My Footprints on the Sands of History

About the Book

This book captures the essence of life in this world with all its whims and fancies and dreams. It takes you through a virtual tour of a common man’s life in his own words. Learn from these stories as if they are shared with you, as if over a cup of tea and warm conversation. You will learn history, facts, trivia, and interesting tidbits that will make you appreciate things in general in this world—children playing, birds chirping, thunder clapping, then a silence that will set in, never to be broken, unless perhaps in the far pasture of the Milky Way. I meant this book to be entertaining, relaxing, armchair reading, and the stories are such that you can identify with them. Also, I wanted to keep my memories alive. In doing so, you will find some factoids to be chewed on.

About the Author

Mohammad Obedur Rahman has also been known as Arif Pasha since his childhood. He has had a creative urge since his childhood. As a young boy, he designed several toys and handmade them himself by improvising with what ever material he had at hand. He made a kite with paper and sticks, and a film projector with a cardboard box and a lens. Similarly, Mohammad made toy cars from cigarette cartons and constructed small huts and shacks along with his brothers to play in. He was proud of these things, and as he grew he continued to take pride in his creations. As he grew he was excited to learn any skills to help him make things. This creative urge developed as he grew up, working with his brain as much as his hands. After high school, Mohammad wanted to be a doctor, but circumstances lead him to become an engineer instead. Eventually, he enjoyed his forty-year career as a successful engineer. He started as a young junior engineer in India, and worked for about forty years in the U.S. as an engineer. In engineering, he took pride in creating and implementing new ideas in the projects he worked on. Quite a few of Mohammad’s projects, like the Herbarium Building at Forest Products Research Lab, in Madison, Wisconsin is still there today. In addition to his Masters thesis in Engineering, Mohammad has published two books of poetry, one in 2010 and the other in 2015. Both books have been received very well in Urdu-speaking circles. He has also recorded two albums of his selected poetry. Mohammad still gets invited to participate in Urdu poetry symposiums from time to time. He also fills his time giving back to his community by volunteering at local hospitals and schools. He currently lives in Madison, WI with his wife, where he continues his passion of writing Urdu poetry. Mohammad wanted to put his life events into this book to make a record of the events in his life, for the benefit of the young readers. His philosophy in life is to apply with high intensity to any project he takes up or any goal he sets up for himself. He states that he may fail, however, he will not fail due to the lack of effort.