Can Words Describe Grief?

While writing these words, I find myself stumbling, how to say anything on what happened in Pakistan earlier today. Innocent school children in Peshawar and their teachers were murdered. Can poetic words convey the true grief, cries and agonies of souls? Perhaps a gifted poet can, but the ordinary people like me who read or hear this news from near or far find themselves as utterly shocked. How low has the humanity stooped to! These days it is increasingly difficult to get a true picture on what is really happening in the remote corner of the globe like the troubling spots in Pakistan where the lingering battles between the Pakistani government forces and the Taliban and other rebels cost so many lives! Innocent children, women and men are gunned down or blown to pieces almost everyday. As if there are no values left for the human lives! Only remain the boiling anger and vengeance in the name of exploited political and ideological twists. Who is telling the truth and who is not? If one side kills a hundred, the next day the other side kills a thousand.

Like the other parts of our world, waging more wars cannot solve the root of this problem. It was tried and failed. Unlike the New York Times Editorial board that thinks otherwise, I believe that Pakistani government should be approaching this problem with cool head. Apply the diplomatic and also the military pressure. Diplomatic pressure is to find a peaceful resolution of the problem. And the military pressure is to make sure that the most radical faction of Taliban or any other extremist groups do not get another chance killing more innocent children and civilians. However, this attempt will fail if the government of Pakistan exacts the similar vengeance filled revenge, killing countless civilians in the impoverished and voiceless segments of its populace. As this will only continue and escalate this never ending horrific cycle.

Terrorism and its volatile cousin the omnivorous war do not have any place in humanity. Our words fail to describe the tears in the eyes and pain in the heart but our resolve should not be wavered for trying to achieve peace and put an end to this madness.