Blessed

It has been a month since my birthday and I was recalling how I was finishing up a last minute assignment the night before. I had a long day at university and I rushed home to get on with my assignment. I finished it up at 11:45 and was ready to pass out on bed. I am glad I called before I did but I am quite sure even if I hadn’t, you would have called at midnight. Because you had remembered it was my birthday when I had forgotten.

I was sleepy azz and wished you good night but you wouldn’t let me hang up. You kept talking when all I could respond with was hmmm and yeah. You pleaded to stay awake for 4 more minutes which confused my already sleep-deprived brain. Normally you put me to sleep but not that night. When I asked why, you blabbered with what you had been up to the whole day and when 4 minutes had passed, you suddenly wished happy birthday which woke me nice and proper. Well, also the fact that my phone pinged with notification at the same time, opened my shut eyes and when I rubbed my eyes to respond to you and my phone, I realised that you had sent me a poem. A heartfelt, beautiful and thoughtful poem that not only had you carved from your own thinking, but you had written so elegantly and beautifully. All this was too much for me to handle. The rush of emotions that came from within resulted in tears of happiness and I started weeping in joy. For I felt truly special. And cherished. And although you are miles away, I felt as if you were right next to me. How I wish you were, so you could see my giddy smile and excited heart. For even though, we both have grown old to celebrate birthdays, the gesture made me feel like a child again.

And this is why I say alhumdulillah, I am so lucky to have you.

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Free Bird

She was staring at the ceiling, her mind whirling in a chaotic mess. With blank stares, she felt the tears sliding across her smooth cheeks. Suddenly the door creaked open. Her mum peeked in and whispered if she would like to go somewhere. She said she was fine and turned to the other side. Her mum walked in and patted her head lovingly. Asked her to get ready for a surprise.

She got up and got ready, her mind and heart wandering far away in the unknown. She climbed in the car and stared at the scenery but her mind didn’t process the usual beauty of nature : the dew that formed on the grass, the sky sporting wisps of white clouds and the air that came in bursts. After a while the car stopped and as she turned to look at the destination, her mouth dropped in surprise.

While her friends would rejoice at getting some retail therapy to alleviate stress, she felt nature in its glory was the perfect me time.

She asked her mum if she could be left alone. Her mum agreed and so she scampered quickly to the sand. She kicked off her shoes and let her toes sense the sinking dissolving sand. She bent down to stare at the shells. Marvelling at the intricate designs, she started collecting and placing them on the sand, pushing some deep within so that just a bit peeked through.

There were quite a few fair and white shells, polished and shining. Then there were tiny brown and black ones with markings that seemed to be shying away, hiding in the sand. Perhaps they were afraid that this visitor would reject them like the countless others in favour for the beautiful white ones. She scooped them up lovingly because for her, those markings, those scars made the brown and black shells even prettier. She played with them for a little while and then stood up to observe the water, the sky and the sea. The clouds of mist had vanished long ago and in their place were angry black clouds.Mimicking the state of her mind,they blocked the sun, its light and warmth and as she stood and gazed at the approaching storm, the clouds suddenly gave way and the sun shone through. It became so bright, the reflection of the pure warmth and grandeur of sunlight on water, that she couldn’t take it in. Momentarily blinded by beauty so rare, she was awestruck and speechless. The more she stared, the more it felt the sunlight was rushing through the water and entering in her. Filling her with warmth, inner joy, happiness and peace. The chaos that was her mind, was muffled by the harmonic wavelength of the sunlight.

She heard a kid’s cry and turned to see a little child stumble from a swing. As he got up and ran towards his mum, she ran towards the swing in glee. Picking up her shoes, she climbed onto the swing and started rocking back and forth to gain momentum. Once she felt she was flying, she closed her eyes to feel the breeze passing through her soul. Her mind felt a thousand times lighter. Her body too. She felt she could fly. And fly she did. She jumped from the swing, flung her body in the air and broke into a wide smile. Hurtled down to Earth in a millisecond. But that millisecond was enough for her. She felt euphoric. She looked up and saw a seagull flying high. It kept flying. The gravity wasn’t its enemy.

As she clambered back into the car, she gave a wide smile to her mum. Mum always knew best. The return journey was different. It had started raining and she opened the window a wee bit to feel the drops on her face. It felt as if God was giving her the whole invigoration package. Not only was she rejuvenated on the inside, but the raindrops freshened her up instantly as well.

She came back home and plonked on her bed with a sigh. A while later, she was fast asleep with a content smile.This time the ceiling stared at her.

Images by yours truly 🙂