When you work in news, especially news in Pakistan, you become accustomed to headlines such as “Five killed in bomb attack…”, “Two dead in targeted attack..”, “Eight dead…” and so on. As the news comes in, news editors have to sift through what makes it in the headlines and rundown and what doesn’t. In a manner perhaps as cold blooded as of the attackers, the editor makes the decision that the death of only three people is news not big enough.

I’ve been there, I have made that decision. 

What are you going to do when there are ten other stories lined up, each more horrifying, each with bigger numbers?

But now I know what the other side looks like. Over on that side there is nothing bigger than “three killed”. And there never can be. When a family loses three of its members to senseless killings, the enormity of “three killed” cannot be conveyed and cannot be overcome. The extreme emotions spill out of the bodies of those affected, ripping their souls apart it seems. There is no logic, no comfort, no rundown of how the day, the week, or the years are going to be like. “Three Killed…” is so much more than just an average bit of news. 

There is turbulence all around us. We try to make sense and keep moving in the right direction. But how possible is it to keep the direction right when the boat is rocking so much. 

This post doesn’t have a conclusion, or a witty question, its just there, suspended in the middle of all the extremes we live within.