i'm not sure whether i was looking forward more to nov 3 or nov 29 this year! i was very keen to blog about the 29th, more just to see the date on the blog than anything else perhaps! as fate would have it, i had no computer access that day, being on a surprise weekend trip with H to celebrate our joint birthday :)
one of my teenage fantasies was to marry a fellow saggitarian. i recall hours spent in the school library browsing through a huge almanac on zodiac signs.. the page regarding saggitarius couples was perhaps the most worn out!
not only is H a fellow saggitarian, but we actually have the same birthday- if only all my fantasies came alive so sweetly ;)
it was a wonderful day, a wonderful weekend; thank you H. and for H, thank you fate!
03 December 2010
24 November 2010
connected
some time ago, i was having a conversation with ck regarding what it means to be 'home'; in (semi) jest, i noted that recording what makes me feel at home here, or what makes our new apt into a home would make for interesting blogging. coincidentally, a few days later, after a long and impatient wait (on my part), we finally got the internet set up at home. i don't consider myself to be all that much of a techie or online freak, but when i saw my persona-fied browser open up with all my bookmarks and history, i was literally floating with happiness. sitting with my laptop on the bed, i felt like i was finally home.
being online the last few days has made me feel much better, less homesick. i am able to communicate with my friends and family now, read the news, catch up on my fav blogs and websites; all of this adds to my feeling of being home. this is a state of mind, nothing to do with possessions and material objects. those have their own place in making our apt into a home, but this sense of connection is far more important at present :)
being online the last few days has made me feel much better, less homesick. i am able to communicate with my friends and family now, read the news, catch up on my fav blogs and websites; all of this adds to my feeling of being home. this is a state of mind, nothing to do with possessions and material objects. those have their own place in making our apt into a home, but this sense of connection is far more important at present :)
07 November 2010
playing house
i'm married!! it's been less than a week, but the past few days in our new apt have been so busy and filled with the mundane that i almost don't remember being a recent bride!
i was worried about how the wedding would pan out, but alhumdolillah, everything went well. there were the usual hiccups and dramas and tensions, but overall H and i both enjoyed ourselves. i was the most nervous right before the nikah, but once that was over, i calmed down and everything went smoothly. i recall sitting in the thaal in hk and listening to various not so fun wedding experiences and memories; i am glad and thankful that my memories are all happy and fun :) in fact, compared to my initial month in india, the period of the wedding was far better! in the words of p and jh, it is no surprise, as i am generally happier when H is around :P
as we settle in to our new place, and get used to sharing living space, i feel like i am playing at house! i cannot believe that we are in fact married; that i am married! everything is so new and novel..
24 October 2010
the road not taken
i find myself standing in awe at the road that lies ahead of me. this is a place i never thought i would arrive at. i cannot say that the reasons no longer matter, but their place is definitely not in this post. or on this road in fact; i would like to leave them behind, bury them and let them dissipate into the earth. i don't want to be burdened with their weight any longer.
i want to be as light and free as a bird, i want to skip and hop my way along this road. i suddenly realize that shedding the weight of that ever present burden, as well as shedding my old life and skin, opens the way to so many new possibilities and experiences. i am excited, nervous, giddy, terrified and humbled all at once. i have no idea how this journey will pan out, but i am sure there will be many twists, turns, highs and lows. i will deal with them as they appear; better yet, WE will deal with them together! for now, i am simply thrilled to be on our way :)
i want to be as light and free as a bird, i want to skip and hop my way along this road. i suddenly realize that shedding the weight of that ever present burden, as well as shedding my old life and skin, opens the way to so many new possibilities and experiences. i am excited, nervous, giddy, terrified and humbled all at once. i have no idea how this journey will pan out, but i am sure there will be many twists, turns, highs and lows. i will deal with them as they appear; better yet, WE will deal with them together! for now, i am simply thrilled to be on our way :)
12 October 2010
cocoon
reading and writing are the two things that (unsurprisingly) are becoming my new anchors in this foreign environment. i am enjoying 'the bastard of istanbul' by elif shafak, which i picked up as a happy coincidence at the second hand bookstore before flying. i had first come across the book early this year when i returned from my three month exile, and while it intrigued me, i ended up choosing a far more down to earth novel. seeing it at the bookstore now, before my new journey, i knew i had to take it with me! (an aside: i don't frequent the second hand bookstore much, but whenever i'm there, i'm always happy with my finds :)
i shall perhaps write a separate post on shafak's novel, but for now i just want to note that the characters and the history engage me, and not only fuel my desire to read more, but to write. this ties in to my increased journalling, as a way to not just record this crazy and momentous time, but also to make sense of things, to feel a semblance of control.
i want to write myself a cocoon, create a world where there are clear distinctions between grey, white and black, where princesses really are rescued by their princes, where the wave of a fairy godmother's wand is enough to ensure glamour and glitter and beauty, where happiness and affection remain unmarked by toil, heat and pressure. surely i can write my way to a new life, complete with the characters and attributes i desire?!
i shall perhaps write a separate post on shafak's novel, but for now i just want to note that the characters and the history engage me, and not only fuel my desire to read more, but to write. this ties in to my increased journalling, as a way to not just record this crazy and momentous time, but also to make sense of things, to feel a semblance of control.
i want to write myself a cocoon, create a world where there are clear distinctions between grey, white and black, where princesses really are rescued by their princes, where the wave of a fairy godmother's wand is enough to ensure glamour and glitter and beauty, where happiness and affection remain unmarked by toil, heat and pressure. surely i can write my way to a new life, complete with the characters and attributes i desire?!
11 October 2010
serenity
now that is one emotion/attribute i sorely lack. and it shows. and it bothers me that everyone around me seems to possess so much of it. where can i queue up for some??
i read posts by moms of their infants, and living with a one and a half year old, i wonder how they get past the daily grind of not enough sleep, exhaustion and alone time to write at all, let alone write with such perspective:
"despite the struggles, and the challenges and the sleepless nights, they are only visitors in our home for a short while. It feels like forever but it will be gone in a flash. Its an important reminder and one I hope I remember for the rest of my life. Thank you Waleed for being my son"
or,
"taher and i talk a lot about our own perspectives when it comes to this relationship between us and Nooriya, and how much we have changed and accomplished over the past year. but really, it's Nooriya who we should applaud- her list of achievements in the last 12 months are endless."
these days i am like a fish out of water. apart from being emotionally adrift (without the usual anchors of friends, work etc), i'm faced with physical challenges as well. i've had a sore throat, blocked ears and nasty cough for days now, and no amount of meds seem to be doing any good. i thought i was prepared to be sick for the next six months, but just 10 days of this is wearing me out. my hair is falling out in clumps, my feet, hands and lips are peeling, while my face and nails are constantly plugged with dirt and grease.
i know (or i hope!) that these are all temporary irritants, but that does not make them any easier to live with. i want to vent and scream and stamp my feet. i want to take the next plane home. sigh. the fact that i am not doing any of these (except the venting, which is surely allowed?!), is my only claim to a path of serenity!
i read posts by moms of their infants, and living with a one and a half year old, i wonder how they get past the daily grind of not enough sleep, exhaustion and alone time to write at all, let alone write with such perspective:
"despite the struggles, and the challenges and the sleepless nights, they are only visitors in our home for a short while. It feels like forever but it will be gone in a flash. Its an important reminder and one I hope I remember for the rest of my life. Thank you Waleed for being my son"
or,
"taher and i talk a lot about our own perspectives when it comes to this relationship between us and Nooriya, and how much we have changed and accomplished over the past year. but really, it's Nooriya who we should applaud- her list of achievements in the last 12 months are endless."
these days i am like a fish out of water. apart from being emotionally adrift (without the usual anchors of friends, work etc), i'm faced with physical challenges as well. i've had a sore throat, blocked ears and nasty cough for days now, and no amount of meds seem to be doing any good. i thought i was prepared to be sick for the next six months, but just 10 days of this is wearing me out. my hair is falling out in clumps, my feet, hands and lips are peeling, while my face and nails are constantly plugged with dirt and grease.
i know (or i hope!) that these are all temporary irritants, but that does not make them any easier to live with. i want to vent and scream and stamp my feet. i want to take the next plane home. sigh. the fact that i am not doing any of these (except the venting, which is surely allowed?!), is my only claim to a path of serenity!
25 September 2010
home
this room that i am sitting in now, this bed, this desk, will never be mine in the same way again. i will not have my own room anymore. as i get ready to leave home, the thought uppermost in my mind is how long before some other city, some other apt, some other people become 'home'? as i leave the comfort of this home, i want to know that it will happen quickly and easily. experience says otherwise however..
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