Sometimes when doing a project
You need to clear your head
Stop and take a break
Ask the universe for guidance
When you’re too close
You can’t see the big picture
You can’t see the forest for the trees
You have to let silence wash over you
You need to relax and breath
Then with clarity go forward
And complete the job you started
It’s ok to pause for a while
You’ll continue with more energy
May 9th, 2026
I don’t remember why I started to write a memoir
Everyone’s life is as interesting as mine
They have had challenges they have overcome
They have had dreams they have realized
So each of us should and could write a memoir
Only not everyone likes to write
Not everyone has the patience to go through the process
Not everyone has time
So I think my memoir is as ordinary as yours would be
But I have the time and the patience and I love to write
I hope these reasons are enough
May 5th, 2026
What is my North Star?
What do I want to do with the rest of my life?
Write for sure
Without writing I don’t know who I am
Without writing I will shrivel up and wilt
What else?
Be with my family and serve them
My children are adults now
That took some getting used to
I want to be in their lives
I want to be close to them
What else?
Continue to grow spiritually
That’s why we are in this earth
That’s the purpose of our lives
What else?
Serve my community
Continue serving the Shrine
The jewel of Montreal
What else?
Take care of my health
My health has always been fragile
So many ups and downs in my life
But I’m grateful for where I am
And want to continue looking after myself
March 26, 2026
The statistic’s page in my poetry blog shows me how many people are reading my blog every day
Then there is a world map
And and I can see which countries the readers live in
It’s so inspiring
It’s truly amazing
That people in Vietnam and Columbia
Singapore and Indonesia and Bahrein
Read what I write
I look at that world map
And realize how connected we are
How easy it is to communicate with a global audience
We have come such a long way
From the times that we needed to read books to find out what was happening
In the other parts of the world
Or travel
Now, the world is at our fingertips
It has become a village
And we are its inhabitants
Nov 27, 2025
Quiet
Peace
Concentration
No distraction
No questions
No conversation
This is why I come to the coffeeshop
Today I don’t have a pen
So I write on my phone
My Earl Grey tea warms me up
The music in the background is soothing
Can you imagine where I’m sitting?
I’m on the second floor of my grocery store
Sitting at one of the dining tables of the staff
Having got my tea from the Starbucks downstairs
Many places can become writing spaces
I’ve written in libraries many time
In bookstores
At airports
And on the airplane
You see what I mean
All that is needed is a means to record my thoughts
And an idea to start with
The rest happens by itself
Words flow
Thoughts are recorded
And for some magical reason
I feel better after writing
Is it the need for self expression?
The need to create?
The need to connect with the ethereal space
art comes from?
In any case
I feel refreshed
September 23, 2025
When I feel something is not right
When I miss my smile
When things don’t seem exciting
When there is a yearning in my heart
I draw or I write
When I miss the sunshine
Because it’s been raining all day
When I need a pick me up
Any time of day
I draw or I write
When I draw or write
I’m in another world
My focus is on the paper
And the thoughts in my head
It’s a magical time
And when the poem is done
When the drawing is finished
I feel uplifted and I want to smile
What is this magic?
The act of creation?
Why does it cheer me up?
Isn’t creating beauty therapeutic after all?
I don’t know the answers to these questions
And that’s fine
All I know is that I will be writing and drawing
For the rest of my life
February 28th, 2024
In the quiet of the morning
No sounds is heard but the faint tick tock of the clock on the wall
It’s still dark outside
It’s me and a cup of Earl Grey tea in my red mug
And dried fruit in the beautiful blue Japanese bowl we got as a gift years ago
Both are on the silver tray my mother brought from Bosnia when she was there
This tray has designs on it and reminds me of Persian copper trays
And their beautiful engravings
I feel content
But my mind is also busy with all the projects I have on the go
My volunteer work for the Baha’i community
My work for the Persian Art and Culture magazine
Both of which come with monthly deadlines
My writing and publishing
The work of running a house
And now, back to teaching Daphne English
After a year that I didn’t do so due to my treatments
My to-do list is always full
I cross a few items off and add a few more
But that’s life
And life needs to be full of worthwhile activities
I’m grateful and content
As I finish writing, I hear the clock go tick tock, tick tock
Nov 24, 2023
They look like writing
Beautiful, soulful, intricate strokes
But this alphabet was created by Lorraine Prichard
Inspired by the Tablets written in the hand writing of the Bab
A Holy soul in the East has influenced a receptive soul in the West
And the result is mesmerizing
Never say, “They are easy to be reproduced”
There is a lot of precise moment, and astonishing artistry involved
And Lorraine does this effortlessly
Black strokes on a large, striking, yellow upside down triangle
White lines on a black rectangular background
And the list goes on
These creations come from a magical place
That we don’t often consider or think about
Nov. 19, 2023
After Lorraine’s studio exhibition
Nothing to do
Nowhere to be
No one to see
Quiet surroundings
Only the sound of the birds
Me and my thoughts
Those are the conditions of writing for me
Once a phrase is there
I start and see where it goes
Time is needed
Can’t be rushing all the time
Need to sit for a while with my thoughts
Contemplate
Connect to that deep place in my soul
Where meaning roams
Where emotions dance
Where ideas emerge
In that solemn space
Words appear out of seemingly nowhere
And flow across the page
June 28th, 2023
What you see is what you get
What I write is genuine
There is no pretence
There was a time I could not express myself
My thoughts and feelings remained hidden in my heart
Maybe I was afraid to share them
Maybe I didn’t know how
I remember those days clearly
And the helplessness I felt
As if something was stopping me from speaking
And I would wonder why
Well those days are gone
I can be myself now
Especially when I write
What you read is who I am
Plain and simple
I write from my heart
May 4th, 2023 Continue reading
lida's musings 