holidays

The Easter Holiday– Part Two

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So, as I spent a few days coughing and sneezing, I decided to pause writing until I felt better. My decision was not approved by my mind. We started a fight–I insisted on pausing, while my mind, full of rage, making my headache even worse, kept pushing ideas into my head even invading my dreams. I ignored it, and when I turned my attention to other things, it surrendered.

First, I began with my French lessons. I noticed that I had been awarded a three– day Duolingo Max trial for my hard work. It offered real–life conversation practice which turned out to be such a great fun. Do you know why? Because when you’re having a bad cold, all your letters sounded hilariously different. In my case, with this terrible, awful cold, not only my pronunciation was affected, but also my hearing. So, the real–life conversation practice turned into a comical episode. We would start talking about one thing and end up talking about something totally different, with many words lost in between.

However, I was shocked by my poor performance during this real–life conversation practice. I thought I was doing very well–which is true for reading, partially true for listening, and average for writing. But when it came to actual conversations, my Arabic, English, and French clashed with each other. The outcome was so funny, so poor.

Next, I checked my reading challenge progress, which is moving at a turtle’s pace. But I don’t really mind as I am not planning to break the Guinness World Record for reading speed. So, I decided to finish the book I started at the beginning of this month: Sixpence in Her Shoe. I came across this book while reading another. Piqued with curiosity, I wanted to see how it tackled the topic of being a housewife.

The book turned out to be good and enjoyable to read though, to be honest, I skipped many parts that had so many details– sections about furniture, houses prices and locations, housekeeping, food recipes, kitchen equipment, and more aspects of life from the sixties of the last century. However, overall, it provides both amusing and expressive arguments about what it is like to be full-time housewife and why it is considered the best profession for women. Thank God the book didn’t disappoint me.

By the way, if you decide to switch off your social media accounts, say, for a few days, do you think you’d miss much?

I wouldn’t, and  this exactly how I feel about being a full–time wife and mum. I believe I haven’t missed much, but I know I would have if I hadn’t.

With hope and peace,

Nahla

holidays

The Easter Holiday

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It started off so well, with warm, sunny days, and beautiful clear nights. We went on a short break to Edinburgh. Everything was filled with exciting holiday vibes. My sons joined us as well, which made things more fun and enjoyable

We all love walking so we set our Google Maps and began exploring the beautiful, old city. It wasn’t our first visit to Edinburgh. Actually we had lived in Scotland for five years and we used to visit Edinburgh during the holidays. My sons couldn’t remember anything about it, and of course, neither could my daughter. They were like exploring the charming city for the very first time.

During the day, we wandered through the old town roads and climbed its unique, staircased alleys. I really liked these alleys for they looked like an old storybook. In the evening, we went out for dinner, but things were not as simple and smooth as they were during the day. Without a booking, you aren’t guaranteed a table. But, we managed to explore and find some family ‐ friendly spots. Then, back to the hotel, we stayed up late together, sharing funny stories and snacking until our eyelids grew heavy with sleep. My sons wished us a good night before heading off to their room.

So far, the holiday had been great.

On the second day, my middle son had a train booked for late afternoon as he couldn’t take extra days off work. We made a plan to be back to the hotel after lunchtime so he could have enough time to be get his train on time. This time, my husband didn’t join us, as some of his friends had learned that he was in Edinburgh and wanted to catch up with him.

Once again, the day had been great – busy and full of fun. It wasn’t until we were halfway back to the hotel that my middle son and I began to argue. What we were talking about was not that serious, but it was my reaction that made things worse.

I didn’t know whether it was the heat getting to me, or too much walking, or just one of the mothers’ flaws. My daughter grew emotional, feeling like she was losing all the fun of the day. My eldest son wanted to step in but I glanced at him to not interfere.

A few minutes away from the hotel, we came across a bench sheltered by a beautiful, flowery tree. Silent, the four of us sat there. ‘I’m still hungry. I’m going to get a sandwich,’ my eldest said before leaving us.

‘Now, what’s wrong with you? What’s wrong with what I was saying?’ My middle son began talking, explaing, and arguing.
Oh, my heart – I could feel how angry and disappointed he was. I listened patiently and waited until he was finished. Then, I explained my point calmly. He looked convinced, though he didn’t admit it. But, at least, in some way, we both understood that we meant well.

Back to the hotel, he grabbed his bag and came to my room. We chatted about other things until it was time to head to the train station. We hugged, and forgot all about it.

The next day, we headed to the train station. There was some delays, and the weather changed, becoming colder and windy. Once we got on the second train, my daughter received a message from her friend that upset her, but my eldest son took care of that issue. Exhaused, I closed my eyes just to relax, didn’t expect I would fell sleep. But, I did though I usually don’t fell asleep on train journeys, and my neck still hurting until today.

As the train was finally approaching our station, we got our bags and moved towards the door. There was a man waiting alongside us, coughing and sneezing, and looked awfully unwell. I couldn’t help but wonder why he didn’t remain in his seat until the train came to a stop.

The following day, I woke up with slight cold symptoms. The day after, it became much worse with fever and a cough. Today it’s feeling okay.

That’s not all about this Easter holiday – perhaps I will share more soon.

With hope and peace,

Nahla


personal thoughts

At The Feast

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“Sometimes the urgency of our hunger blinds us to the fact that we are already at the feast.”

Indeed.

How many times have you focused on what’s missing while abundance is present in your life?

Food is just a well – drawn metaphor in this quote, reminding us of how greedy and voracious humans can be.

Imagine you’re at a royal feast with a dreamy banquet as if it’s just fallen straight from heaven. Starving, you keep moving around the grand table, mainly looking for what’s missing, what’s not been served yet, or what’s already gone. In your haste, you leave – having neither tasted the various, mouthwatering dishes nor savoured their warm, wafting aroma.

Sometimes, we want something now – right now, this very moment–and we want it so much that we turn a deaf ear and a blind eye to other solutions, opportunities, exits already there in life, staring back at us. They are waiting to be seen, considered, and embraced. Only later do we realise how and why we missed it all.


On the other hand, can we think of this quote the other way round? I mean to consider that what you’re missing is so precious, so needed, that the abundance you’ve aleady accumulated and possessed as valuable treasures are just worthless extras in your life.

Imagine the same feast, the same banquet, and yourself in the same scene I drew earlier. But in this version, you savoured every dish and every drink until you’re completely full. You talk, you nod, you smile and laugh with other guests. Perhaps, you even make some good buisness deals – earning more money, gaining more possessions, and suffering more headaches. But then it’s time to leave for the feast doesn’t last for ever, does it?

As you’re leaving you glance back at the feast with a strange, nagging feeling. What’s been missing? You wonder. For the first time, just before getting into your car, you catch sight of two birds flying together out of their nest. It’s already dawn, and the fresh, soft light of a new morning begins to lighten the dark sky. How much I miss this simplicity, this inner peace, and a true companion, you whisper and drive away.

Which interpretation of the quote relates more to you? Just think about it.

With hope and peace,

Nahla

daily prompt

I Didn’t Answer This One Last Year

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Describe a positive thing a family member has done for you.


I smiled when I read today’s prompt. Do you know why? Because I remembered why I didn’t respond to it, and today, I decided to share my thoughts.

But, first, let me explain why I didn’t answer this prompt last year. That’s simply because I believe your answers would be the same as mine.

Today I just thought of the concept of family as a blood – related entity. By the way, this means I didn’t exactly alter the question but read it differently.

So, within this context, the positive thing I have been learning is that family is family. You can’t trade them, and you can’t change them either. You can’t just wake up one day and decide to erase them from your life no matter what hurt or disappointment they may cause you. You can do that with strangers, because nothing ties you together. But, you can’t do the same with your parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, and grandparents.’They are family,’ you will say every time you feel you’ve had enough, right?

Out of this positive blood-tie bond, another positive strategy is born that can help you avoid non-essential problems: It is the art of ‘Mind Your Own Business.’ According to this strategy, you don ‘t ask too much, you don’t play the peacemaker when you are not involved in the scene, and you don’t volunteer to give advice or suggestions if you were forced into the scene. In the end, family tends to overlook what others say, but not yours especially if they didn’t approve your participation because, simply, you’re family too.

With hope and peace,

Nahla





personal thoughts

A Bittersweet Life Lesson

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There are beautiful lines in Arabic that explain why some people choose to disappear from your life, and why you shouldn’t ask about their whereabouts. I’ve just read them a few days ago, and here’s my translation:

If they were honest with you, they would have stayed,
If they were missing you, they would have come back,
If they were angry at you, they would have complained,
And if they truely loved you, they would have wept.
But sometimes, things are just like that.
Those who have chosen to disappear from your life are the ones who have used you to their full capacity.

Aren’t these lines so true?

But don’t worry, because some people come into your life to give you bittersweet lessons that help you grow into a better person.


With hope and peace,

Nahla

personal thoughts

They Asked Her Why …

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They asked her why she said ‘no’ to his marriage proposal.
‘Because he’s so poor—money is all he has,’ she said, smiling.

I read this very short story once, and isn’t it a beautiful brief one that offers priceless advice to young girls and women around the world.

Say that’s vague idealism, that’s madness, or that’s out-of‐place -and- time wisome. Still, it’s such genuine advice — an ultimate truth! Money alone doesn’t make real happiness.

Just read it carefully. It simply means not to marry only for money. Yes, those who seek only money in life may have it multiplied, trilionied, and live the life of their dreams – or even a life that surpasses all possible dreams. Yes, they can buy the whole world, govern it, and control it. Yes, they can look young, enjoy perfect health, and create robots. But all of it can vanish in the blink of an eye, as can the life around it. Money without sanity, without communication, without understanding, without wisdom — and above all, without love can’t create a strong bond or a healthy marriage. 

One old Egyptian movies dramatised this idea beautifully. The hero was an illiterate – completely illiterate – but a very smart garbage dealer (I’m not sure if this is the right word for his profession but he owned something like a waste dump centre) He made a fortune at a young age, and his wealth grew year after year. One day, a beautiful young lady crossed his path, and without wasting any time, he began his investigation. He found out that she was in love with a poor but highly educated teacher, and he also knew about her dream of becoming a doctor. He knocked straightaway on her parents’ door, asking for her hand. Dazzled by both his money and his promise to fund her medical qualification, she agreed to marry him.

Halfway through the movie, the poor girl became a famous doctor, Her husband made more and more money but remained the same illiterate garbage dealer. Their married life turned into a distant life, just like that of two distant relatives who hadn’t met, rarely talked to each other, and never shared any warm feelings.

One day, the husband decided to change things by all means when he discovered he was dying. He was the one who made his wife a famous doctor, and believed he had the very right to be a part of her life untill the end. He began visiting her clinic, joining her meetings, and waiting for her every night. Yet,things went from bad to worse. He couldn’t understand anything about medicine or even understand his wife. She hated him, hated his money, and hated her life, until she finally asked for a divorce. But it was too late. The last scene was for the wife, screaming and crying, full of guilt because she hadn’t tried even once to help her husband as he had helped her. And, she hated herself for marrying only for money.

Now, do you still think that’s all just vague idealism?

With hope and peace,

Nahla

personal thoughts

Is That Possible?

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As usual I was scrolling through Instagram last night when I came across a post that, in my view,  was quite strange. The vlogger’s video briefly showed his ‘Loving All’ motto. Do you get it? Let me explain more.

Throughout the video, the vlogger was holding different posters, which he changed one after the other. Each poster has one main sentence, beginning with ‘ I love’ and  the rest of the sentence referred to different things — different, but not necessarily opposites. Honestly, I don’t doubt his good intentions or his attempt to spread kindness and love. The problem is that my mind couldn’t understand his ‘loving all’ logic. Let me give you an example that, by the was way, wasn’t in any of his posters, but similar to the idea of his examples.

Suppose one day, you pass by a person holding a sign which read : “I love pork. I love halal food.” I don’t know how would you react. Perhaps, you wouldn’t even notice him or his sign, and keep on walking. I would definitely walk on too, but, to be honest, I wouldn’t forget about the sign.

If the person were a Muslim, I would wonder why on earth he was saying that, considering the whole world knows that Muslims don’t eat pork. If he was not, I would first wonder whether he understands that this combination is impossible? Then I would wonder why he didn’t just use ‘eat’ or ‘can’ instead of ‘love’. Love is such a strong word, full of feelings, whereas ‘like’ is simpler, more casual,  right? To love something means to accept all of it, and if you accept all of it, it’s impossible to accept what can’t be a part of it? This is why the two sentences together seem awkward. Does this make any sense? I hope it does.

I love it when I go to London, which doesn’t happen often because of the distance. I like to watch people of different sizes, colours, and cultures crossing the same road together. They probably don’t know each other, don’t have to love each other, but there some sort of understanding and respect filling the air around them.

Can a person love everyone and everything? Is it possible to repeat ‘Amen’ to everything, even without listening ? But then, what would you become? And, where would you stand?


With hope and peace,



Nahla

personal thoughts

A Well – Furnished Mind

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Having a well- furnished mind is usually interpreted within academic qualifications. But is that the only method to furnish and nourish our minds? Take your time to think about it. I did take mine while reflecting on my own experience

You have to go to school to learn, then to universities to earn a degree, and if you can afford it, pursue the higher level of postgraduate studies. At each stage, our minds are expected to grow and develop — and they do, unless incidents like cheating and plagiarism are involeved. That’s why education has become the most powerful weapon both nations and individuals strive to possess. And, this is how I have been raised, following this strategy. Still this strategy is not the only method to effectively furnish your brain.

How did you feel when you finished your academic studies and stepped into the real world? Did you feel as if you had entered a new phase of practical education taught through real life experiments in real life labs? Did you feel this confrontation shaking you to the core because, in most cases, you were not ready to learn more or to abondon what you had already spent years learning. That’s exactly how I felt after my graduation.

I have learned and am still learning more from life — with its people, its places, its changes, and its ups and downs. I’ve learned from reading,  imagination, writing, and blogging. All of  these things and more have nourished and furnished my mind. You know what?  I really feel blessed to be a full — time mother, because it has given me more time to become the person I truely like to be.

With hope and peace,

Nahla

memories

Feelings And Eyesight

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Changes in your eyesight do not really imply medical problems. Sometimes, they can be affected by how you feel and think.

A few years ago, my daughter didn’t feel happy in her class because her best friend left the school ‐ just like that, without even a short notice. There were other friends, but she couldn’t feel the same happiness as if  something was missing everyday at school. Then, one day, as we were walking back home after school, she told me she couldn’t see the board well. I let a few days pass while observing her reading and writing at home. All seemed fine. Yet, she insisted that she couldn’t see well at school.

I arranged an appointment at the optician’s, and to my surprise, he prescribed glasses for my daughter. Honestly, I didn’t trust his diagnosis. He seemed miserable himself, and imapteint too. I could feel my daughter’s nervousness during the eye test. But, sometimes, you can’t just disagree with the doctor with a reference based on your intuition.

My daughter chose the frame and colour of her glasses, feeling so excited about her new accessory. The following day, she took them to school, and put them on once or twice. The day after, she left them at home. By the third day she had forgotten all about them.

“I see better without them, Mama,” she said and hid them in her desk drawer. On the following year, at her annual eye test check, the optician was such a cheerful person with a genuine smile. My daughter felt relaxed during the examination, and her eyesight was perfect.

“Have you been wearing your glasses regularly,” the optician asked.
‘No,” my daughter quietly replied, feeling a bit guilty.
“Well, it doesn’t happen often, but you don’t need glasses anymore,” the optician gave the news as if announcing the marvellous success of a hardworking student.

“Really,’ my daughter gasped, her face beamed with a beautiful smile.

I smiled too, wondering whether it’s true that mothers have a sixth sense -that intuition commonly known as gut feelings.

Whether you’re a child or a grown-up, your eyesight can be affected by what’s hidden deep within your heart and mind. Some might lose their eyesight because of grief, yet the same ones might also regain it through the power of joy. There are no hopless cases, but hope for every case. It’s the cause of the problem that might need treatment, more than the problem itself.

Don’t they say that a healthy diet and a walk outdoor in the open, wide beauty of nature can improve eyesight? I couldn’t agree more, becuase they actually can change your mood, brighten your day, and calm your spirit. This is a simple recipe that might help you take off your glasses every now and then.

With hope and peace,

Nahla

personal thoughts

Without Why?

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The rose is without why
She blooms because she blooms
She does not care for herself
Asks not if she is seen

Isn’t this a beautiful poem?

And, yes, why ask why when the answer shines clear like daylight in summer?

And, why ask why when others might not see you, yet you know you do exist?

And why ask why nobody cares when you believe there’s a God who always cares?

Do we need to give reasons, seek appreciation, or crave validation to exist in this world?

But we do exist, and all we need is to be ourselves. In other words, all we need is authenticity to find our peace of mind, our beauty, and our own journey in life.

Now, do you know why the rose lives without why? Or, perhaps, you have a different interpretation of the poem?

With hope and peace,

Nahla