Iqra Lali
It was a cold night in Lahore. The sky was covered in fog and smoke. A man sat on a broken sidewalk by the road, shivering. His face looked tired, and his eyes were heavy with sleep but showed no peace. He wrapped his old blanket tighter around himself and stared at the dim light of a streetlamp, lost in his thoughts.
This was his everyday life: hunger, worry, and exhaustion. He looked around at the smoke, noise, and people sitting helplessly on the street. He stood up, his eyes staring blankly into the distance, as if he was searching for something. He kicked a small stone and mumbled, “Is this what life is? Just this?” Slowly, he sat down on an old bench, his only escape from the harsh reality.
As he sat, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Suddenly, he felt fresh air around him. He opened his eyes, and everything had changed. The fog and smoke were gone. The air was clean, as if someone had washed the whole city. He looked at his rough, cracked hands, and they seemed soft and smooth now.
He stood up, surprised, and looked around. Across the street, a small café with clean tables stood. For a moment, he thought, “If only I could sit there and have a cup of tea.” The café owner smiled at him and said, “Baba ji, would you like some tea?”The man asked in surprise, “Me?”
“Yes, you!” the owner said with a smile.
The smell of the tea made him feel calm. When he took the first sip, it felt as though life was coming back to him. He looked around and saw the streets were clean and quiet, with no honking cars. People walked peacefully on the sidewalks. In the distance, he saw a hospital. There were no long lines outside, no cries of pain. The doctors seemed to be doing their work properly. A feeling of peace filled him.
After finishing his tea, he decided to walk. As he walked, he noticed something strange,there were no children begging or working. “Is this real? Or am I dreaming?” he thought.
He passed by a park where people of all ages were smiling. The park was full of greenery, children were laughing on swings, women were walking freely, and everyone seemed happy.
He walked until he got tired and sat down again. He looked up at the sky and saw the moon shining so clearly that it gave him hope. He whispered to himself, “Maybe my life can change too. Maybe the world is getting better.”
But that hope didn’t last long. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw a policeman standing there. “What are you doing here? Get up!”
Panicked, he looked around. The smoke was back. The streets were noisy again, with cars honking and people shouting. The children were begging and working on the sidewalks. Outside the hospital, people were groaning in pain. The park that had been green and lively was now empty and dead.
He realized it was all just a dream,a brief vision of a better world. “A fool’s dream”.
It was the dream of someone brave enough to imagine light in a dark world, but when the dream ended, reality swept it away.
