“Whoo! April in Faisalabad is really hot” said Zany Zoeya (ZZ to her friends) as she hopped and skipped into the apartment her and Rami were staying in while on their trip to Pakistan. ZZ’s room was a mirror of her personality. Scattered, colorful and full of fun gadgets and toys. Piled on top of the bed were her snacks, tons and tons of snacks. Sour candies, candy coated nuts and her favorite pretzels. Rami’s room was like Rami- perfect. As they arrived, they saw a sign on the door for a community WhatsApp group that everyone in the building was a part of. ZZ joined right away and introduced herself to all the residents.
She looked in the mirror and noticed that her bouncy blue curls, purple top, yellow skirt and pink sneakers looked particularly spectacular today. They entered the lounge and Rami flopped onto the couch. “There’s so much to do! Litter, factories releasing toxins in the air, polluted water, the smog- oh God, the smog…” Rami sighed loudly. She was determined to get through the exhausting list, which was now longer than her arm. Rami sat in silence for a while and then finally spoke again. “What did you accomplish today, ZZ?” she asked.
“Wyellllll…” she replied in her usual laid-back tone, “I explored the city and met so many people. I had a Nutella naan; can you believe it? Baked dough, with layers of chocolate melted inside. Perfection! Then, some of my new friends took me to a kulfi cart…that’s traditional ice cream filled with nuts. Yummo!” Zany Zoeya had her eyes closed, remembering the sights and delights of the crowded city. Because of this, she missed that Rami had turned bright red with anger.
She shouted, “Zoeya! I have been picking up litter, collecting plants, and meeting with government officials all day and you’ve been eating?! You already had five bags of pretzels before we left in the morning. Get serious!” ZZ slumped her shoulders and turned an embarrassed shade of yellow. She lay on the couch, ashamed. She picked up her lime green and forget-me-not blue phone and started smashing buttons. She knew he had to help Rami, somehow. No matter what it took. Rami would often get worked up about all she had to do, and ZZ made it her job to introduce some fun in her life. No one could work ALL the time, not even Rami.
The next day, ZZ slipped out of bed before Rami got up, which was hard because Rami woke up at like, the crack of 6:00 am every day. She went outside and everyone from the apartment building was gathered outside. ZZ had messaged them to come and help with ‘Operation Clean Up’.
Rami woke up to noise outside her window. She slipped outside to see what all the chaos was. She stood stunned, staring at the crowd that had come together outside the building. ZZ came up to her and said, “You don’t have to do everything alone, Rami. I know I have a different way of doing things, but I’m always here to help”. Rami replied, “I’m sorry, but Sustainability Suki is counting on us to do our part to stop climate change in South Asia. You know we have to finish up our project here and then head to France. I am so stressed”.
ZZ helped Rami come to the front of the crowd. She explained to everyone the mission that they were on, and they were all excited to help. She said to the crowd, “You have spent time showing me your beautiful city, and all of its wonders. We want to help you keep your city’s air and water clean, so everyone here will be healthy”. The residents were overjoyed and soon, had split into three teams.
One team, led by ZZ, planted trees on the sides of the roads and the main canal. As they walked around with plants, the locals became interested in their project, and soon the tree plantation team had grown to double the size. The second team, led by Rami, went to the government building and spent the day ordering the new air filtration towers created by Inventive Idris in China. They also ordered conversion kits, so that all the buses in Faisalabad would run on hydrogen instead of fossil fuels. Rami coordinated the delivery dates and then helped the city officials map out the best locations for the towers. This was the plan to fight the smog that took over the city every fall, causing so many kids to fall sick, schools to close and all activities to come to a stop. The last team of locals went around the busy streets, collecting litter and installing recycling bins at all street corners.
In the evening, Rami and ZZ sat with their friends in the park, munching on roasted corn covered with spicy masala. Their legs and feet were sore, hurting after a long day’s work. They had made a lot of progress, but there was more to do. The local team leaders were more than happy to continue the work, to make Faisalabad green and clean. Rami thanked ZZ for her role in making this possible, saying “ZZ, your colorful personality saved the day. I was so busy in meetings and making lists, that I completely forgot to reach out to our neighbors. You reminded me of the power of a team, and made the cleanup possible!”.
The following week, Rami and ZZ headed to Paris, when for the first time, ZZ wore clothes that Rami and everyone actually liked. She wore the colors of the French flag. A blue skirt, white top and red sneakers, all of which complimented her bouncy blue curls. Rami never again underestimated ZZ’s skills, and she became and even better sidekick than before.