Posts Tagged ‘Life’

  • 05 Apr

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    Review/Perspective: “Eat, Pray, Love”

    0

    Straight off, I was not totally impressed with the book. That is not to say I do not share an empathy with the subject matter. I see a lot of myself in the search Elizabeth goes through.

    I am all for being open-minded, we will never know everything and there are many who know much more than we do. We do need to let go of all the petty things we cling to, what is really important? If you haven’t figured it out, what’s important to you right now? Nobody is ever fully right or fully wrong, there’s good and bad in everything and sometimes it’s only a matter of how you are looking at things.
    Eat, Pray, Love: Book

    I still can’t figure out why the book did not gel with me very well. I have read many self-help, zen, search/journey for the truth books and this one does not particularly stand out for me as one of the top ten. Maybe it’s only because of relevance, but I also feel there was something in the story which just does not click with me. I imagine it would with women, and especially women living in western societies, a whole lot. There may be oceans of relevance and mirrored reflections of thoughts, feelings and experiences.

    Given all that, I love the journey itself. The intent behind it, the search for the truth, for something greater and the realisation that it starts with one’s self. Only one’s self, and it can not begin anywhere else. Outside holds no answers if the inside has not been reconciled. Elizabeth’s journey is just one of those journey’s and I can say it is one of many, by countless citizens of earth with varying resources who will suck up meaning from the greatness of mountains to the simplicity of children playing with marbles on a street corner.

    The movie is coming out in the last third of this year , and it looks pretty good. I do think Julia Roberts is a great choice to play Elizabeth in the role and I suspect I will feel better about the movie than the book. Which would be the second time for me ( I always thought the Godfather movie trumped the book).

    Above all, I love how the book left me with a feeling of confusion within myself, and that is ALWAYS a great place to start. Never doubt that. Go read the book for yourself, and when it comes out, watch the movie. There is a nugget of something great and personal in all of it.

  • 22 Feb

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    Friend

    1

    Where were they when you was walking through the dark path of sorrow and unhealthy self-flagellation for your failures? The ones who laughed with you way back when you were at primary school, at high school and at university. The ones who rode the tide across the happy days, sucking on the smiles.

    And now when the darkness has come, after the glory days… when you hit that hard wall of reality and suddenly nobody’s smiling because nobody’s there. Except you, and you’re not smiling either. All you see is this mountain to climb, a long road ahead with little provision. All you have is you.

    Does it make you wonder then, that your REAL friends, even those who did help a little, could only go so far… does it not make you wonder at the fabric of your life? Cloth stitched with decision after decision and it’s all up to you. You, alone, can take the action necessary and you alone should accept the consequences, the responsibility. Accept it. Take the first step up that mountain, on that lonely road.  The others, the ‘friends’, will follow you. But you have to lead yourself, and eventually them too, to the sunlit path of smiles and laughter.

    You, are ultimately your only friend.

    Recognise.

  • 29 Jan

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    Stop Screaming.

    2

    He’s healthy. His mother loves him.  He came into this world wet, beautiful and loud. Like most babies are. He glows in his tired mother’s arms… smiles and kisses everywhere. Love fills the room.  He looks around his new world, he lives here now. This is life and his begins in noise, love and heat. 

    I wish I could tell him not to be afraid of anything. That everything will be okay. I want to tell him that he needs to pay attention, though.  That sometimes he’ll feel just like the first time he came into this world. Change is scary. Change is life.  He’ll scream again. Out of desperation, frustration, anger. He’ll also scream out of joy. Emotions run high and rampant and he will ride them, everywhere.

    <this is just the beginning>

  • 04 Sep

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    The Night-Time Prayer Fiasco

    6

    Was treated to an interesting bit of information just before taraweeh prayer (the special night-time Ramadan prayer) yesterday. Apparently some of the Muslims were being attacked with eggs while leaving the mosque after the taraweeh prayer. A black car (didn’t get all the details) driving around the Epsom mosque and blasting people walking home with eggs. Now that I think back, I was attacked as well… but they missed me.. I remember hearing a ‘Smack!’ while walking home, but they missed me… so I carried on walking… I remember a black car though.

    Anyway… I have to give the Epsom Police here major props. The mosque executive members contacted the police gave them details etc. and within 24 hours of the report, the police commissioner (yeah the top dog) knew about it, placed cops outside the mosque, had unmarked cars parked on the road around the mosque, tracked down the car and arrested the perpetrators.

    That bit of info blew me away… coming from South Africa where you hardly ever hear of cops working so fast, let alone catching any perpetrators, ever (well regarding crimes that happen particular to you) anyway. All I remember thinking was that I heard the one day that this was and the next day it was over. Guys caught, cops outside. Problem Solved. Damn… that was FAST.

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  • 20 Aug

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    How to Live a Better Life.

    1

    Right.. now the list below is not something to look at say it’s really ‘cute’ and ‘true’ and forward it onto 30 other people. This is for you if you’re reading this. Do what you want to with it, but most importantly… JUST DO IT!

    1. Take a 10-30 minutes walk every day. And while you walk, smile.

    2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.

    3. Sleep for 7 hours.

    4. Live with the 3 E’s — Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.

    5. Play more games.

    6. Read more books than you did the previous year.

    7. Make time to practice meditation, yoga, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.

    8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 & under the age of 6.

    9. Dream more while you are awake.

    10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.

    11. Drink plenty of water.

    12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.

    13. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip.

    14. Forget issues of the past. Don’t remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.

    15. Don’t have negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.

    16. Realise that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.

    17. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.

    18. Smile and laugh more.

    19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don’t hate others.

    20. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

    21. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

    22. Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.

    23. Don’t compare your life to others’. You have no idea what their journey is all about. Don’t compare your partner with others.

    24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.

    25. Forgive everyone for everything.

    26. What other people think of you is none of your business.

    27. GOD heals everything.

    28. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.

    29. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

    30. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.

    31. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

    32. The best is yet to come.

    33. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

    34. Do the right thing!

    35. Call your family often.

    36. Your inner most is always happy. So be happy.

    37. Each day give something good to others.

    38. Don’t over do. Keep your limits.

    39. When you awake alive in the morning, thank GOD for it.

    40. Don’t be more calculative in your life for all things.

  • 17 Jun

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    Stealing Second Base

    0

    “Progress always involves risks. You can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first.” – Frederick Wilcox

    This is an aspect of all initiatives to move forward. You can’t get ahead if you’re still stuck where you are. You can’t expect anything different or better if you keep doing what you’re doing. First step of the change is to recognise where you are and make significant changes, either the environment you find yourself in, or the people that surround you, the habits you have, the things you keep on doing. Recognise it and change it.

    It’s not easy and it is a challenge. That’s the point. If you’re comfortable, that’s when you should be worried. That’s when you get hit out of the blue with the unexpected. If you don’t wake up yourself to the reality that things keep changing and you need to change with them, Life will Smack you upside your head and then you’ll be forced to change, which is even harder then if you chose the path yourself.

    Ready? Go.

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  • 18 Jul

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    Happy Birthday Madiba!

    0


    I had posted a full thought piece at Instablogs entitled
    A Lesson on Madiba’s 90th Birthday

    In summary…

    Mandela was a great man but he was also an ordinary man, by his own admission, who found himself in extraordinary circumstances. His values shown throughout his life and his struggle against apartheid. We too face situations which are extraordinary and show us for what we truly are. So let’s strive to be the best human beings we can be and strive for the greatest ideals so that when we are faced with a situation, our truth will shine.

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  • 26 May

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    If You Could Spend 10 Bucks to Make Someone Smile, Would You Do It?

    7


    Of course you would. (If not… well, you should.)

    On the weekend as I was parking my car and got out to pay for the parking, this car guard came up to me and offered his assistance, he was all smiles and courtesy. I didn’t have the change for the parking meter so he stuck with me and took me to a store where I could get the change I needed. I only needed R2 for the parking and then said to myself “What the hell… he definitely needs it more than I do and he was really helpful.” So I gave him R10 and at that moment I saw the most sincere smile ever and heard the mot gracious thanks I probably have ever received. It was more than just the expression on his face and the words, I just felt it.

    A little later it hit me… it was just R10. Something I wouldn’t miss if I lost it and yet it meant the world to this one person. This has been an age old tale and has happened in a myriad of circumstances across the globe, across the ages and yet it never loses its impact when it happens. The measure of things. The way seemingly minuscule things, according to us, affect the world around us in the most profound way. It’s not limited to money either, a thank you, a smile, opening the door for someone, complimenting someone, all these have the most profound influence on people and our environment.

    This phenomenon has been proven scientifically by the way. It’s called Chaos Theory, the main point of which is that the smallest of actions can have the greatest of consequences… a butterfly flapping its wings in South Africa can cause a tornado in Hong Kong (there’s an ad based on this for an investment company talking about investment potential… clever.)

    I think I digressed a bit from my main point which is that we’ve lost this concept in our modern technology-driven world. We rarely pay attention to how our seemingly meaningless actions are transforming the world around us and affecting the people we interact with. Worse, we rarely do the little things which make small differences in our environment and lift the spirits of those around us in even the smallest way.

    We need to change that. So start today. Smile at someone, thank someone. Commit some act of random kindness :)

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  • 04 May

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    F**k Indian Durban, Part 2

    5

    A continuation from my previous post on the same subject.

    I have had to deal with yet another phenomenon of the gossip/blabber-mouth/immature personages who invade every space and infect it, in this ever-increasing choke-hold of the Indian community in Durban. Maybe I should be more specific and tie it down to the Muslim Indian Community here, but I’m sure it’s all over the place.

    I can’t believe someone around mid-twenties would be able to spread such absolute shit like this, and to the detriment of another human being’s reputation. What I can’t understand is this, doesn’t the new generation see through all the crap and try to better themselves and their communities instead of just regurgitate the ugly old habits of the previous generation? What ever happened to rebellion and questioning things and moving forward?

    All I see in this community is the spreading of the same shit via new technology… unlike the old days when this used to happen through kitchen windows and in women’s circles, the barriers have been shattered and now boys and girls across age ranges are becoming purveyors of a culture of back-biting, slander and bitchiness using Web 2.0 Technology.

    I have managed from the previous post to ignore such things and try and correct them whenever I can, but when people’s reputations get tarnished by information you have provided in privacy… and you have to hear about it from 3rd an 4th parties…. That is unforgivable. But then again, how could I be so naive to expect anything else from this cultural habit which I’ve seen fester and contaminate lives as soon as I set foot here.

    I keep thinking… what would it take for these people to see what they’re actually doing? and how absolutely full of shit it is and the damages it causes and the lives it leaves in ruins… divorces, family feuds, etc. all stem from this same problem… A culture of talking behind other people’s backs, having a one-up-manship on everyone else, My family/clan/caste is better than yours, doing the other man down.

    Fuck them.

  • 24 Apr

    Posted by
    Muhammad


    Category

    The Unhappy Person

    1

    “The unhappy person resents it when you try to cheer him up, because that means he has to stop dwelling on himself and start paying attention to the universe. Unhappiness is the ultimate form of self-indulgence. When you’re unhappy, you get to pay a lot of attention to yourself. And you get to take yourself oh so very seriously.” – Tom Robbins

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