Archives

Reflections on friendship

Mar14

Sometimes I wonder how I’m friends with people
Who have such different lives from me
Where is the commonality?

Then I realize that underneath all the veneer
The different social roles that we have
The conditions we live in and
The experiences we’ve had
We all long for connection
Connection with someone who
Does not judge and understands
Someone you can talk to about anything
Someone with whom you can cry and laugh

And this connection is a soul connection
It’s based on something deep inside
It’s as if you are on the same wavelength
And if the other person is old or young
Wealthy or not, shares your religion or not
It matters not

In choosing my friends what I look for
Is kindness, compassion and an encouraging nature
Someone I can talk to about things that matter to both of us

We don’t have to agree on everything
We just need to respect one another’s point of view

We all want to be seen and heard
That’s the gift our friend gives us and
That’s what we give back in return

March 7th, 2016

Balance

Mar13

It’s  all about balance
This often illusive state
Balance between caring for others
And self care
Balance between work and play

Life has been teaching me how to creat
And maintain this balance
And my balance is different from yours
You may need six hours of sleep to be well rested
I may need eight or nine
You may be able to work full time and
Maintain a healthy family life
I may not

To create balance I need to know myself
Know my strengths and limitations
Life is not a one-size fits all
I have to respect my size

And it’s not a matter of good or bad
Productive or not
Successful or not
It’s about how I feel in my skin
How I like to live my life
Not comparing myself with others
My life is good when I feel fine

I keep learning each day
But I’ll try really hard
To remember what I’ve already learned
Sometimes, it takes a few times to get something
Sometimes I’ll make the same mistake again and again
But I’ve learned to be patient with myself
Some lessons take longer to master
And that’s all right
March 13th, 2016

Disconnected

Mar11

Depression is a disconnection
Disconnection from the world
One’s passions
One’s friends
One’s agile mind

It’s a forced disconnection
Someone just suddenly pulled the plug

I grope in the dark to find the cord
But alas it’s too dark

I keep trying
I get frustrated
I keep searching
No result
It’s like a nightmare
Out of my control
My only hope, to wake up!
March 10th, 2016

 

For more poems on depression and healing please

refer to my book:  Feeling Fortunate but Awful

Mothering

Mar11

A mother’s work is not glamorous
No need to dress up for work
No chit chat at the water cooler
No breakfast meetings or lunches out

A mother’s work is repetitive
What was washed before needs to be washed again
The same advice needs to be repeated
The same routine, each day

One never really gets a promotion
Even though the challenges always change
One is not materially compensated
Even though one works day after day

Sick days don’t exist
Holidays are more busy sometimes
The same errands and
The same activities day in day out
Can test one’s patience after a while

The work of the mother as educator
Is invaluable of course
Nurturing, loving, encouraging, consoling and more
But often that’s taken for granted
That’s after all what mothers should do

The creativity that goes into problem solving
On this job, is overlooked
Mothers are doing what mothers must do

A mother’s contribution to society
Is often not appreciated
Especially if she doesn’t work outside the home

But let’s consider what the world would be like
If mothers did not do what mothers do…
March 10th, 2016

We all come from Africa

Mar10

Seeing oneness instead of otherness
Seeing kindness, joy and creativity
Instead of the colour of someone’s skin

Seeing the invisible part of us
Instead of the clothes our spirit wears

Otherness is created by us
It doesn’t have a basis in reality
We all come from Africa
No matter how we appear now

Otherness has divided us for too long
It’s time to take steps toward oneness
It’s time to look at someone’s qualities
Rather than their country of birth

It’s time to see with our inner eye
We all come from Africa
March 10th, 2016

Spring cleaning

Mar8

imageThe season of Spring cleaning has arrived
But to be honest, I don’t do much extra cleaning
Around the house at this time

I was thinking about spring cleaning my heart though
Washing the dross off my soul
And adorning it with beautiful virtues:

Kindness, gentleness, patience
Exuberance, enthusiasm and joy!

Seeing the good in everyone
Having a sin-covering eye

Speaking with kindness and love
Avoiding  being critical

Holding the hand of one who hurts
Trying to cheer them up

This kind of Spring cleaning makes sense to me
I should actually do it all year around
March 8th, 2016

The beautiful continent

Feb15

So what do you do when you have been dreaming
Of something for years and years
And suddenly the dream becomes a reality
Without you planning it?

I’m talking about my trip to Africa
A dream that has been with me for a long time
Like a loyal friend

My great great grandmother hails from this land
Her story an intriguing one
She was brought to Iran to work
At the home of the Master of the house
But Became his second wife

She was beautiful, I hear
But we don’t know which country she was from
Her story is shrouded in mystery
Mysterious like the continent she is from

So, it’s to her land of birth that I go
With hope and expectation
To the land of wonderful people with
Radiant smiles
To the land of music, dance and drums!

February 15th, 2016

Daughters

Jan30

 

Fathers and daughters have a special bond
I always felt close to my dad
And even now when his physical presence is no longer here
I still count on his support and love

I ask him for help and he responds
I know he’s aware of what’s going on
Sometimes he comes to my dreams and acts as a guide
I know that I’m still in his heart

My daughters and Albert have the same relationship
What draws them to each other, I don’t know
But there was a time when Nat would ask something
And before the sentence was done
Albert would say yes
I had asked the same thing an hour earlier
But the answer was not the same!

Albert would spend hours going over
Homework with Nat, after a long day at the office

Somehow Albert could not say no to her
Nat’s batting eyelashes did their job each time
She had her dad wrapped around her fingers
And I couldn’t figure out what her magic was

There’s something that draws on the
Heartstrings of a dad
When a request comes from his daughter
It’s as if he’s mesmerized
Mind and reason play no part!

It’s a special relationship
It’s a strong bond
One I’m happy to have experienced with my dad
Moms have the same relationship with their sons
So they need not worry and feel left out
January 30th, 2016

Africa!

Jan27

My dream trip is three weeks away
Time to get excited?
I think so!

Zambia, here I come!
To see your beautiful people
Bask in your sunshine

Here I come!
To hear your beautiful accents
And local languages
Even the names of people makes me smile

Here I come!
To see the radiant smile
On people’s faces
To see them dance
To absorb it all and store it
In a safe place in my heart

And best of all
I’ll share this experience with my daughter
What a blessing
What joy

Here I come, Africa!

 

January 27th, 2016

Dear mom

Jan23

Dear mom,
I want to thank you…

I want to thank you
For the sleepless nights you soothed me back to sleep
When I was just born
For giving up your freedom, after that, to do what you want
When you want

For giving me the best education possible
For teaching me English from early on

For being a courageous woman in your own time
For showing me that in groups women can be in charge

For the difficult days you experienced
When I first fell in love
For your support to carry on

For being a good grandmother
Keeping your grandchildren in your
Heart from afar

For all the delicious home-cooked meals
Prepared with love

For instilling in me the love of traveling
For letting me go when it was my time to fly

For all the prayers you have said
From the depth of your heart
For all the sorrows you have endured

For encouraging me in my pursuit of poetry
For understanding my love for this art

And finally, dear mom
I want to thank you simply
For being my mom!

 

January 23rd, 2016