THE CONFUSION

Kailani noticed a bunch of bulky figures standing in the doorway. "What the...?" Suddenly, the party music screeched to a halt. There were confused murmurs and somebody's voice rang out. "Cops!" "Everyone, freeze!" one of the figures called out at the same time. Pandemonium ensued. Students shoved toward the doors, nearly knocking Kailani to the ground. Several police officers ran into the gym and grabbed students. Sirens whooped outside, and microphones blared instructions to freeze and stay calm.

She cut through the mass of kids. Girls hobbled towards the door, unsteady in their heels. Guys took shortcuts over the bleachers, stumbling over the risers. A lacrosse player who'd had too much to drink bumped against Kailani. Students poured into a hallway that lead to the parking lot just as a police car screamed up the entrance. Wheeling around, she sprinted in the opposite direction, down an unfamiliar passage.

Then she continued down the hall, the sandals she was wearing was rubbing blisters on her feet. The hallway was dark, and she could barely see in front of her. She thought she could make out a door at the end of the hall, but what if it led to nowhere? Suddenly, there were footsteps behind her. "You!" a voice called. Kailani spun around, to see a police officer holding a club. She couldn't let him get her or find out who she was. She sprinted faster, her lungs screaming. "You there!" the police officer's voice sounded even closer. "Stop!" Kailani's hands reached out and touched something hard just seconds before she crashed into it. She pulled away, seeing a bookshelf lined with old texts. She felt around for a door, but there was none. "Oh my god," she whispered. She'd hit a dead end.

The officer's walkie-talkie squawked. "I've got one," she heard him say. Kailani looked down, then up. Her heart lifted. A small window glowed a few inches above the shelf. Even better, it was slightly ajar. Her fingers grasped a middle row of the bookshelf, and she set her feet on the bottom row and started to climb. The structure swayed back and forth as she shimmied up the shelves. "Stop!" the officer's shape was visible down the hall. He was running at a full sprint, his club raised above his head. Kailani pulled herself up to the top of the bookshelf and cranked the window as wide as she could. The space was just big enough for her to fit.

She turned onto her stomach and stuck her legs through the window. Her fingertips caught the metal grooves of the window frame as she pushed herself though and dropped to the ground. Her knees bent to absorb the impact, and her hands hit the grass hard. Then she took off running. She was free and the police officer didn't know who he almost caught.

MISFORTUNE FALLS

Andrew has always had terrible luck. From minor things such as tripping over his own two feet to even worse luck.... like that one time when he was on the yearbook committee and was taking photos of the spring play when he forgot to turn off the flash on the camera and accidentally blinding Little Suzie, causing her to stumble backwards onto the set, destroying the background and knocking over the majority of the props. Terrible luck.

One morning Andrew was walking to school when he saw an elderly man waiting for the light to change so he could cross. Andrew took a minute out of his day and helped the old man across. The man smiled graciously to Andrew and before he left he whispered something in his ear.
"Your life is shrouded in misfortune,
nevertheless you help others with a good will.
By preforming actions the superstitious would
reject you reverse your fortune."
And with that, the man walked away without another word. Andrew thought that was rather odd but he continued on his way to school.

A few hours later Andrew came home and went into his bathroom to change out of his school clothes. "I wonder what that old man meant." he thought to himself. Suddenly he had an idea.

He grabbed a compact mirror and went to the backyard so his parents and neighbors couldn't question him. Then he threw the mirror sharply on the ground, shattering it at once. While he was cleaning up the mess he made he said to himself, "I wonder if this will really change my luck. Guess I'll find out tomorrow."

The next day Andrew woke up feeling better than ever. He was sure that his day was going to be fantastic. And with that said Andrew went on with his day like never before...

LIFE GETS SOUR

She sat behind the wheel of a tinted Toyota Corolla, as she pulled away from Haille Selasia Avenue and joined Mombasa road where Pamela came face to face with heavy city traffic. She was ecstatic and on high on cloud nine at that particular moment, since she was going to meet her lover James, who was arriving from Lisbon, Portugal.

Poor her, little did she know that James was running away from snowy Europe and not coming for her. To James, Pamela and him are no longer in the same pot of circumstances. What was between them is now a lifetime away according to him.

The drive from Mombasa road to Jomo Kenyatta airport took almost two hours on account of heaviness of the traffic. No sooner had she arrived at the waiting bay did she meet James. He did not signal any negativity towards her. They showed each other all what lovers normally show each other after along absence from the other.

After all that exchange, they made for Outering road ready to make it to Pamela’s home at Karen. Along the way it was Pamela who was talkative but to James, internally there was nothing to celebrate in meeting her.
James spent the first night at the house but on the second and subsequent ones he plotted to stay in a Nairobi hotel. For the two weeks he was in town accessibility to him by Pamela became out of question. She tried everything at all cost to reach him, but the more she tried, the more the word impossibility dawned on her.

After the end of his stay, James flew back without saying “kwaheri” to Pamela. On reaching Lisbon, Portugal, he wrote an email back to her, what seemed more than a bombshell. Pamela went through the email as tears dripped down her cheeks. She was unable to come to terms with what she read. To her, that was profoundly incredible.

The email went something like this….: my dear and lovely Pamela, there is nothing between you and me. Mark you what we shared is now water under the bridge and our love is now a lifetime away.
Pamela, stood on her balcony after the uninspiring news and looked into the sky. At that very time, there was a heavy cloud hanging over the Nairobi skyline. Pamela wished James was never a chapter in her story book life, but that was just a wishful thinking.

The reveries on the balcony took almost two hours and after that, Pamela decided enough is enough. There is nothing good crying on spilled milk. She has to close that chapter of her life. In life there is time for joy and time for sorrow, but we have to move forward. And that is what she plotted or what she called a cut and dry decision.

LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE

Many years ago, a friend of mine was diagnosed as “terminally ill”. He was given six months to live. His chance for recovery was 1 in 500. He could see the worry, depression and anger in his life contributed to, and perhaps helped cause, his disease. He wondered, “If illness can be caused by negativity, can wellness be created by positivity?”

He decided to make an experiment of himself. Laughter was one of the most positive activities he knew. He rented all the funny movies he could find – Keaton, Chaplin, Fields, the Marx Brothers. (This was before VCRs, so he had to rent the actual films.) He started to read book, magazines and funny stories. He asked his friends to call him whenever they said, heard or did something funny. His pain was so great he could not sleep. Laughing for 10 solid minutes, he found, relieved the pain for several hours so he could sleep.

He fully recovered from his illness and lived another more years happy, healthy and productive years. He credits visualization, the love of his family and friends, and laughter for his recovery. Some people think laughter is a waste of time. It is a luxury, they say, a frivolity, something to indulge in only every so often.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Laughter is essential to our equilibrium, to our well-being, to our aliveness. If we’re not well, laughter helps us get well; if we are well, laughter helps us stay that way. Since friends’ ground-breaking subjective work, scientific studies have shown that laughter has a curative effect on the body, the mind and the emotions. So, if you like laughter, consider it sound medical advice to indulge in it as often as you can. If you don’t like laughter, then take your medicine – laugh anyway.

Use whatever makes you laugh – movies, sitcoms, Monty Python, records, books, cartoons, jokes, friends. Give yourself permission to laugh – long and loud and out loud – whenever anything strikes you as funny. The people around you may think you’re strange, but sooner or later they’ll join in even if they don’t know what you’re laughing about. Some diseases may be contagious, but none is as contagious as the cure. . . laughter.

MOTIVATION

No one in this world is perfect. At time when chips is down people look up to their role models so as to be motivated. Often when we are on lows of life we seek something or someone who is going to inspire us. Like energy can neither be created nor destroyed, “MOTIVATION” cannot be created or destroyed.

MY BELIEVES ON MOTIVATION

I believe like “LIFE CYCLE” we also have “MOTIVATION CYCLE”. Let me give you an example– From the moment we breathe our first breath to our last breath we are always motivated. We are motivated by doctors at time of birth to cry as its sign of been healthy. After reaching few months we are motivated by parents to utter gibberish words, few months later we are motivated to crawl, and then walk without support. In later stages we are motivated to get educated, to get job, earn and have luxurious lifestyle. We can see here “MOTIVATION CYCLE” is running parallel to our life cycle. 

Motivation like goals can differ from person to person. For student scoring top grades is top priority hence he may channel his energy and get motivated to obtain top rank. For farmer to have good harvest can be key for motivation, similarly motivation differs from person to person and gradually changes by time. Channelizing concentration and energy towards right path and common motive is key to success. 

I believe all religious books are based on concept of motivation. If you don’t believe me, let me throw my Thesis to you (It is your choice to accept my thesis or not). The entire religious book believes in concept of afterlife. This concept is prime drive for people to do good works and it motivates monotheist to observe their respective religion peacefully. Without these motivation and perks of afterlife do you think people would follow old books religiously?

MOTIVATION TIPS

I would like to give tips to readers on how to be motivated. 
1) Be sure of your goals. Clear goals can make it easier to see the paths. Work hard towards goal and get motivated on every step taken while achieving this goal. 
2) Get inspired from role model but do not copy them, We lose our identity when we imitate them. Let these role models be our motivators. Do not mold to be exact replica of your role model.
3) Don’t copy goals, don’t think others  motivation will be your key to success.
4) Even smallest of smallest can inspire us and motivate us. Be humble enough to accept your motivator even if it embraces you.

Finally I would like to conclude that be positive and believe in yourself and give your best. I would like to twist famous comic quote and end here by saying “With great goals comes great Motivation”

WHICH KIND OF ANIMAL ARE YOU

Have you ever been told which kind of animal you’re ? Maybe when you broke something in your house, your angry mom compared you to some animal stating even that animal is well-behaved but not you. Or maybe when you scored less in your Math exam, your father compared your brain to that of an animals?

My father keeps telling me I am a Goat. I don’t blame him though. I keep doing such things to justify his saying. Like when I was small, there was this phone call for dad. My dad told me to inform the person that he was not at home. So like a good kid I told the person that my dad has told me to tell you that he is not at home right now. My father having heard this immediately got up and took the call. My mom and sister on the other hand could not control their laughter. My father joined in too and told me jokingly I was a goat. Now, do you blame him for saying me that?

It wasn’t until few days back that I finally came to know what actually GOAT means and that it turns out everybody wants to be a GOAT. It’s pretty awesome. Yeah! You heard me right. Supposedly there is this ongoing debate among the footballers of who the goat is and surprisingly they all want to be the goat. It all happened when Messi from Argentina claimed himself to be the Greatest Of All Time(GOAT). However, there came contradictions when Ronaldo from Portugal played a breathtaking match and sealed the title of goat for himself. Now come on, all my life I have been the goat. Do you think I should just tell them to back off?

I am very possessive with me being the Goat. That’s something I have earned with lot of hard work. I am glad my dad felt I could be the greatest of all time. Let me know if you have ever been called a goat or as a matter of fact any other animal which you take pride in.

WHEN YOU FORGET HOW WE SLEEP

Insomnia is something that I experience from time to time. I don’t know why it happens— even when I try to analyze the problem I don’t really see a clear cause or reason.

A way that I like to describe insomnia is that it is like your body forgot how to sleep. One night you go to bed and all of sudden you can’t fall asleep. It is like you are all prepared to go for a swim and suddenly you are standing in front of the pool and you have forgotten how to swim. You have prepared everything but why can’t you do it? Well, insomnia is just that irrational. A whole day’s of toil should exchange for a well-rested night, but instead all you get is restlessness.

Or sometimes, you are drifting into sleep but for some reason your body decides to twitch or feel the need to wake you up. Waves of sleepiness keep coming and going; for a while you are excited, “This is it! I think I’ll fall asleep”, but after while that wave disappears and you feel restless again. You toss and turn but you can’t seem to stay in one position for too long— no position seems to feels right. It is like the whole world is trying to stop you from falling asleep; neither your bed nor your body seems to want you to have your well-deserved rest. Well, no wonder you feel restless— I mean, this is so frustrating!

If you are lucky, you usually end up falling asleep without knowing how or when you did it. Regarding this I have an interesting story to share. One time when I had insomnia, I fell asleep and woke up a few hours later. As I am a light sleeper, I have the habit of sleeping with ear plugs on. I didn’t know when and how I fell asleep but when I woke up I realized that my ear plugs have fallen off. I searched frantically for them— under my pillow, around me, under my blankets. When I found them they were placed neatly on the side of my bed, which is where I usually have them when I don’t wear them. I don’t know what happened but I must have taken them off subconsciously. I have already fallen asleep but I can still take off my ear plugs. Sleep is weird in the sense that some part of your brain needs it but the rest can still function. I guess that is why we have dreams.

FEAR OR BRAVERY

In the modern society, bravery seems to be defined as the absence of fear. A synonym of fearlessness. That when someone is faced with the choice to run away with terror or run head on with courage, they choose courage. It’s in almost every movie and storybook that allows our minds to escape our dull daily lives.

The story is simple. The superhero starts off ordinary. Then they find out they are anything but ordinary. They have special powers that they decide to use for good. A villain comes around, someone who uses their powers for evil, and starts to wreak havoc on the citizens of the world. The superhero must then decide to run away with fear, or run head on with courage. They ultimately decide to face the villain and they win. The superhero is then considered brave and courageous.

But this definition of bravery being fearlessness is flawed. It is impossible to live through life without any fear. Fear is a constant storm that rages in our minds. It never ceases to exist so we must build a shelter to protect ourselves from its wrath. The shelter we build with our hope and strength, however, it’s only temporary. The storm of fear thrashes against it with raining bullets and thunderous punches. It shatters windows with its piercing screams and rams it with howling winds. It’s the temper tantrum of fear that desecrates the walls that we surround ourselves with. We can either let the fear take over our lives, or decide to be brave. To be brave despite the fright and keep building the shelter to protect us from the storm. The storm that is always there, but doesn’t always have to win.

Being brave is exhausting, it is the constant upkeep of our shelter. When someone is fighting a battle there is physical exhaustion of course, but the mental exhaustion is what gets them in the end. The constant battle against fear with the tireless effort to build up the walls that fear tears down. The terror will never go away, so why does society think that being brave means to be without fear?

Being brave doesn’t mean you don’t fear anything. Being brave means that even though you are entirely and absolutely filled with fear, doubt, uncertainty, and terror, you still decide to act with blind courage because there is something more important to you than those fears.

When you have a terminal illness you fear death, but life is more important. When you face depression you fear life, but happiness is more important. When you charge into battle you fear a brutal death, but protecting your people and values are more important. When you have fear, something is always more important.

I won’t be the last to say it, or the last time you think of it, but it is completely and utterly okay to be afraid. It is okay to fear because bravery is not easy. It is not as simple as one would like to believe. It may come more naturally to some than others, but that doesn’t mean that it is not possible for someone to be brave. Do not think for a second that you are not capable of being brave.

You have the ability to be a superhero, just look a little closer at the story of your life. You are led to believe that you are ordinary, but you are anything but ordinary. You have hidden special powers that you can decide to use for good. You have villains that try to destroy your world. You have the choice to run away in fear, or run head on with courage. You can defeat the villain and save your world. You can be brave and courageous.

We all have the capability to fear and conquer those fears. “It’s all in your head” is what they say about fear, but “it’s all in your heart” is what they should say instead about bravery.  Because bravery is not to be without fear, but to decide what is more important: fear or bravery.

WHO IS HAPPY

Part 1:
She completed her graduation in commerce,well, that was the easiest thing that her parents wanted from her, now they can find a suitable boy for her, for whom she can cook for her entire life, from whatever she had learned in her graduation. She had no choice earlier to chose a different field, she was in no position to chose science,  her grades ensured that fact, though, she was good in English and literature, and she might have taken arts. But, arts is for those who have very poor grades and who have no choice left.

Her parents wanted her to take commerce, as it was the typical degree for the bio-data. And they were right, she finally got married, and not because of the degree, though the degree was needed to tell the relatives that their daughter is educated, but she actually got married because she looked pretty enough for the boy, and also the boy’s family thought that she could serve their family and keep its name for years to come.
Everyone was happy when the marriage was happening, all was good.

A few years after the marriage, her husband was shouting at her badly, she was crying. She accidentally caught him talking to some girl earlier, and hence he was shouting to defend himself, actually there was nothing left to defend. She informed her parents about it and they said it is your own matter, deal with it.

Part 2:
He cleared his college, the marks were not good. Actually he was never really interested in studies. Not even a single subject gathered his interest. But he passed, as he was not so dumb. He knew how to score with the minimum resources.
His parents never really worried, they never bothered about his grades, they had enough money. After a few years, they chose a girl for him, she was nice looking, and within a few months he got married.

He was a good dancer though, but he never really thought of it as a career. After marriage he was finding trouble to open up with his wife, as he still was not sure about his own life, also, her wife also was not bothered.
He never really wanted to marry, but his parents were forcing him, and he never had the courage to go against them.

One day when he went for his dance class, he saw a girl, she was dancing beautifully. The teacher introduced them with each other. They started meeting daily, in and out of the class. And soon, they fell for each other. When he was talking to her on the phone his wife caught him.

Part 3:
They both kept fighting for days, and one day they finally shared the truth with each other. They admitted the fact that both of them never really wanted the marriage.
But then who wanted it?
Of course their parents.
But why?
For their happiness obviously.
But who was happy?
No one.

They thought about it and finally got divorced.
Their parents were not supportive. They had ego issues, because if they wanted their happiness then they would have supported them. But their ego surpassed the love by just a little margin, but that was enough for them to lose their minds.
Both of them went in different directions of their own.

What happened next?
It doesn’t matter, whatever happens, it is life, but further on whatever decision they will take will be their own, that doesn’t mean that they will not consider their parents, but by taking decisions only will they learn and grow. And they will be happy even if they don’t succeed because they will be doing what they want.
And ultimately the parents will be happy seeing their children happy….

WHO AM I

It was 2.30 in the morning when I suddenly woke up. I went to the washroom and as I was about to close the door of the washroom I saw someone looking at me from inside the mirror.

I know it sounds silly, because mirror will show only me and there was no one else but there was someone with whom I have never met before. He looked like me but his face displayed no fear at all. It appeared like he was trying to tell me something but I didn’t know what.

It was the scariest moment of my life. And it was a big realization too. And I was not able to sleep the whole night wondering about who am I? Was I the person looking in the mirror or was I the person who was inside the mirror?

But the more important question was can i ever become that man in the mirror? Can I ever be that fearless?

And finally I was left with just one question..

Can I ever be myself?

CAN YOU SMELL MEMORIES!

What is clear is that there are certain smells that can trigger very specific memories that can affect how we feel. Do you remember stuffs when you smell something familiar? Are you taken back to that moment when you breath and suddenly it’s the smell that reminds you of a memory?

Smell as it seems is a powerful weapon and can bring back a rush of memories. Some maybe unwanted , some very pleasant. For me if I smell something familiar I can literally travel from one place to another and stay there for a while deep in memories. Sometimes it does happen I find it really hard to recognise the smell and then I start joining the dots and only stop when I finally recall. The mind is just as stupid. It just doesn’t know when to stop.

Not always is the memory a fond one. I mostly have fond memories like when I visited a place I had once been. There was a particular soap I used there and whenever I happen to smell that soap till date I am immediately taken back to that time. The scenic beauty, the greenery, the snow. What is not there to love? Such a beautiful place that you just can’t help but keep want to visit it again and again.

Then there is the smell of book. It gives me immense happiness that cannot be described. (Though I am sure most of you who love reading would relate to this easily.) Not to forget the Smell of wet soil. Anyone? It just brings back memories of rainy season and somehow my childhood days.

Does it make me sound weird if I say sometimes I want to eat a particular smell? Like the smell of petrol. I can never get enough of it. Whenever I am in a petrol pump I am that weirdo who keeps exhaling the smell of petrol like some sort of fresh air. I know it’s poisonous but I want to taste petrol. Maybe on my deathbed. That could be my last wish. What? I would already be dying. Might as well taste it and die a few seconds earlier.

I understand though not all memories are worth remembering. Like the smell of the rejected love letter or that of the broken heart. For those who can really relate to this will know that how a familiar smell can ruin ones memory too. (For a period of time till the smell goes off). Again you cannot be someone to decide which memory to keep and which to not if you have a strong nose and can remember the fragrances. One bad memory can ruin the smell of even a great perfume. Right?

WE DO CHANGE

He  was looking disheveled, his body covered in sand, he was bleeding. He went to his room and closed the door.
Everyone in the family got worried, one of his friends told them that he was beaten up by some violent morons.
He was crying without tears, his heart was racing, he was scared. The whole incident kept playing in his mind even after he passed his college and got a job.

Whenever he walked on the street he felt a sense of fear that someone will come and beat him up, it may sound funny for some, but he was really devastated. He was sitting near the beach thinking about his fears. Suddenly he diverted his attention to the sand on the beach, the sand was all ready to meet with the approaching water, though it knew that it will be washed away by the brutal force of water but the sand was waiting fearlessly for the water. Even it got washed away, it fought bravely.

He was just imagining the sand as himself and all of a sudden something from within knocked his heart from inside. He never analyzed what actually happened, but after that moment he walked on the streets without fear and faced everyone with full confidence. That incident which thrashed him earlier in his life had now made him stronger than ever. Nothing in this life is permanent, change will happen and it will take just a moment to get going.

TIPS TO TAKE ACTION

Just do it.
The first step is always the hardest. Your mind will come up with all sorts of scenarios to prevent you from taking that scary first step toward your goal. That does not mean you are a coward, though. It is just your brain’s way of defending yourself. Sometimes, though, you have to listen to what your heart has to say and just do it. Everything else will be a lot easier once you get past the first hurdle – and that is to ignore your brain’s dire warnings and go with your gut instinct.

Doing something is not always a physical thing.
It is understandable if you mistook the need for taking action as doing something literally or physically. Yet you see, there are many other ways for you to take action without even lifting a finger. For that matter, consider the act of planning. It is never wise to try achieving a goal without a plan. If you want to spend the least amount of time and effort in achieving your goal, then you need to come up with a step-by-step plan for accomplishing it. A good plan takes into account all potential consequences as well as all the possible avenues you may take in order to reach your objective.

Breathing helps.
Are you feeling nervous or nauseous? It is normal to feel uneasy about doing anything to reach your goal. Taking action is often synonymous to taking risk. You are nervous because you know that risks can either end with success or failure, and who wants to end up failing? Whenever you feel like there is a panic attack coming in, just take a deep breath. Better yet, take several deep breaths. Studies show how breathing can effectively clear the mind and help calm your nerves. So go ahead and breathe - inhale all the way from your stomach to take full advantage!

Take a page from the most successful books.
You may think that you are the only one suffering a certain kind of problem of a certain magnitude in this world, but you are not. With a little research, you are sure to find something in common with ordinary and extraordinary people. You may not be a U.S. President like Bill Clinton, but you are running for a position and you have limited funds like Clinton for your campaign. What did Clinton do that you can do as well? In the end, it is all about finding the small but essential similarities.

Take baby steps.
Do not push yourself to achieve the same things with the same amount of time and resources the way other people had done. In the end, you have to remind yourself that every person is unique and, consequently, his own set of strengths and weaknesses. Also, it could be that you are just starting out and the other person you are comparing yourself to is years ahead of you in terms of expertise and experience. The other person cannot afford to take baby steps, but you can and you should! If you rush things too much, everything may end up backfiring on you.

Rome wasn’t built in a day.
This is obviously related to the above tip, but it is different in the way that it takes into account what you want to do with your time. It is good to have a plan for everything, but you do not have to accomplish everything in a single day. Even if you have the energy to do so, the people around you and who also have something at stake in reaching your shared goals may not have the time and similar energy to do so. Give them a break. If all of you have truly worked hard, then all you deserve to rest. There is always tomorrow to think about.

Do not pressure yourself.
Pressuring yourself is different from motivating yourself. Motivating yourself will get you to take action while pressuring yourself will only succeed in freezing your limbs and brain cells into a state of inaction. There are sure to be other people and other sources you will receive a lot of flak and pressure about getting things done. Why burden yourself with more pressure when you can give yourself a pep talk instead?

A little competition is good – just do not make a big deal out of it.
Competition can make you take action because the more you delay, the further behind you will be in achieving your goal. Friendly competition is also effective for staying focused and getting you pumped up but be careful! If you let yourself focus too much on the competition, then you may end up forgetting about the bigger picture. In the end, being too competitive may be another source of distraction that you absolutely do not need.

Believe in yourself.
Taking action requires you to have faith in yourself – especially when everyone around you is telling you that you cannot do it. In the end, you have to remember that you know yourself best. You know what you are capable of, and if you believe that the goal you have in mind is well within your reach, then it truly is – no matter what others may say.

Get a companion.
Just because you have someone with you and willing to help you out does not mean you were not strong enough to accomplish your goal. It also does not make your goal any less satisfying. If anything, the goal becomes sweeter because you have someone to share it with! If you feel that you need your wife to be at your side to accomplish a particular goal, then go and make it happen and again – forget about what anyone else has to say. As long as you are not hurting yourself or anyone else, then there is nothing wrong with what you are doing.

HOPE IT IS

It is widely accepted that Hope is the one thing that makes people succeed in whatever they set out to achieve in life. When the chips are down and when one is feeling defeated, Hope is supposed to keep you going, Hope is what turns the tide. So, what is Hope? How would one describe Hope? Is it a feeling, is it an expression or is it just dumb luck that decides to strike someone when fortune feels charitable?

I compare Hope to the foliage one sees on winter days travelling on trains. Lined up along the tracks are trees, ravaged by the cold, bereft of any life and stark. No hope, they say, of security, joy and happiness. Everything is forlorn and lost. But then, ever so often, as the scenery rolls past the window of the train like on a conveyor belt, flashes of green pepper the vision for brief periods; Presenting glimpses of life, security, joy and teasing of happier times. How one chooses to translate this sight is what defines Hope.

You can go with the fashion and choose the grey or you could select the more colourful green. The choice is yours. Hope is an Attitude. An attitude that seeks the green in the grey, the life in the lifeless and the joy in the sadness. Hope does not just appear, it is within, it needs to be found and with just the eyes that seek it!
Hope motivates us to persevere, into the darkness, to journey onward, despite the obstacles blocking the trail of life, despite not knowing how, or when, or where, or why our life’s story will conclude.

According to Charles R Snyder, a psychologist, hope includes three elements: a belief, a goal, and a path. The person who is hopeful believes that he/she will succeed. Secondly, the person has a specific goal or direction or destination. Thirdly, the person knows the route or path he/she will take to achieve the desired outcome. And so, hope is a mindset, the will and determination to believe that you’ll overcome. Hope also provides you with a map of the route on how to achieve the desired outcome.

Hope is not wishful thinking, nor is it magical thinking. Hope is an emotion, a mindset, a belief, a motivation, that despite setbacks and obstacles, despite hardship and misfortune, despite the unknown last chapter of your life’s story, you believe that your life will work out, that when you take your last breathe, there is something else beyond this world.

TRUE FAILURE OCCURS WHEN ONE GIVES UP

It was just another day for my cousin. The past two years had shown him several such days and it ended only in disappointment. It was the day when final list of yesterday’s interview arrived. Life has always been hard for him and the interviews were his only hope.
The past two years were not kind to him. He had gone through a lot of suffering and harassment. No matter how hard he prepared he just couldn’t get past the interview and secure a job. He had his 25th interview yesterday. People said he had 25 failures, but what kept him going was that he knew it was his 25th lesson.
He woke up late on the very day. After getting dressed up , he skipped the breakfast and dashed through the door. He wore the usual black pant with white shirt. The road was empty. It was a positive sign. Today he was hopefull. Hope was something he always had, even during his worst of times. He never gave in to sadness or any rejection. It was not his style. As he went past the Mall he slowly increased his pace. The office could be seen at a distance. As the road grew shorter he became more nervous. He had a many thought going through his head. All of them circulated around the question “ Is this my lucky day? “.
There were many questions in his head which he needed answer to “ What if I don't get this job?”
“ How much more can I take?” and finally
“ How much longer can I pretend ?”
“ I just thinking too much”
He stood still and took a moment. He was standing in front of the hotel he used to work during his free time. It was good job but the pay was less but was sufficient for a single man.
It wasn’t always like this. A year ago he was living peacefully. He had planned for higher education. A year after his college, and since he was coming from a needy background it wasn't possible for him. Having no income made him insecure. He then dropped his plans for higher studies and started to attend interviews. After failing a numerous interview he joined a hotel and started to work. Socializing and making friends was the easiest part, he befriended a lot of employees . They were from different place but had one thing in common-DREAMS. They all wanted to reach somewhere in this life and was ready to work for it. It was the only perk of job. Nevertheless he continued to attend the interviews.
He started to walk again. The office was now in sight, after taking a course of steps he saw a group of people standing in balcony of third floor. He snapped and sprinted towards the office. At every step his heart skipped a beat. He opened the door. It was a small building. There was a lift at end of the hall, but he went for the stairs, patience was something he didn’t have, especially on that morning. He raced up the stairs, as he reached the second floor, he stopped took a moment to ready his hair and dress. He slowly walked up trying to hide his anxiety .
The others were amused to see him. He slowly made his way towards the notice board. In the last round out of six ,five were selected and only one was rejected.It was him who was rejected! He stood there for a minute not knowing what to do. Yet another failure. He quickly turned around and made his way out the office, in an attempt to hide his tears he looked down and retraced his steps.
Upon reaching home ,he ran to his room and went straight to the bed. A bundle of comic books was there near his bed. He slowly turned his head and picked up one of the books. His teary eye gently scrolled down the pages.This was his routine for the past two years.
These books meant a world to him. They provided an unusual comfort. It was the most luxurious part of his day.
After all it was just an interview he thought. He took a pen made a mark on his calendar. Now there were 25 such marks. Each of them signifying the interviews he lost. He decided start the preparation for his next interview after finishing the book.. It had been his strength all these time. Its enough to win. True failure occurs when one gives up.

PERSISTENCE IS THE KEY

They say life doesn't give you what you deserve but what you fight for.Life has all that we need to live like gold underneath the earth that you need to extract from the mother earth. In extracting it there levels of difficulties which we encounter. As we go deeper the earth there level that are soft and others are rocky and hard which makes one to give up but one thing as an individual on a journey you need to understand that every level needs a different approach or strategy.

Encountering rocky and situations in life doesn't mean you should give up. In the journey of life or moving with your vision, you need to demonstrate perseverance,not giving up easily because you never know that one hit that hardy and rocky situation there is that precious gold,that breakthrough which you desire.I have realized that a lot of people give up on the verge success or breakthrough. Giving up must not an option in ones life.

All people who had achieved their desires possessed a greater hunger for fulfillment than of giving up.Imagine if all inventors of the things that we see in this world lacked perseverance this world would be like the amazon forest. In my life the level of my mistakes and failures can not be compared the insatiable desire to live mark in this world and great foundation for the next generation. I will persevere no matter how long it takes. At the present moment i can qualify for highest qualification in this world in terms of failing but i will not give up. The greatest valleys or gouges were created through persistence.

TREASURE YOUR UNIQUENESS

Have you ever found yourself standing in the middle of a crowd? You look around, and you can't see anyone you know ... and you're sure that no one in that crowd knows you.

Treasure your uniqueness. It is a gift given only to you. Enjoy it and share it! Think what a remarkable, unduplicatable, and miraculous thing it is to be you! Of all the people who have come and gone on the earth, since the beginning of time, not ONE of them is like YOU!

No one who has ever lived or is to come has had your combination of abilities, talents, appearance, friends, acquaintances, burdens, sorrows and opportunities. Nobody's hair grows exactly the way yours does. No one's finger prints are like yours. No one has the same combination of secret inside jokes and family expressions that you know.

The few people who laugh at all the same things you do, don't sneeze the way you do. No one prays about exactly the same concerns as you do. No one is loved by the same combination of people that love you - NO ONE!

Enjoy that uniqueness. You do not have to pretend in order to seem more like someone else. You weren't meant to be like someone else. You do not have to lie to conceal the parts of you that are not like what you see in anyone else.

You were meant to be different. Nowhere ever in all of history will the same things be going on in anyone's mind, soul and spirit as are going on in yours right now. If you did not exist, there would be a hole in creation, a gap in history, something missing from the plan for humankind.

No one can reach out to others in the same way that you can. No one can speak your words. No one can convey your meanings. No one can comfort with your kind of comfort. No one can bring your kind of understanding to another person. No one can be cheerful and lighthearted and joyous in your way. No one can smile your smile. No one else can bring the whole unique impact of you to another human being.

Share your uniqueness. Let it be free to flow out among your family and friends and people you meet in the rush and clutter of living wherever you are. That gift of yourself was given you to enjoy and share. Give yourself away!

JUMPSTART YOUR THOUGHTS

Our souls yearn for connection with all souls. There are people we think we prefer and others we don’t, but half the time that’s a lie: We tell ourselves the fairy tale of our hatreds out of fear, but we revisit that tale as it suits us. Deep down, we’d love to love and be loved by all, I don't reply people that's not in the same class with me, I pray for more connections and long live, if you want to live long, try and remove yourself from someone's preference... Tell the world the truth about your lifestyle, don't say you are rich..

Everyone are destined to be rich. All depends on your hand working during your hard work..... and don't lie about your work. Frustarations can cause many things but the best answer to a fool is to just ignore and focus on your lifestyle.

Don't wait untill everything is just right. It will never be perfect. Challenges are going to be there always, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get started by now, with each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more self confident and more successful.

MY FIRST DAY EXPERIENCE

The campus looks just as great in person as it did in the bronchures and online, i was impressed. The buildings were old and elegant. There was hundreds of people, parents who hugged and kissed their children goodbye, clusters of freshmen, who were dressed from head to toe in college uniform, there were few strugllers, lost and also confused, filled in the area. The size of the campus was intimidating but i was hopefull that i was going to feel at home after sometime.

I saw all fresher’s standing in queues and waiting for their call. I was also asked to stand in that long queue. I was very nervous and till my turn I got fainted due to excessive pressure. But, our seniors were very good; they immediately took me to the dispensary and gave me all the necessary medical assistance. Later on when I was well, I was asked to continue with the admission process, but in a very polite manner. All I want to say is that it was just my fear that took me to this situation. Raging is for fun, one should enjoy this activity. Don’t get over excited or be nervous, just be calm and things will be very cool for you. It was quite an experience.

WHAT I LEARNED WHEN I WAS AWAY

As i made my way up to the village’s only mosque and as I walked there my mind there was a flashback during the evening stroll we would all go on. Back in those days, there was no Internet, and video games hadn’t made their way here yet, so we had to use our imaginations to keep ourselves entertained. We’d play football,hide and seek, freeze tag- i.e where if the person who is “it” tags you, you have to freeze where you are. Another participant can tag you to unfreeze you.

Just the other evening I was commenting to a friend of mine how the village’s roads are strangely deserted now. You barely see a soul. Back when I was a child, all the kids would be on the streets. We’d be out playing hide and seek, playing hopscotch and other traditional games. DSTV and European football leagues came along, however, and took the village’s soul with it.

The evening walks were my favourite, especially during the December holiday when we would lay on our backs and watch the star showers. This is where my dreams were first made; it is here that I dreamt of travelling some day, it was here that i dreamt of going places and dream big.

 I also took a quick walk through the graveyard, which always serves to remind me of how fleeting life is; how people who also once called this home have long since departed. I saw the faces of many of my friend’s grandparents staring back at me from the epitaphs, a strong reminder of how quickly time goes by. It doesn’t feel like so long ago that many of these very people would be shouting at us for something we had or had not done.

After I clicked my final shots of the evening, I sat down to enjoy the sundown at Mt Borolle. As much as I love travelling to far and fascinating lands, I always ground myself here, in this humble village of Sololo. Yes, it will never attract masses of tourists or the attention of travel magazines, but its importance to me and my life story is unparalleled.

I joke that nothing changes in Sololo, but that’s not true. It does change. Buildings get older and crumble. People age and die. But the one thing that remains constant is that this is where home is, and just because I don’t physically live here it doesn’t mean that my heart cannot.