My Country, My Home.

John. F. Kennedy said "Ask not what your country can for you. Ask what you can do for your country."

What does it mean to be a nation? Is a nation simply comprised of individuals inhabiting the same land? People who have just one thing in common between them: they happened to be born in the same country. Does a nation keep living its everyday life when its country faces turmoil and crisis after crisis? Ask yourself, is that a nation? Are you part of such a nation?

We complain about the problems of our country. We complain about the political parties, we complain about the electricity shortages, we complain about the pollution, we complain about the people in power. We complain. That is all we seem to do. Our biggest fault, and consequently our biggest tragedy, is how jaded we seem to have become. They say, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." We, on the other hand, become apathetic. And this apathy leads to inertia. We are in a deep slumber.

Wake up , fellow countrymen! Our country needs us. Whatever happened to youth being the future of our nation? Is our future really that bleak? No, it is not!

And if someone does want to know what our country has done for us, the answer should be clear. It has given us a home. And that is the most important gift anyone can be given. We have an identity, a sense of belonging. We have freedom. And that does not mean that it is always going to be perfect. We have to fulfil our Quaid's dream to transform our country into the perfect nation that it deserves to be. We, the youth, have a hard task ahead of us. Our work has been cut out for us.

Recently, Imran Khan held a rally in Lahore. I will proclaim that I am, in fact, a supporter of Imarn Khan and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (P.T.I.). And it heartened me to see how many youngsters were present at the rally. It brings me hope that change is coming, change is near. But let's not expect just Imran Khan to bring change. That lies within all of us. Mahatama Gandhi said "Be the change you want to see in the world". Let's not wait for others to initiate. If somebody has to start, why not us? No amount of effort is too little. No amount of effort is too much. Our home needs us. Revolution does not always need to be bloody. If Alama Iqbal can spur the creation of Pakistan through poetry, then why can't we through simple acts like peaceful demonstrations, articles, songs , poetry, etc? The time is now. Let's take a stand.

So, referring back to my original question, what does it, then, mean to be a nation? A nation is not made up of individuals, but it is a collective whole. A nation is one, where everyone stands together through all trials and tribulations. It is a family, where all the members realize that they need to protect their home. I shall proudly proclaim at this very moment that I am a part of this family. "Pakistan" is on my passport, my ID card, my driver's licence, my heart and in my blood. It is my identity. It is my home.

PAKISTAN ZINDABAD!

Mehreen. Alavi.
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