Appreciate Little things in your life: Inspired by CLICK The Movie

Imagine that you have a universal remote able to control your entire universe. You can forward, rewind to different parts in your life; you can escape illness, boring meetings, repeated activities... Imagine that you can mute all the noise out there and all voices you don't want to hear. Imagine you can control everything: events, sounds, colours and all your life just by a CLICK. This Fantasia makes the daily life of an architect rolled by Adam Sandler (I am one of his fans by the way) and released June 2006. I deeply enjoyed watching the movie and kept thinking of the idea for a while. I end up convinced that CLICK was not fantasia it was very realistic. We click all the time; we miss life procrastinating. We do things while out hearts are somewhere else. We live but are we really alive?

The universal remote, that controls our universe, is obviously our mind which controls our entire life. The mind valuates and devaluates things; making some among them enjoyable and the rest extremely boring. All of this perception is a result of previous experiences; of things we have been taught and things we have come across. We decide on a daily basis which things are important and which things are not and we never come back to question our decisions. We repeat them unconsciously and we end up missing the great moments of life; we end up with similar days, similar weeks; similar years and a life missed for nothing.

Certainly, huge achievements, unique inventions and big projects are very essential to our self-esteem. But as human beings, we look always for more. Famous people, busy people, business men and international stars usually miss the simple things and admit that ‘life is in the little things’. Things that Michael Newman (Adam Sandler) fast forwarded to reach the 'good' parts in his life but he missed the whole experience.

Too often we underestimate the power of a smile, a touch, a kind word or a listening ear, all of which have the power to turn a life around ♥
-- Leo Buscaglia

Washing your face in the morning could seem a foolish answer for happiness seekers. Yet, if the mind is present, if we are conscious and not bypassing what we think are ‘unpleasant parts', if we think of people who are captivated, people who have to cross miles just to get some water, people who cannot or are not... Washing one’s face in the morning has to be a real bless.

When you open your window in the early morning and take a deep breath; see the beautiful sky and say hello to singing birds (which sings whatever happens), appreciate the moment. Really, this is what life is all about. You will win Oscars, write novels, conquer enemies but nothing is more beautiful than the tender morning breeze on your skin.

Eat your food whatever it is and appreciate it; there are people who don't have food, who die because of starvation, there are people who cannot eat, there are very busy people who miss breakfast today and the day after, then everyday. Eat slowly and enjoy everything.

When you meet people smile to them even if the road is so crowded even if there is no way you reach your work enjoy that you have a car while other people have to cross miles in order to reach a school or work. Appreciate the moment; look throughout the window and you will notice that birds are still singing. Smile to your co-workers, complement them. People are very important to our wellbeing. Some researches suggest that offline life is an assurance for a balanced healthy life while an online life style with no sufficient human interaction could cause physical misbalance and even illness.

When you come back home; a bubble shower won't ruin anything. They will still homework, uncompleted work, duties, series and a dinner to prepare. Yet, a bubble shower is a way to say thank you for your body for standing all the day long also a good way to start doing all other urgent or important things, relaxed. Do everything in your life and especially little things with joy love and appreciation.

Too often we don’t realize
What we have until it is gone
Too often we wait too late to say
“I’m sorry – I was wrong.”

Sometimes it seems we hurt the ones
We hold dearest to our hearts
And we allow foolish things
To tear our lives apart.

Far too many times we let
Unimportant things into our minds
And then it’s usually too late
To see what made us blind.

So be sure that you let people know
How much they mean to you
Take that time to say the words
Before your time is through.

Be sure that you appreciate
Everything you’ve got
And be thankful for the little things
in life that mean a lot.

Source of the Poem

My New Article on AssociatedContent: Be an Achiever, Not Only a Good Desicion Maker

The purpose of any decision making process is to come up with an appropriate choice at the right time. That is why, decision makers have to be well-informed about the subject, sharp thinkers, able to consider all possible consequences and never panic when the time left is logically not enough.

However, on a daily basis, every individual takes decisions. When we do decide to quit smoking or to enroll for workout, we have already bypassed the hardest part. After all, that is the most important part of any change process. Yet, that is not the common case. Generally, it is easy to decide which choice to make and what is the right thing to do. Making decisions could be easier for us than turning them into a reality.

No matter what is the resolution we take, deciding is a very strong state of consciousness. Yet many people turn into perfect decision makers; they decide to do millions of things, while they have never changed anything in their lives. However, the enthusiasm generated by any decision doesn't persist for the needed time to get touchable results. In other words, a decision is a very crucial moment but not a lasting one.

To Keep reading click here.

Tough Days Happen

It was a tough day. I hate it when I am the reason of my own pain. I hate not to be able to explain or answer the question : why you feel this way? I have not chosen it. It is something outside my control. Call it energy, unbalanced chakras, hormones, unreleased negative emotions, over planning... Whatever! I hate it when I lose control. But my worst day since months turned to be a blessing, eventually. I needed some time off, I needed to clear that space between my ears and ask again what really matters? Me sure, and a lot of things in the world.

I made it; I made it thru a tough day. And I smiled in the end. Yesterday and today, I felt so needy to meditate. I wanted to close my eyes and fall into me. A part of me thought I was running away and a part was convinced that I am courageous enough to drop into the ocean of my being and let myself fall.

I really need to fall; not to think or rethink of it millions of times.

I was going to cancel my engagements but I wanted to give tomorrow its chance. No day should be decided according to predictions. Tomorrow the sun will rise, the birds will sing and I can live a mystery I would regret missing. My today won't decide tomorrow. I will only let it teach me that sometimes I have nothing to do except watching it happening. I tried TV, chocolate, shower, talking to mom, talking to friends, but nothing changed. My heart kept playing his sad song.

I am definitely responsible for what I feel and what I do. However, today taught me that there are things I wouldn’t be able to control. Friends that leave and don't explain it, dreams that your mind gives up on them, peace in a world that believes wars are cheaper... Things happen, yet happen for a reason.

An Unforgettable Road

There is a road in front of our house that I used to watch when I was young. Usually, it is quite dark and in the end of it there is light. I remember during high school, whenever I felt down, I just looked at it through the window and wonder "maybe there is a way out of this". I used to be thoughtful and inquisitive. I can turn a tiny thing into a philosophical issue and find myself dealing with an endless struggle. And that road was my only hope. It was like telling "tomorrow will be better and just don’t worry everything is ok".

I guess my road was right. ‘Tomorrow’ was much better. I figured out a way to become my best friend and that changed how I perceive life. Now, I don’t watch that road frequently. I have created a road that connect me with my inner world. I am not afraid anymore of judgment, success or failure. I can handle being a human being. I am more open and more interested in life. I don’t feel any more like I am witnessing it happening. I am in now. I live literally. I don’t watch the road because I am walking onto it. And walking the road of life is different from watching it.

My Daily Happiness Commitment: An Inspirational Morning

I like to read about happiness. It makes me happyJ If my Google account has ever been checked by the CIA, agents would have found that I Google happiness, self-development more than I Google Facebook. Accordingly, I come across an interesting title: “The Happiness project : Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun”, published in 2010. Gretchen Craft Rubin, the writer, assigned a goal for every month such us adopting a healthier life style. The project aims at helping her find happiness. I have a similar one. My project started last year but it is not about monthly goals. I wanted to make every single day of my life a successful day. And successful does not mean productive or effective to me. It means happy. A happy day is about finishing things that I know will make my life better and also to try new things and treat myself like a Princess. Shortly, I try to make my life better every day.

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit." –Aristotle

I am convinced that the only way to live the life I want, is by creating a daily project. Reading, working out, writing … are habits that I am trying to bring into my life. It is easy to do something for one time, but it is hard to make it a habit. Habits are created when a change comes true.

What we chose to do on daily basis is what we chose to do on a lifetime. The only difference is that a lifetime happens once and a day happens every day. That is why; I am working on my day as a separate project. A day is not enough to read all the books that I want to read. That is true. But a day is not supposed to be enough to live a lifetime, a day is perfectly enough to live a single day.

I don’t count hours or minutes. I don’t write strict to-do-lists. Time is not wasted and never could be; we don’t own it to waste it, we don’t have it to give it up, we don’t possess it to spend it. Time is not ours; is a sort of space we live in. That is why; I shifted my focus into activities. I pick my daily activities according to three basic criteria: Fun, Self-development, and Career.

The most enjoyable and insightful part of a day is just when I wake up .That moment is the most special one, then come other moments. My new goal, sit last week, is to wake up early and have a morning spiritual ritual. I usually, practice yoga in the morning. Lately, I have been trying new exercises that mix yoga and stretching exercises and I find them very refreshing. After doing them I usually love to dance and hug life. However, the ritual I want to bring into my life is a little bit more ‘intense’. I know that ‘intense’ and ‘spirituality’ do not look like going together. But what I mean is a richer ritual which includes yoga, meditation, laughing, reading and breathing exercises. During the last week, I have been practicing waking up early. I know that a habit needs time. That is why; I call it ‘my daily happiness commitment’. Happiness has to start with a clear, enlightened mind!

حربي الخاسرة

أنت مجرّد حطام متناثر
من حولي
أنت غبار أبيض يلتصق بخطوط الشّمس
أنت لا شيء
تجلس وسط نقاط متتالية
يرسمها كاتب ساخر
٭٭٭

ألتقط ذرّات الهواء
بيدي هاتين
أطبق عليك
٭٭٭
بلا معنى
تبقى وسط زحام القدر
مرسوما على يدي
أنت فراغ
بين الماء والزيت
مجرّد هامش في دفتر الرّسم القديم
مجرّد نقطة حبر تلطخ تنورتي
٭٭٭
في مفترق الطّرق
أجدك علامة مرور منحنية
بسبب العاصفة
هذا المساء
هذا المساء
رقصت الرّيح كاسطوانة الجاز
اختبأت أنت تحت كومة من البابونج المغلي
تراقب
وسادتي
لن أختلط مواد كيميائية مجردة
لن أتعفّن من البرد
لن أجلس قطعة جبن صفراء مثقوبة
أنا مقبلة عليك
سأصب عليك مزيدا من البابونج المغلي
أنت تنطفئ
وأنا أسقط زهرة ياسمين واحدة
من الطابق الخامس

أروى الكعلي

My Dreamy Girl

I am a visualization expert. It is like I was born with it. I picture myself in all situations, doing contradictory things, taking a different role every time. I have seen myself a billionaire, a top model, a writer, a teacher, an actress, even a hotel owner...Just leave me for five minutes and I will travel the world inside my imagination. My funniest one is to picture myself in a home built of sweet and chocolate. Regardless of how much I eat, it remains the same (renewable home:) Additionally, I love colored balloons and I love flying holding a green one or a rose one. To fly is my eternal dream. I love butterflies because they can fly (and because they are cute, soft and colored. It is true they live for a limited period of time but making me smile is worth living).

Dreams are beautiful (my dreams especially). Einstein, my smartest scientist, says "imagination is more important than knowledge". A brilliant quote isn't?? Imagination is wonderland, where things are not really things. A space where physics has nothing to prove, logic finds nothing sensible, and impossible, gently, commits suicide. It is a self-created space.

I call myself a lucky girl because every time I cannot have or do something, I imagine it. I love that my eyes show me a beautiful world and I love when I close them that I can see a magic world; I can see the real me.