I’m In Shock!

I tapped on my LinkedIn app this morning and immediately came across a post that left me stunned. My eyes grew wide and my jaw dropped as I read the headline, "Fazil Khan was a spot of sunshine in this dark world, RIP." The word "was" hit me like lightning. I just couldn't believe what I was reading.

How could this be?

I knew Fazil. We had the class, "journalism of ideas," at Columbia together. He sat behind me and once asked me, "why is your desktop so messy?" And I told him, "how could you see it from that far lol?!" And he just laughed. A couple of other times we hung out after class, sitting underneath the canopy tents and conversing about school and life. Because of our South Asian roots, we shared deep fondness for Urdu poetry and Bollywood music.

Once after our class, I decided to go with Fazil to an event for his data journalism class. On the way there, we made a quick pitstop to his apartment. His room was neat and organized. His bed was made and his desk was clean. But what caught my attention were the posters on the wall that contained some poetry, but it was written in Hindi. Because he was fluent in Hindi, he read out the couplets and explained the meaning to me. I was intrigued.

I remember talking to him about gaining fame in our professions. He told me something that I still remember today. He said, "I don't want to be so famous that everyone knows me, but enough that people acknowledge me and my work." That stuck with me.

We conversed a bit more and then headed to the event for his class which was taking place at Central Park. At the event, Fazil and I sat together as I vlogged. Overall, I had a great time hanging out with the data journalism students. That was the last time I saw Fazil but I never thought it would be the only time I'd be seeing him.

Because today I woke up to the worst news ever. I found out that Fazil, who was only 27, died in fire in an apartment building in Harlem. I'm hurt and shocked. I cannot seem to fathom how it happened. Its devastating.

Fazil was a great classmate, journalist and friend. He will be missed and I pray that his dream of obtaining recognition for his work comes true inshallah.