocolates. A rupee then had 16 anas, which later became a hundred paisa. We would be visited by both our maternal and paternal families, since our father was the eldest. And our house used to be crowned with cousins and elders. Our mother would cook many dishes for the lunch and the dinner and the day would be spent in fun and laughter. And above all, more Eidi pouring in from the uncles.

But now times have changed. The number of relatives have reduced. Our children feel more comfortable sending SMSs and e-mails from their mobile phones and laptops and chatting with near and distant friends and cousins rather than going out to meet them. Now the postman no more delivers tons of Eid Cards, telegrams (which used to be specially issued for Eid greetings with colourful pages).

Perhaps, this is how things change over a period of time. Now it seems technology has over taken sentiment expression in person. Children today are more mature than we were and do not waste time in visiting market places and bazaars as we did to see other children dressed equally as we and making merry. Now making merry is all contained either in a mobile phone or a laptop.

And one thing more has changed too. Me!! I have grown up children as my father had us. And quite naturally I cannot go out holding a one rupee note to buy a Canada Dry, as now neither there is Canada Dry nor a rupee fetches anything anymore. Even a beggar on Eid day takes the one rupee coin with a No-Thank-You gesture. The only thing that remains is the nostalgia of the good old days. One thing more: there was no 9/11 then.

Get ready for the office tomorrow.

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