ver since I was a kid, I was fascinated by how my parents took care of the things and people around them - from personal possessions to family members.

My parents told me to always respect the things I love. Back then, I only had my toys to look after. In my growing years, my understanding of their advice blossomed and things got clearer in perspective.

I was always protective about my mother from a very young age, and not so much towards my father because I saw him as the man of the house who didn’t need anybody to ‘protect’ him. As for my mother, I wanted to be the first in line to take care of her — and her belongings. I remember waiting after school in my uniform for my mother as she came home from the office. I did not care how long it took; I would stand in the door, waiting for her until she stepped out of the car. The seed of this love has kept growing inside me, and will stay that way until I die.

My maternal grandfather, A Hameed, was a popular writer. My mother was emotionally attached to him just as I was to her (before she breathed her last in 2020). She had this feeling to protect him from all kinds of harm, and I’m not surprised that I inherited this from her.

After my grandfather’s passing in 2011, my mother devoted a percentage of her life to him — in terms of remembering his work, his writings, his work ethic, his library, his possessions and what not. She started a Facebook page by the name “A Hameed,” in 2014. Till she left us for her eternal abode, she would update it every day. I remember helping her in maintaining the page. After her passing, I decided to take care of my nana’s and my mother’s legacy, no matter what, even if I didn’t know how to go about it, or I hadn’t the aptitude for it, because it was my mother’s dream to keep my nana’s memories alive.

We all must cherish our loved ones in the best of ways, especially those who aren’t amongst us anymore. Remembering them is the only way to cherish them. I see myself running and maintaining A Hameed’s social media page until I die, as this is something my mother wished for.

Initially, as the sole administrator of the page, I rushed things a bit. I’d post random things on the page’s timeline every day. As months passed, I started reading the books he had written. I took pictures of the covers of his novels and uploaded them on the page. With time, the page’s following grew. My friends started noticing it and shared the page with others. I took the page from 600-700 followers/ likes to 4k+. The number is growing.

In my future posts on the page, I intend to share more about his work, his iconic series of novels for children, the iconic radio that he used to carry with him wherever he went, his old Timex wrist watch, his pipe, his last handwritten script and much more.

I’ve never sought anything out of it except the love of my mother. I reckon I am forever indebted to her, and I could never imagine anyone replacing her in this world.

We all must honour our loved ones in the best of ways, especially those who aren’t amongst us any longer; and never forget them. Remembering them is the only way to cherish them. I see myself running and maintaining A Hameed’s social media page until I die, as this is something my mother wished for.

The writer is studying Aircraft Maintenance Engineering at UMT