More to life

So I've had this terrible week but tried my best to smile through it all. Thank God my parents named me names that have an aura of positivity engrained therein; attributes that have stuck since childhood and how I pray they'll never depart (never-ending joy and tremendous self-worth). Sometimes, things take place in life and you wonder if you have it in you to rise above it all and be stronger than ever. It's particularly harder when people criticize you, alongside the decisions you make, not knowing the intricate nature of the struggles you may be undergoing. All they've gotta do is step in your shoes, walk a mile in them, and maybe, just maybe, they may see how hard it is to hold back tears and fake a smile...

Nonetheless, I am so glad to have Christ in me. He gives me joy, strength and a calm like no other even in the midst of raging adversity. Lyrics from songbirds like Francesca Battistelli bring this love of God richly and artistically. One of my favorite goes like this..

"...there's a joy inside I can't contain
but even perfect days can end in rain,
and though it's pouring down
I see you through the clouds
shining on my face..."

Another favorite by Carrie Underwood that always uplifts my spirits:

"...Jesus take the wheel,
take it from my hands,
coz I can't do this on my own
I'm letting go, so give me one more chance,
save me from this road I'm on.."

When all is said and done, it's important to realize that there is so much more to life than the usual day-to-day pressures and challenges. God didn't promise us that there wouldn't be hard times; we're all susceptible to trials and temptations, but he does guarantee His genuine & everlasting peace and grace always. In short, whenever circumstances seem to get the better of you and threaten to bring you down, turn it around and let this, fuel your determination to make it...

~The purpose of life is a life of purpose~

Seriously??

Lately, I feel that there has been a conspiracy in the universe to tick off Thakura's "little" princess..i.e. me. There are a few things that go unspoken but obviously common sense is not common to all. For instance, a couple of days ago, I was working on a group assignment alongside my fellow students. Some did not even have the courtesy to show up but that was not the problem. As a concerned leader, I sought to find out if they were okay but again, they did not bother to respond. (Seriously, how were some people raised?) Anyway, as if that was not enough, a day to the deadline, one had the nerve to incessantly keep my phone ringing and buzzing with text messages in the name of seeking my help...Hello??? You don't just come waltzing into my space interrupting my me-time, yet expect me to be at your beck-and-call at your convenience. That's just pure disrespect. This got me thinking how we as human beings tend to lack respect for each other, and take a lot for granted. For instance, one great universal African menace (I dare refer to it as such) is punctuality; or lack thereof. It goes without saying, that if a meeting or gathering is scheduled to take place at a certain time, especially if informal, the expected time of arrival automatically would be an hour later. Same goes with dates, functions and other events... I believe that if people truly do respect each other, somethings would come automatically, such as observing time and being mindful of feelings. All human beings have feelings and they should treat each other the way they'd want to be treated. Even the Bible lucidly states that it is imperative to do unto others what you would want done unto you. That said, hope you're inspired to be the best you can be and to respect others in spite of the treatment you get in return. ~Commitment leads to action. Action brings your dream closer~

Beautiful Disaster...

The title, yes creative...but I plagiarized it from Kelly Clarkson's "Beautiful Disaster" ballad. A sweet tune I tell you, talks about a lovelorn girl expressing the darkness in her heart because she feels her prince is wallowing in a world that's threatening to tear them apart. However, she holds on to the pain, tears and laughter and bears it for so long, in the hope that things will look up someday. As Kelly churns out this smooth ballad, you can almost feel the emotions and pain in her voice.
I can't help but think, how different are we from that lovelorn girl? How many times do we hold onto things or people that we love, yet know all too well that these lead to a bottomless pit of self-destruction? As I reflect upon Kelly's deep lyrics, I am reminded of the greedy hyena story, which I believe most of us encountered at some point in our lives..the story simply talks about a hyena who received invites to two parties which were taking place simultaneously. Unfortunately they were located in villages that were far apart from each other and he, being ambitious enough thought that he could attend them both. The roads leading to both villages branched from each other and hyena tried to walk on both paths simultaneously but fell apart and died, hence the swahili proverb, "Njia mbili zilimshinda fisi"
It's funny how many similarities we have with this "fisi", in a subtle kind of way though. The reason I say this is that there are times in life that people clutch on to things n people so tightly, only seeing the surface beauty,but the real disaster comes when what we thought to be so beautiful crushes us and makes almost want to fall apart and break down because of all the pain, disappointment and misery.
Lesson? Look beyond the present, see the bigger picture and hope for the best. Be happy, live right and do everything it may take to make the world a better place. Above all, strive to please God in all you do, and though there may be rainy days, the joy inside you will overflow and the calm he gives cannot be found from mortal man or inanimate things of the world...when all is said and done, "Beautiful Disasters" will be things of the past!!!

...Diary of a lone soul (1)...

Always looked at the stars at night, all alone, wishing I could have someone to share this spectacular moment with..the loneliness killed me slowly inside, couples madly in love all around me, tales and stories of love rent the atmosphere..doing nothing but etching the solitude into the deepest corners of my heart...Nonetheless, I am my own best company, I make me mad, I put a smile on my face, I tell myself what few are too proud or scared to admit to themselves,,that I am beautiful and worth more than material things or the wealth of this world..

I also look around and see hearts breaking all over, the wasted tears spilled over an illusion called love;or is it lust? This makes me glad with the person I am and proud of the great relationship I've got with myself!
Until the day am gonna find my knight in shining armor, the one who'll take the away the misery carved so deep in my soul and put a smile on my round shapely face,the one who'll make me proud to be in his life, the one who'll treat me like such a precious queen till everyone turns green with envy; until the day I meet my prince, I'm gonna wait and have a blast with the three best people in my life: me, myself and I!!!

Let loose!

...melancholics like myself and phlegs tend to be the most frequent victims of this phenomenon. Sometimes we hold onto pain and carry the weight of the world when we can't even carry our own. However,as I have come to learn the hard way, life sometimes gets to the point where we've got to think about self first and consider our own feelings and needs instead of rushing to be superman to everyone else.

Once in a while, we've got to let loose, have fun and have no guilt or regrets about it!

So if you're like me, constantly thinking about the welfare of others and what they think, I greatly applaud you for that. Nevertheless, it is time to shelve them aside and do what makes YOU happy, and have fun while at it. After all, you only get one chance to live, so why not make the best of it??!!

Happy Holidays!

..Of dating advice n all...

''10 ways to know if he loves you'', ''7 signs to tell if he's cheating'', ''5surefire ways to re-ignite your love life...'' these are just but some of the titles of columns and articles that more often than not grace our dailies and media today, and claim to preach the gospel truth about love, life and our romantic partners...But really, should we peg our worldviews on matters of the heart and tie our actions to the words of ordinary human beings like ourselves, claiming to have the answers to all our deepest intimate issues?

I recently came across a relationship blog by a lady named Rori Raye and her articles were rather catchy and eyecandy for me..so I subscribed to her emailing service, whereby she'd give advice and tips on love, relationships and men. They were kinda cute but at some point became incessant and all they did was fill my inbox, moreso because they were full of sentiments based on lone experiences she'd undergone. However, what was most annoying was that at the end of each email, there was a link to obtain a video or e-book from this self-proclaimed relationship expert, of course at a very dear fee!

This goes without saying that some unscrupulous people have identified a need in society and are milking tonnes of money out of lonely, confused and broken hearts desperately in need of direction and advice (though all that some need is a thorough beating to ingrain sense into them!)

I am an avid reader of anything that appeals to my interests and a hopeless romantic at that, so anything saucy and worth reading will not glide by unnoticed. However over time, I have come to discover that we are more powerful and smarter than we actually deem ourselves to be; we hold the answers to questions and problems which we think Dr. Love can solve for us, yet we've got it all within us. You don't need some local or foreign stranger you know nothing about, to tell you how to please your man and find out what he really wants..all you simply need to do is be keen, listen with your eyes, ears and heart; and if need be, ask him. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the fact that if he spends a substantial amount of his time watching soccer, then he loves it! If he's got a fetish for electronics then that could be a potential birthday gift (incase you're stuck in a rut not knowing what 2 buy).

However, the most universal of them all is food! Just watch him and find out what his favourite meal is and it would be rather smart n' cute to perfect your culinary skills and fix him one sweet, savvy and scrumptious meal he'll never forget and you'll have him wrapped all around your little finger in the blink of eye!!

Bottomline is, we shouldn't let strangers define our love-lives and relationships by telling us the 'whats' and 'what-nots.' Just because Tyra Banks doesn't think you should make the first move after an argument doesn't mean it has to be so for you. Your relationship is what you and your sweetheart make it, and the more liberated and sincere you are with each other, the more you'll enjoy it; without feeling indebted or obligated to some writer somewhere just because you did not follow their '8-step rule to a happy n successful relationship'!!!

~When you stop chasing the wrong things, you give the right ones a chance to catch you~

...It's all lies...

I doubt if there is anyone in the world who can stomach the sick feeling of knowing that those they love, as well as those who don't love them can actually lie to them in their faces; unless of course it's the all too cliche "you've lost weight" kind of statements...Some may think that stretching then truth or telling a half-truth isn't cheating, but ethically-speaking it is a plain lie, better known as a "lie by omission". There are things we would rather avoid and take the easy way out of, instead of confronting head-on and bearing the bitter and painful consequences. The truth hurts, but it will also set you free- free from guilt, a burdened conscience and regret. Lies break trust, which could take years to build but only seconds to destroy. Trust is a fundamental building block of any relationship, friendship or partnership which is mainly shaken by lies and words that do not correspond with the ethics of truth.

Sometime ago, a friend once told me that  "A true friend is one who tells you your breath stinks" (when it actually does)!!! I burst out laughing but when I came to sit down and later think about it, it made so much sense to me and made me begin questioning if I really was a friend indeed... How many times do we notice faults in those we love yet keep quiet about it? Now before I am discredited for being politically incorrect, no one is perfect and we all have shortcomings. However, there are some things about us that can and should be changed. These include disregard for rules of etiquette, improper use of language and habits that are improper such as gossip and disrespect for others. When we do note these negative traits in those we love, we should take it upon ourselves to bring it to light in their presence because it is for their own good. They may not like hearing these words and others may feel that they are above reproach, but in the long run, they will come to thank you for it someday.

Bottom line is, there is no need to lie, especially to save yourself or fix a wanting situation. The best approach would be to speak out whatever truth that needs to be spoken and bear the brunt, come what may. The rewards are a clean conscience, a pure heart, a guiltless spirit and widespread credibility and respect for exuding integrity.