A Lasting Treasure

Pearls take up to 24 hours to be cultivated. After traveling 2,000 nautical miles, divers have to dive 20 meters as their boat drifts along with the waves.

After all that hard work, they’ll guard the pearls until they reach the shore. No matter how many waves knocked them down they dont let the pearls go. After the long search they found what they’re looking for and know exactly how to appreciate it.

Its not the easiest job but the outcome makes all the hard work worth it.

If it was up to me, I would rather have one broken pearl than a collection of a hundred empty sea shells.

Sadly, that’s not always the case. Sometimes people think of these pearls as a prized possession. Some kind of trophy for their hard work. And when they reach the shore, they lay the pearl down and wander through all the empty sea shells. They’re beautiful to look at but they all look almost the same.

Being someone’s lasting treasure is more important than someone’s object of satisfaction.

Yet sometimes its easier to hold on to what satisfies us temporarily.

Until we find that one pearl. Even if its slightly broken, or perhaps untouched, it has more character and true beauty than the sea shells that are scattered all over the shore.

And we cant do much but hope that when we find that one pearl that we’ll guard it with our hearts and cherish it for the rest of our lives.

For those who already found their pearl, I know they understand its rarity and the ever lasting appreciation that it deserves.

And for those who haven’t yet, remember not to settle for a sea shell because somewhere deep in the ocean there’s a pearl waiting to be found.

A Reason, a Season or a Lifetime

I don’t think that things happen by coincidence and that is mostly because I believe in synchronicity.

I believe that we attract people,places or events to ourselves because they are meant to take us to a higher consciousness.

Aleksandra Lachut once said ”We meet people for a reason, a season or a lifetime.”

It could be good or bad. It could be a curse and other times, a blessing.

Sometimes you meet someone for the first time and feel something so different the moment you look at them. Its an attraction and could be physical, emotional or mental. Its this indescribable feeling and  its as if you have been waiting for this person to come into your life. Maybe they won’t be around for very long, but long enough to teach you something. Or perhaps the other way around.

When a person comes into your life for a reason it’s because you asked them to. Not literally, obviously. You had a need and they came into your life to fulfill that need. It could be to help you emotionally, physically or spiritually. You feel fulfilled and happy because you somehow prayed for that. But then they say or do something to bring that relationship or friendship to an end. No matter what it is you feel afterwards, you have to keep in mind that this person came into your life for a reason. They fulfilled your need or you fulfilled theirs and thats all it is.

Then there are those who come into your life for a season. It is usually because it is your time to learn about something new. Or grow in a spiritual,emotional or physical way. They can make you laugh or cause you pain, teach you something new, or send you to a more peaceful state of mind. Its just for a season and then they’re gone.

When someone comes into your life for a lifetime they’re there to teach you life long lessons. It could be a parent, a sibling or a friend. They’re there to teach you enough so you can grow and build your own emotional or spiritual empire. Your job is to love that person the way they love you and build a solid relationship based on what you’ve learned so far. It could be from them or others who came into your life for a short period of time, as well as from the experiences around you that inspire you enough to learn a lesson.

Try to learn as much as you can from the people that come into your life. The ones that go and the ones that stay. Don’t forget to cherish as many moments because you won’t know how long they’ll be in your life for. You also might not go through those same experiences again.

Whatever it is, always remember not to take someone for granted. Even if they’re in your life for a short time and even more so if they’re around for longer.

Civil Marriage: Our Civil Right

I’m an agnostic who respects every religion out there as long as its followers don’t force that religion on me. If I, or any other person around me, no matter what their religion might be, wants to get married to whomever they want, they should have the freedom to do so.

And just because the Lebanese government and society expect me to marry within a particular religion or sect doesn’t mean it’s going to happen.

The amount of times I have heard my friends, Muslim, Christian or Druze, discuss interfaith marriages is countless. And almost every time without fail we end the conversation wishing civil marriage was accepted in Lebanon.

If you want to be an extremist go ahead because no one is going to try and stop you, at least not the generation that I am a part of. Not because we are too weak to fight but because we are strong enough to respect your thoughts on religion and are able to live with you peacefully.

So, if we are so accepting how come you can’t do the same?

Don’t we have..

the right to express our thoughts on civil marriage just like you?

the right to marry whoever we want, instead of someone who the only thing we have in common with is religion?

We don’t reject your views on marriage so why reject our views on interfaith marriage?

We are supposed to look up to you for guidance but all we see is discrimination.

You should be teaching us how to accept those around us with the ultimate respect, no matter what the circumstances might be but instead you choose to plant a seed full of hate and disdain.

True leaders focus on what their citizens want.

So instead of putting the Civil Marriage law on the side to focus on your political campaigns..

we kindly ask you to put your political campaigns on the side and focus on what truly matters.

Our civil rights.

Crossroads

Some days I forget to sit down for a minute to breathe and look at what is happening in my life or around me.

We become so blinded by trivial nonsense to the point where we lose track of things. And as much as it is fun to let go and let life take its own pace, you eventually arrive at a crossroad. You don’t know how you got there. Perhaps you were so induced in some realm that is beyond you.

So where do you go?

Which road do you choose?

After all, you are the reason why you are here. You are the only one that knows why. People could try to influence you but it is your decision to reject or accept that influence. No one can force you to do anything and besides, thats an awful excuse to use.

Not with people (because  no matter what you say it would be their choice to believe you.)

But with yourself.

We always seem to find ourselves at a crossroad at one point or another. Its like we failed to learn to choose wisely from the beginning. We try to learn something new every day but is it our fault that we tend to forget about a few lessons here and there? or perhaps we choose to forget, in order to take a certain decision that will bring us temporary satisfaction.

So maybe we’re not here just to live and learn.

Maybe we live to learn.

Merry Christmas

I am Christmas-fied.

A Christmas lunch here, a Christmas dinner there. A drink here, a shot there. Food..food and more food.

I’m pretty sure I over did it this year and that is probably because I haven’t had a proper family Christmas in over 3 years.

Anyway, this is just a quick note to say..

Thank you to those who invited me over or out for Christmas!

Thank you for the Christmas gifts!

And for those I didn’t get to see, I hope you had a very Merry Christmas wherever you were.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Every day for the past week, I made a promise to myself to give thanks to at least one person a day.

On the eve of thanksgiving, I cant help but think of not just one but all the people that I am thankful for.

When you go through so much you feel like you’re on this unstoppable roller coaster and you don’t know when the ride operator is going to pull the lever and stop this ride.

As you get closer to each turn you begin to wonder if it will be worse than the one before.I guess thats the hardest part about it. You just close your eyes, hold on to the bar handles as hard as you can and hope that it will eventually slow down.

But I didn’t do that this time. I chose to wake up and look around me,only to find the most amazing people sitting on the same coaster car. Not because they were going through the same experiences but because thats what a family does.

“Blood makes you related, but loyalty makes you family” -Unknown

I am thankful for everything you have done and for being a part of my life.

Thank you for your loyalty. Thank you for being my family!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tents

When I was 6 years old my family and I moved to Lebanon. Since I was so young it wasn’t really my job to pack so I can’t remember if I forgot anything significant behind. I’m just happy my parents didn’t forget this tent they bought me. It was blue and red with yellow trimmings.

I knew how to build and take it apart it on my own because it was made for kids and probably because of practice.

Whenever I wanted to be on my own, happy or sad, I’d run up to my room,take it out of its blue case and run to the balcony. I’d set it up, and crawl inside of it with a pillow in hand.

I guess it was some sort of hiding place that I didn’t tell anyone about. Well, until now.

One night I set up the tent, rolled up its little curtains, tied them to the side and laid down. As I looked up at the sky I saw a shooting star for the first time. Sadly, I didn’t make a wish but I felt some sort of unconditional love towards the stars, and it was a feeling that I have never felt before.

I’d love to crawl up into that tent tonight, tie the sides up, and wait for a shooting star. This time with a bottle of Jack instead of a pillow.

And if I happen to see a shooting star I know exactly what to wish for this time.