Paper Castles: Issue 1

PAPER CASTLES
"A Hub Of Inside Stories"

Brief Introduction to PAPER CASTLES

The project title “Paper Castles” is a Pakistan based initiative which will focus on featuring the hidden talents of Pakistan on a larger scale. The term “Paper Castles ” is the magazine that will unwrap the hidden stories of our nationwide. Each issue published under this umbrella will consist of all type of writings and ideas to give each and every writer, not only writers but all the artists, illustrators and talent of Pakistan a chance.

Similarly, each idea presented in the issues will be solely based on the demand of our readers and writers. Through this initiative, we are planning to give each and every Artist of Pakistan a chance to express themselves in their own comfortable zones without any sort of discrimination or barrier due to certain writing styles thus this platform is going to be the platform for everybody from any part of the country.

We hope this project becomes a step towards the revival of literature and Arts in Pakistan and we get to prove ourselves in the field of literature as well.

                                                                                                                                   Sumaira Shamim 
                                                                                                                                  CEO Paper Castles 

A MESSAGE FROM CEO

It is heartening to see the sustained efforts of writers’ guild in the shape of “PAPER CASTLES” magazine’s 1^st issue. The magazine makes a good read with inspiring articles,stories,poems and illustrations. It is obvious that a considerable effort has gone into producing the magazine, which covers various soulful efforts of writers and our team. Hats off to the team who have also worked hard to bring out the magazine in time. This magazine has now provided a platform to young talent nationwide to hone their writing skills and it is hoped that we will see more write-ups in future issues.

I am proud to be a member of this creating and innovative writing community which has put in substantial time and efforts in improving the self-esteem of our young writers of our society. , May Allah give us the strength to keep working to help make our society a better place for all.

SUMAIRA SHAMIM

CEO OF PAPER CASTLES

Team Credits:

Project Manager: Fatima Ali Raza (CEO TAA)

Creative Head: Syeda Fatima Furqan

Editors: Ayesha Imran & Syeda Armish Gillani

Official Host: Zahra Zafar

Social Media Manager: Syed Muhammad Madni

Printing Services: Click 2 Print

Copyright© 2021, PAPERCASTLES JUNE-OCT ISSUE

All rights reserved. This magazine or any portion of thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the fonder, project manager and writer(s) except for the use of brief questions in a book review.

ISBN

978-969-696-600-5

THE PAPERCASTLES | DAASTAN PUBLICATIONS

www.daastan.com

 ARTICLES

“IF YOU HAVE BEEN AN FSC - PREMEDICAL STUDENT IN PUNJAB”

BY MARIA AZIZ

“Over 74,500 candidates including 48,472 female and 26,030 males, appeared in Medical and Dental Colleges’ Admission Test (MDCAT) which was conducted by the University of Health Sciences (UHS) on Sunday, Aug 25, 2019. In 2020, 121,630 students appeared in MDCAT.”

Every year thousands of students are enrolled in Fsc in Pakistan, almost all of them are aspiring to get a seat in a public sector medical college. The cream of this competition turns that dream into reality. Those  who make it, become doctors.

But what about those who fail to do so…?

…

It all started with a dream. That white coat and that busy life…

The students were sitting in the room chatting among themselves nervously, they had come just a few days after their last board exam. Each of them held a lot of dreams in their eyes, the professor entered the room. Students became almost quiet, after all, they had spent quite a good fortune to pay for his lectures.

“...Students, mdcat is a game of concept…”

Well, to say the least, this statement was quite unnerving for a lot of them, as they had spent last four years in cramming the text books.

...

In all honesty, I hate the system of BISE-Punjab. At first, they make the students cram up and mug up the whole syllabuses starting from the matric level and absurdly taking it to Fsc level, completely vacuuming out their creativity and then, give ridiculously similar questions in the exam every year.

After this time, when most of them have forgotten the “C” of concept, they are told to clear a test of “concepts” (MDCAT).Not just that, but the system of these BISEs is so faulty that you’ll find a lot of students applying for rechecking. The BISEs hire people who are paid according to the number of papers checked.  Now, anyone who is doing it for money does it at a super human speed. As a result, more often than not, they mess up.

What the system does is it makes a list of a handfuls of lucky souls who survived the chaotic checking and marks them as “laik” (brilliant).

But what if, for some very obvious reasons, someone who spent countless sleepless nights in the passion of turning their world upside down, got their paper wrongly checked and wants to have it rechecked? Well, no can-do sir! They’ll “zaleel” (humiliate) you in the name of rechecking (since it’s only recounting, and you cannot challenge the allocated marks, even if you open a text book to prove your answer right).And this “what if” becomes the fate of a handful of people every year…

The obsession seen in the people of this country to be health care workers or to make their children heath care workers is so severe that a lot of students repeat year after year to get into a medical college, now don’t get me wrong, maybe saving lives is the dream of someone out there, but most of the people who repeat do so because of social pressure. Moving on from such a glorious future can be hard, especially when everyone around you is reminding you of that. And then the same system issues papers saying “God knows what is wrong with our youth… they are all in depression.”

YUP… ONLY GOD KNOWS!

And don’t even get me started on what happens in this country in the name of preparations of MDCAT. These people have a clear idea that their paper checking system is as sick as a last stage corona patient, but they, for some reason have to keep it on ventilator. So, they cannot trust Fsc marks. Now, they ask the students to give MDCAT. And students being passionate, check the possibility of getting into a medical school but the only way they see, of completing MBBS, is by getting into a Govt. medical school, because in the case of a private institute you’ll have your parents sell the car, the house, and even your dog (totally fair, right?) Or sell both your kidneys (sweet)if, like majority you are a middle-class student.

So, students take in a deep breath and accept this challenge of crossing the gigantic merit of around 91% (exact percentage is different each year) but if they  are like most, they’d have realized that the best way of doing this is by getting into an academy. Another mafia... Now, they’ll pay an academy some 50k (or more if they had bad marks). But then another realization comes crashing down their shoulders that the system that had a solo mission of making you a crammer suddenly demands you to learn concepts… ABSURD!!!

As a result, majority fails….

Now that the system is sick and tired of their existence it sends a list of the top super humans who somehow survived this craziness and mayhem. Classifies them as brilliant and gives them a seat. But TADA!!! At the bottom of result, there is a note saying “sorry you’re not good enough to get in a govt. med school, try again next time. But you’ve crossed the line for private colleges (to make them feel even worse, because as mentioned before, middle-class can’t afford that).”

The only people I’ve seen crossing this stupid personage are:

1. Those are really intellectual and have amazing memory as well (super humans).
2. Those who were on drugs.
3. Those who repeat again and again and stubbornly get in somehow.
   
   

But for the rest of them, it’s the same dammed fate. Either repeat till you get in or leave it and start a new life. But, everyone in the universe demands the students to go through this emotional hell again as a reporter! Again, if you’re like majority of others, you’ll be too heartbroken to even look back again. And anyone who thinks that a broken dream is nothing, well guess what? It breaks your personality and heart as well. So, some start writing sad poetry and send admissions in various universities, realizing that now they have a very limited choice because they studied premed. And then if they’re a girl… bam! Half of the available options go down the gutter as well.

In the first year of university life feels numb, the world who adored a “future doctor” starts to criticize the choice to get a “common degree” (BS or something else). It takes will, it takes a lot of time and it takes effort to get back up again, well at least partially (don’t look at me like that, a heartbreak changes a person. There is no reverse reaction to this equation.)

The students move on, mostly getting a degree in academia, mostly to get into the government academic system.

“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”

___F.Nietzsche

But then there are some questions that makes me feel numb…

Will these same students become those checkers who messed up while checking the paper?

Or those Govt. teachers who try to vacuumed out their creativity?

 Or the greedy teachers in the academy…?

A part of this messed up system…

“ENTITLEMENT AND MENTAL HEALTH”

BY FATIMA ZULFIQAR

     Have you ever looked at someone and felt like either you owe them or they’ll get offended if you don’t listen to them? If yes, then maybe they have an Entitlement mentality. They might have passed through you at a bus stop, or maybe they are your friends and family. These people believe that rules don’t apply to them and confuse privileges with rights.

What Is Entitlement Mentality?

     It is the belief in one’s mind that they are inherently deserving of privileges or special treatment when the person has done little or nothing to deserve such treatment. It’s the “world ought to revolve around me” or “you owe me” attitude. Entitlement Mentality is a narcissistic personality disorder. Those with narcissistic behavior will typically feel entitled to something better. Those people think they’re not getting the recognition they deserve from others. Causes of Entitlement are not known exactly, but social factors may cause it, such as,

• How their parents treat them.
• The behavior of other authority figures.
• Life experiences.
• Those people who make such a person feel they are special.

Effect of Entitlement on Personal and Social Relationships:

     People with a sense of entitlement think of themselves as superior to others, which highly affects their social and personal relationships. Entitlement has a long-term effect on people, making it a part of your personality. Entitled people, when faced with social situations, usually exhibit the following behavior:

• They ignore other people’s opinions.
• Give little or no recognition to people’s efforts. To them, what other people accomplish doesn’t matter
• They interrupt others and launch their own stories. In fact, they are terrible listeners.
• They talk too much as they think their stories need to be heard the most.

People, when exhibit above mentioned behavior and when they think rules don’t apply to them or they are not getting what they inherently deserve, start facing issues like:

• Conflicts in relationships.
• Disappointment
• Depression
• Unhappiness

Entitlement highly affects not only your relationships but also your work. As a lot of office work requires working in teams, we can see entitled people failing to adapt to team environment because they think:

• Everyone ought to listen to them.
• Their opinion deserves to be accepted by all.

These expectations, when not met, lead to disappointment and conflict. Most of the choices an entitled person makes are self-serving. And they often avoid problem-solving, which can quickly become apparent to their co-workers.

Types of Entitlement Tendencies

1. The expectation of special treatment. For example, you expect that the rules applied to others don’t apply to you.
2. Expecting people to be more interested in you than you are in them. Your activities, goals, and interests are more interesting and valid than other people’s.
3. You expect people to grant you favors readily, but you feel massively put on when they ask for favors.
4. You think you are not obliged to follow rules that are intended for everyone’s comfort.
5. You expect that you are not liable to pay and always look for a chance to freeload.

For example, you download pirated content instead of paying for them.

6. You inconvenience others without thinking. For instance, you cancel appointments or reservations frequently.

You make plans with your friends and then bail on those plans without thinking that your friends may have other plans which they rescheduled or moved around according to your schedule.

You run into a shop one minute before closing without pondering about the fact you’ll be delaying the shopkeeper from getting home on time.

You think, “It’s only 5 minutes,” without thinking that the assistant may have somewhere they need to be.

7. You upset people like it’s no big deal and think that people who like to keep the peace are weak.
8. You get what you want and then leave without giving back the favor.

For example, you ask many questions in your preferred internet forum, but you don’t spend the same time answering others’ questions.