Everything the Stranger Saw

Memorial Union's building reminds me of some medieval European cathedral. I have learned that it was constructed in three phases between 1923 and 1963. I wonder if the architects were inspired from medieval English cathedrals. I feel they might have been. These days Memorial Union serves as a sort of community center for students. It houses student union offices, and is used to hold events on special occasions. There's a chapel in the South wing, where I have seen wedding ceremonies being held quite often. Originally, the Union was constructed to honor those Mizzou students who had lost their lives while on duty during World War I. Their names are inscribed on the inner wall of the archway of the Memorial Union tower.

Anyway, as I raised my eyes to look at the tower, I was immediately captivated by the Eastern sky behind the tower. The sky was clear blue. It had a certain purity about it, which I loved.

The sky is really beautiful here. On clear days, it is a treat to look at it. On some days, magnificent clouds make the view even more beautiful. Might I say that I love clouds. They are so majestic and ephemeral from up close. Vapors. Water. Life.

At dusk, the Western sky appears wrapped in such rich and unique colors, I don't think I have the words to describe them. There's a strange lava-esque quality to the dusk here, sometimes. Often waves of bold crimson, sombre maroon, calm saffron and effervescent orange-red join and then separate to paint a masterpiece in the evening.

But, this azure sky today had some amazing clarity in it, which influenced me to take up writing again. And writing in Urdu. Yes, I thought I should start writing in Urdu. I feel that Urdu writing is getting more rare day by day, and if everyone starts to, or aspires to, write in English, it won't be long before the art of Urdu writing would be extinct. So, I decided to buy a journal and start writing a diary in Urdu. If not every day, then every other day. Obviously, I wasn't ambitious to start writing a novel or short story. Actually, I'm glad I was realistic. I would have totally failed on day one had I attempted a literary work.

Then, I thought why not turn those diary entries into a blog post in English just to keep this stagnant blog running. This way, I'll get two birds with one stone, which is always nice. Hopefully most of my entries would be in plainspeak because I'm no intellectual. But, maybe someday I'll dabble into something more sophisticated.