Believe Me, I'm lying...

He poured his heart out to me,

Like torrents of rain on a gloomy Friday night in the countryside

I was young and naive, vulnerable and fragile

Cynical, I never was. 

Trust, love, second chances and faith were the food to my soul, 

without those, I was as good as a withered rose.

He poured her heart out to me, he poured it all out.

Naive as I was, useless and too trustful, 

Gullible and fragile, I took his word for it. 

I've hated, I've scorned, I've been angered for his sake. 

I've cursed and I've hurt; I've provoked for his sake. 

I've lied and I've cried each time I blamed myself for his misery. 

I never loved myself enough to think, to believe, to imagine 

That I could be a good and worthy person - oh no. 

Then he poured his heart out while I sat there and listened.

The dark clouds, a symbol of the storm that was fast approaching, 

Were merely some cute fluffy grey clouds to me. 

How was I to know that it was a sign? How was I to know?

As vulnerable as I was, he entrusted me with important information. 

He toasted me with his cries like I was a piece of bread, waiting to be devoured

He even buttered me both ways, and in one bite, I was gone.
Young as I was, I listened to his story. 

'Believe me' I heard him say, and I took it all in like a helpless child. 

But if I had listened more carefully, I would have heard him whisper softly in the shadows of the night, 

'Believe me, I'm  lying...'

20 July 2012

Fish Can't Fly

I meant to complete this post last week before A-Level results, but I'm just in time for GCSE results. I remember back in the day when I was sitting my GCSE exams, after which I had a loooooong, relaxing 3 month break before I had to collect results. I remember on results day, walking into the assembly hall at The Grange School, watching my peers all in tears; some tears of joy, others of disappointment. That really made me a little anxious. So, I know exactly what some of you are going through right now but I just wanted to share a few words.

Many people will judge you by your academic achievements, because, let's face it, a good education is the "most priceless possession one can have". However, what our society tends to forget is that, we can't all be good at everything. Imagine this scenario - A fish and a bird were arguing about who was better than the other. Wise owl was watching this from a distance with much interest and fascination, so he decided to teach them a valuable life lesson. The fish and the bird were challenged to do two things in order to decide who was "better" than the other. The first test was to get to the top branch of a tree, however they wanted, as long as they didn't get assistance from anybody else. Effortlessly, the bird lifted its wings and flapped a few times and UP it went, plonked itself onto the branch. Meanwhile, poor fish wriggled and wiggled on the ground to no avail. So the result was that the bird was actually better than the fish. The fish, crestfallen, started to retreat to its pond, when owl reminded him of the second test. He told them to swim underwater in the pond for 5 minutes without coming up for air. The fish's face lit up as he thought, "Now, that's my thing!". He dived into the pond and so did the bird. However, within a couple of seconds, the bird came up for air, choking and coughing away. So the result was that the fish was indeed better than the bird. Puzzled, they both turned to the owl. "We've both won a round each, so who is better?" The wise owl looked at them with a smile on his face and said, "Neither of you is better than the other." You see, judging from the ability to get to the top branch of a tree, the bird was better than the fish, but judging from the ability to swim underwater for 5 minutes, the fish was a star! The thing is, they both thrived when they were "in their zone", doing the things which they're best at.

The point of this adapted short story of mine is that, we can't all be good at everything. You may not be academic, but you've got other equally important talents to exhibit to the world, such as singing, dancing, sport, etc. Don't let your grades define you because Fish can't fly, but they sure as heck can SWIM! Good luck to those collecting results and others awaiting life-changing decisions.

Have a great week

xx

"Let go and let God"

I came across a thought-provoking Instagram account on which the owner posted a textgram saying "Let go and let God is basically doing nothing and allowing "god" to do it for you? Good luck with that". It got me thinking how wrong and misled he or she must be, but it also got me thinking how wrong some believers could be. If anyone believes that the phrase "let go and let God" means "Sit your behind down and do absolutely nothing and a miracle will happen", this post is for you. Some call it faith, but in my opinion, as a believer myself, that's stupidity for lack of a nicer word to describe such atrocity. Here's why I say so, and this is just one way of viewing it. There are plenty of ways one can see or understand the phrase, but this is how I see it. 

Imagine you're a fashion designer and you've come up with this brilliant idea that's gonna break new grounds. As a believer, you let God know about this great idea and thank Him for bringing it into your mind or for giving you a creative mind. After that, you sketch it, find the right material and make the piece, advertise it in every way possible, but NOT FORGETTING to pray about it, asking God to "bless your hustle" (lol). You then stop worrying about it because you've already "Cast (that) burden unto Jesus, for He cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7). Now THAT is how I would interpret the phrase "Let go and let God". It doesn't mean sit down and do nothing and expect God to perform a miracle and a physical garment would just appear from your imagination. It doesn't work like that. The phrase is a simplification of 1 Peter chapter 5:7 (Cast your burdens unto Jesus for He cares for you) or perhaps even Matthew 6:33 which says "Seek first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you". That means, stop worrying, leave it to the cross. It doesn't mean, "Don't go to work, just wait at the end of the month and your bank balance will miraculously reflect a fat paycheck." As if! So in case you've not been practising this just because you misunderstood or misinterpreted that phrase, I hope now you're going to be able to Let go and Let God. Have a great weekend!

In it to win it

I remember when I was just a child, there was a very popular event called the OK Grand Challenge Jackpot Promotion, hosted by the big supermarket chain OK (not sure if they're still in business or not). One year, to promote the event, they made a very catchy advert that's been on my mind for over 10 years! The slogan for the ad campaign was "You've gotta be in it to win it!". People had to enter the prize draw or competition or whatever it was, in order to win the jackpot. That phrase has also stayed with me for a very long time. True, sometimes I forget about it and rarely apply it to my own life, but recently I've realised what a great life lesson this is. 

In life we have so many goals, so many things we want to achieve and make a name for ourselves. We've got so many talents that we wish to improve and use for fun, for good or to improve our lifestyles. We watch the Oscars, BET awards, all these prestigious events on TV and say to ourselves "One day I'm going to get that far. I'm gonna chase my dreams until they lead me to this." Yet, 10 years later we're still sat on the same couch in the same house watching the same programme uttering the same statement. Why? Because we forgot the most important part of making goals: we actually have to DO SOMETHING in order to get that recognition, achieve those goals or walk on that red carpet. You can't expect to win the lottery without buying that ticket, you can't win the dance competition without actually competing, and guess what? You can't achieve those goals until you start ACTING upon them. You've gotta be in it to win it! You've gotta start doing something to achieve something. 

Have you ever seen a farmer with a large piece of land who waits all year round for crops to come out of the ground? First, he has to plant the seeds, then water the plants and remove weeds. He also needs to apply fertilisers or pesticides, tending to his crops throughout the season until the harvest season comes. Without sowing the seeds, the farmer has no harvest. The same applies to your life. If you do not make an effort and do nothing at all, you will reap exactly that: NOTHING. That being said, I resumed my journey towards fitness yesterday, starting with a 40-minute session of P90X cardio workout. I hope to achieve my goals by the end of the summer, by being consistent with my eating habits and exercise! Let's make it our motto/mantra this week: "I've gotta be in it to win it!" 

Enjoy a productive week! xx