It's all in your head

You know, I don't get it when people say I'm "addicted to...", I really don't. When people say I can't function without morning coffee or can't go a day without smoking, I just want to scream YES YOU CAN, and you actually used to before taking this habit, so what happened??

Some of my older friends who started driving before I did got so used to having their car at all times that they now "can't take a cab"...what, did u develop an allergy to cabs or something? And then there are those who wanna lose weight and are doing really good but they're so "addicted to chocolate" that they ruin everything they do by consuming massive amounts of it. Where are your brains people?

I honestly don't know about the real drug addictions; cocaine, heroin and all of that. They mess with the blood and brain cells and cause damage beyond my comprehension (and of course the addict's), so I can't really judge on that. But as for the regular stuff that we eat, do or think everyday, I do think everyone is capable of quitting anything they're delusion-ally addicted to.

Smokers; in Ramadan, if you're Muslim, do you smoke? No. And yeah, I know you get irritated and angry and you're the nastiest person on earth, but you do it at the end. So you actually can! It's just your brain that doesn't wanna obey. So it's up to YOU to not smoke. (your irritation fades by time, and you do know that)

Coffee people; also in Ramadan, do you have your morning coffee? No. Yes, we know you're not as productive or lively, but who is? And it's not always the coffee to blame, we also don't eat, so why can't it be the food. Besides, you do work while fasting. And if you have something important to be done you do get it done. So you can actually function without coffee, you just refuse to believe that. 

Chocolate people; do you know that any person can develop allergies at any age? So that at any point in time there is a chance, regardless of how small, that you can get allergic to chocolate? Meaning that, contrary to what you claim, your body does not "need" chocolate, it's just your psychology that does! And when (ba3d el sharr) you get this allergy, what are you gonna do? Eat it and risk your health and life? I doubt it. So you're not gonna eat it, so you can live without it, am I right? Then what's all the fuss about?!

As for cab-non-takers; now you're just being spoil brats! Man up a bit!

Anyways, what I'm trying to say is... There's no such thing as being addicted to something, or not being able to live without something. It's all in your head, and what's in your head can always be kicked out. Not easy I know, but there really is nothing easy in this life, it just needs some will power and stubbornness, and I believe everyone is capable of that. 

Rethink your daily addictions people, most of them are not good for you, and you CAN do something about them.

Thank you.


By the way, there's also no such thing as not being able to live without someone.... just saying ;)

Is it enough to be a nice person?

This article was published in Campus magazine, September '12.

Winning! A very inspirational concept that has been the core axis on which the lives of some cultures revolve. Frankly speaking, I am jealous of those cultures. I won’t begin to list those countries as you can easily watch the Olympics or the scientific and technological breakthroughs in the past few decades to know which ones I’m talking about. Needless to say, this concept does NOT dominate our culture here in Egypt; at least not for most of us.

I guess the problem is that we define winning differently. It is more like; just be a good citizen! If you are a nice person, an average student or have a stable job, you’re making “not-bad” money, you’re married with kids and have an okay social life, then you’re doing great. And if you happen to play a sport on the side in which you rank 400^th on the world then you are rocking this world! We just stop asking for more, we are satisfied with much less than we deserve and much less than we can get.

Well, let’s try and see how winning gets shaped...

When we were toddlers, winning was simple, we had to take our first step or utter a word or two to feel our mothers’ pride and hear some cheering from the family. We grow up a bit and it starts turning into a cute little competition between kids in a nursery, each trying to finish his drawing or his food first for no other reason than to say: “Miss, I finished FIRST!” (Notice how the need for winning shows at such an early age). We go to school and it takes more different shapes. Some of us want to get the biggest star-shaped sticker on their hand; some enjoy the big group of kids tagging along them in the playground; while others are thrilled to go to their first sports practice and impress the coach with the striking move their daddies had taught them at home. You can think of all of that as “child’s play”, when in fact it gives a hint on how the rest of your life might turn out to be.

As the time flies, people keep changing; our values and perspectives, our priorities and most importantly how we view winning. One makes it his one and only goal to be the highest ranked academic achiever. He would dream, study, stay up late, visualize and achieve! Another wants to be a world Tennis champion. He understands that school is important but decides he’s going to be an average student if that’s what it takes to win a gold medal. He practices night and day, studies just to keep from failing, shuts out all other distractions…… and score! Others may take to music or charity or something totally unique that no one else would think of.

And then there are people who are caught in the middle, people like me actually, wanting a bit of everything, wishing against all odds to be good at each, but ending up only average. They want the high academic scores, try sports, love music and can’t let go of the regular social outings while of course attending to family and keeping their religious and spiritual level to a good level. These people are interested in almost everything they see, they are always curious to know more and they have many talents. Shamefully though, this is exactly where their problem lies. They lack focus and the right amount of drive that should get them to what/where they want. And the problem is, most of the time, they are never satisfied with what they do. They want more out of everything. They want to do many different things, and seek greatness in all or most of them. It just can’t happen!

Here is a personal experience with this dilemma:

  

I used to think it was perfectly okay just to be a nice person, with a good social life, good grades, a so-so sport and an average level in everything else. I even used to fight with my dad who was always pushing towards excelling at one specific thing and sacrificing one’s leisure time and many other things in order to be the best at it. I used to argue that I am also “winning” when I’m achieving a life balance that few people can do.

But during my late teens I started to develop a certain interest for movies and books (mostly American), that have sort of a personal challenge to the characters, whether in the sports, music, academics or a certain field of work. Really, the thrill, excitement and pride of achieving something – even in a movie – give me chills! I realized after a while that I almost never had that feeling in my own life before. Few are my times of glory, or pride of something that I did myself and that is truly worthy. It was a very disappointing feeling to be honest.  I was reminded of a famous cliché proverb, “Jack of all trades, Master of none”, or our Egyptian version, “sa7eb balein kaddab” and I give in to the fact that they are actually true.

I am rarely satisfied with what I am doing or what I have reached in life and want more of it; which of course I can’t get because my mind is wandering in a gazillion other things trying to see if there’s an opportunity there as well. It was just too exhausting to bear!

I’ll be honest, it took me a long time to figure this nice conclusion out and an even longer time to find that “thing” I might be really good at. It is not easy at all finding yourself, it’s more difficult being good at what you do, and indeed very challenging to be a real Winner at what you do. I have not yet reached that last part, far from it in fact, but I know I’ll keep trying until I get there.

I also know this: I, as a person, wanted to experience this thrill and the goose bumps that come with winning. This does NOT mean that this should be the rule. It is still perfectly normal to be a nice person and lead a good balanced life; in fact this country could really use nice people. But what I’m saying is that we could also use this little urge of wanting more from life than being average. We could use some winners here and there.

Winning doesn’t have to be against someone, it doesn’t have to be personal at all. You could win against your own self; you could win against science or against human nature (in a good way please) or you could win with or for other people. Just try to find what you’re good at and be a winner at it! 

The colors in my life..

In the Red;

is the logo of an organization I want to see become the best.

is the HUGE billboards of an overrated brand.

is the lipstick I wish but never dare to wear.

is the color of my cheeks when he looks at me that way.

is the first flowers he ever got me :)

In the Green;

is the M&M's lady shaped box on my desk - always empty :(

is my favorite TV commercials in the past few years.

is the sea of grass I love looking at; and walking, sitting and sleeping on.

is the uniform of a school I still miss, am very loyal to and wish I could go back to.

is the color some people confuse my eyes for - it's blue :)

In the Yellow;

is Mr. Smiles, the stuffed puppet that sits on my desk to cheer me up when I'm down.

is the Sun that warms me up in winter and Bronzes me up in summer ;)

is the overly bright top that I wore to work one day and received comments from literally every single person!

is the weirdly famous Sponge-freaking-Bob cartoon.

In the Fuscia;

is the jerbe I caught at my best friend's wedding.

is the lipstick I DO dare to wear!

is the high-heel shoes I'm dying to wear but will never find in my size :(

In the White (which my friend believes is not a color);

is the fairness of Bobo and Dida's baby-smooth skin.

is the tiny teeth of Zuna's goergrous smile.

is my wedding dress that I will NOT make puffy! hm!

is the simplest and most beautiful color on earth, tricky as it could be.

is the blank pages of my notebooks, waiting to be written in.

In the Blue;

is the mood I always get people out of.

is the sea and the sky and the endless staring at them.

is my favorite million-different-shaded color.

is the pen that I can't live without.

is the facebook color that I wonder how different life would be without.
is the color of my best friend's corridor wall and the purposely empty frames on it. (freaky!!)

In the Purple;

is the damned Barney thing I seriously can't stand!

is (for me) the color of sophistication!
is the dark shade of my (same) best friend's living room couch, and her lovely curtains.

is the royal color of the princess I once was and the queen I will be one day :)

The littlest things that make me happy

This post is not just about what makes ME happy, it's for everyone to recall the little things that happen to him/her on a daily basis and the things he does every once in a while that fill his heart with joy even for a few seconds.

I'm inviting you all to please do the same by commenting on this post :)

Here are a few of my own "happiest" moments;

1- Laughing till my stomach hurts.

2- When a total stranger smiles at me in pure friendliness.

3- Sitting with people, not really listening to what they say and day dreaming about my loved one.

4- Reading a good book at the beach - alone. (when the wind is not strong enough to flip the papers)

5- Sleeping on the hot grass, even better if the sprinklers open all of a sudden :D

6- Hearing that someone's saying nice things about me when I'm not there.

7- Having all my girl friends over at my house.

8- Playing with my nephew and nieces, hearing their laughter and listening to their crookedly pronounced words and jumbled up sentences.

10- Singing very passionately to songs I love, regardless of how my voice sounds. (poor listeners)

11- Getting to know new people and becoming close friends with them instantly.

12- Hearing such good news about someone I love that my eyes water.

13- Tanning.

14- Dancing. 

15- Listening to Yanni.

16- Getting positive reactions to my writing.

17- Walking barefoot on the grass.
18- Making someone laugh really hard with a simple comment.

19- Dreaming about my wedding.   

Waiting for YOUR Happiest Moments :)

Stay positive..Enjoy the little things..They are the ones that count the most.

A Letter to Parents

Your children are not your children.

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but not from you,

And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,

For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,

For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.

For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

By Gibran Khalil Gibran

From his book: "The Prophet"