30 March 2012

Preparations of War

A war is never a calm prospect. The word itself is affiliated with negative thoughts and daunting ideas. Never has it been used for purposes good and bright. Always it will be used for things dark and unwanted.

The scale of war however, is very different. Some wars are fought by hundreds of thousands. Others? A few hundred. There are even those involving two and sometimes just one person. While the size of the opposing sides too vary, the essence of it all remains the same. To topple the rest, level the opponents and bury them deep underneath the soles of your boots!

Of course, to win wars you must fight wars. The battlefield is not a place for the faint-hearted nor is it meant to hold cowards and the cowardly. And to fight, you need tools, weapons. Now, most people think of weapons of war as those you see in movies and television. In actual fact, it is not. Similarly, when speaking of preparations for war, there is a high tendency for the public to think of things that directly relate to killing, shooting, severing, and bashing. When, again, it is not so...

The preparations of war go far beyond that thin piece of barrel you call a gun, longer than the sharp blades of swords, further than the farthest reach of the sniper scope. It actually lies in your hearts.

That, my friend, is why the old caliphates put a strict condition for warriors in their army. That is why anyone who does not perform qiamullail cannot be a soldier by default. Why is that so? To the logical mind, it seems irrational that praying at night be the prerequisite to joining the army. Yes, I agree. But how many things in life are logical? Not a lot I suppose...

In application to us as young adults in search of academic excellence, the same would apply. The effort to excel and ace that exam and to graduate as well as to get into a promising career is much much more than sinking your faces in books and words and formulas. This is our kind of war! And if you still think that what's needed to win it is weapons, then you're looking for the wrong tools. God helps those who helps his cause. Trust is all you need :)

28 March 2012

Soothing

Yup! That's the only word that could describe the pure pleasure I've felt earlier today. Tell me, how often do people these days stop to appreciate and I mean really really appreciate nature? Never, I suppose. That's why they throw things everywhere and anywhere they like. That's why they become easily agitated and irritated.

Have you stopped for a minute to look around you today?

If not, then I would seriously urge you to do so now. Look at the people around you and try to notice what good he or she has brought into your life. And be thankful for that. Look at the material things you own and have and wear and what manner of good it has done you. And be thankful for that too.

Lastly, if you have the chance, look beyond your limited scope of life and see, observe for a minute, just a mere minute: trees or anything green and living. You'll be amazed at how much you can actually learn from beings unmoving and inanimate.

Like today, and how it was raining heavily this morning. I see my fellow friends all running around, some cursing, most slipping trying to get away from the harmless drops of water. What funny beings us humans are I thought. Then I saw the huge trees in front of my eyes. And for a minute, I saw the trees as if dancing for pure joy for the coming of rain. In that same minute, I got to know peace and tranquility. Taught by trees. And I laughed because it made me realise how silly we are for chasing grades and As...

All those are important, but what good is an A when you don't live to learn to appreciate life. I suppose you all may not see where I'm going with this argument. But just know this: in one day, hundreds upon hundreds of us past by that same tree, but of all the hundreds, how many really saw the very thing lying in plain sight? Close to none. And that is the truth. We often look too far, we overlook what is right in front of us. For being taught to see by trees, I am soothed and I can go to sleep better with the hope of meeting the same green tree tomorrow :)

24 March 2012

Meets And Sparks Before The Dark

Life is not only what you see or make of it now. There is so much more to it than that. If you fail to consider this, than I say you and your life is forfeited. Expired.

People come from all walks of life. This fact I'm sure we're aware of. Yet, we always inevitably, unavoidably not make anything out of it. How often in one day have we pass by persons great and great, brush by persons special and unique and not realise the sparkle of their character? The inner beauty they carry within and without?

People forget. I am part people. Therefore, I too forget. But my tendency to not remember be damned! I have met, in such quick succession too, people of note and standing (though not that which is often acknowledge or noticed by society) and for that I am immensely grateful.

Call me selfish, call me stingy, I will try to keep them for myself. Trophies earned are trophies prized. And friends are the best trophies one can or ever will earn :)

These trophies are not unlike a part-finished doll. They carry defects and rough edges, a work of art partly finished, partly unformed. However, unlike a doll, these trophies grow and change, they adapt and once you learn, you learn to see that you yourself are not that different.

Imagine us, living atop shelves dusty and battered, rows after rows of tattered dolls, each holding another's not-so-soft hands, each day sewing the other, closing differences, mending faults - all in order to be perfect - but never becoming whole.

Then, one day, you find yourself tripping from the tiny foothold you've had had for years past.

Falling... Falling... Falling away from your kin...

But at peace with yourself, at peace with the rest. Because you know, and you just know, that though you look much the same as the first day we first met, they - they who sew you with threads of their flesh - are now a part of you. Blended within you. And you? A part of them.

In that final moments before you hit the ground face-first, we both pray:

"We pray for our sorrows to end, and hope that our hearts will blend. Now I will step forward to realise this wish. And who knows: starting a new journey may not be so hard, or maybe it has already begun. They are many worlds, and they share the same sky - one sky, one destiny"

-Kingdom Hearts

18 March 2012

Freedom Without The Blablablah


The trend nowadays is going towards having a better world, where everyone can live with equality being a constant companion for all. Human rights activists all over the globe are fighting for equality too. The case with Joseph Kony, for instance, is just one of the many wars for humanity being fought right now.

As to whether these cases are all genuine, I leave to each the freedom of interpretation. I truly trust that all of us has our own views on that particular matter.

Prejudices aside, today, we put ourselves in the shoes of some of these fighters to get a taste of what it means to put forth a bit of you into action. Although our fight was microscopic in comparison to the one fought by our brethren in Palestine, we fought nonetheless.

The results? Satisfying at least. To think that what was originally meant to be a 10-minute freeze suddenly and very abruptly became a huge multi-party event that is part of a global movement is a bit hard to digest. A big hand should and must be given to the organizers. I guess I need not say that the sleepless nights, tiresome and dragging meetings was not a waste.

Thanks also to the spectators, the motorists with their honking, and all friends and families alike for their never wavering support throughout the course of the event, from the very spark of idea to the finish (although the real event is still not done and over with).

What else is there to say? The word has been set and said, now it is up to the rest of the world to choose - to listen and join arms with humanity, or to shut a blind eye. But just so you know, freedom is a right for all to taste not just for the few to keep.

10 March 2012

Children

People never really admit that they wish to be kids again. They justify their being adults with series upon series of arguments. Frankly, these people are just in denial. They try to defend their position because the sad truth is they can never return to the childhood they yearn for...

Today was a gift. I, for one, was most grateful for what He has planned for me today because left to my one decision, I would not have chosen the path He had set today. Thank you Lord!

This morning, I was given a special chance to revisit my past. Amazingly, the event took place in the present. It was awesome! Details of it are for my personal keeping, of course :)

However, let me say this: kids these days, they do not know what they're missing. And I now know that eventhough I know what there is to know of childhood, it is not my place or my right to tell them kids what they do not know, you know? For if I did, I would ruin their childhood plus I don't think what I have to say would make sense to them now anyway.

Memories of my own childhood is now a blur. I still see them but vaguely so. Certainly, I'm scared that one day, I would be too far off into the tunnel of life that I won't be able to see the light of my days as a kid. The days that make me into what I am, the times that matter most. Let's pray we all live to remember those days. Because, ultimately, no matter how old you grow, there will always be a kid deep inside you fighting to get out. Sadly, we often bind the kid and oppress him up to the point we lose him forever.

I pray for my other half to be well and healthy. Because on days gloom and grey, I would have need of him. Of that I am sure. Because no matter how old I grow to be, I will always be a vessel, a mask for a boy. One child of the many children trapped behind faces creased and old.

Too Little Time

There are countless of things I'd love to share. Accomplishing that alone is enough to make me happy. I have only just recently realized that we as human beings have but one life. And life can be cut short. For one, we never know when it would end. How this stage would come to a close. How the play will come to the last scene. How the audience sees our act, and what effects it has on our spectators.

There is never enough time to share with the world. There is never enough time to do what you like most, to shape your life to your personal brand of mold, to share, to share.

In the end, we keep most things to ourselves. We take it to the grave, where together we rot and decay. Time. We all need it but funny isn't it how the more you need a commodity, the harder it is to find...

Time, let me share, at least once. Just once...

Just this once...

09 March 2012

Sleep Comes Heavy

Not all ideas need be explained for some if not most great ideas are self-explanatory :)

04 March 2012

Time As Old As Babies

The updraft was sweet, calm and cool. When was the last time it felt like this? A lifetime ago I think. It was a nice change of weather, to be able to rise on warm winds and sail over the clear seas. To be able to break free of the open prison that encased and entombed me thus long. They say a heart that hurts is a heart that works. It's nice to know mine still functions :)

01 March 2012

The Cave

Have you ever imagined what living alone felt like? I don't mean being left behind or staying home alone because I guess it's safe to say we all know how that feels. No, I mean really, really alone. Just you. No one else. On the whole planet if possible.

Now that could be interesting!

Post-apocalyptic scenario aside, I have always been intrigued by the secrets of the forests. The wild. In my eyes, the wilds hold such an amazing sense of mystery and mystique that is just so unbelievable. What is hiding in the trees? What manner of fantastic beasts - known and unbeknownst to us - is hiding among the leaves? You know that feeling that somehow, somewhere someone's watching your every move? Sure it can be scary at times especially after nightfall but I just can't help thinking that the forest is somehow alive. Breathing. Watching...

One day, and I think I'd said this many a times, I'd live to understand the wild. I would live it, and I would write of it - all the while educating myself and others with whatever knowledge the wild has to offer from its trove of secrets. All the while breathing in the inspiration the wilds has to give. All the while. All the wild.