On Saturday I had a revelation.
I keep having these and then some how or the other I forget about them.
A friend of mine called me on Friday night. She said that she knows I am a friend of the KSPCA and there were 2 dogs on Peponi Road - one had been hit and killed by a speeding car, and its partner, never left its side. She said she saw them the day before and had been feeding the one that survived but they needed help and if I could speak to the KSPCA.
I drove past the dogs on Saturday morning and it moved my soul and I was almost in tears when I saw. One dog, lifeless, the other by its side, looking around, refusing to leave its friend despite them both being so close to the road and close to danger.
I had already spoken to the KSPCA and they were on their way.
Again, as I was driving on Saturday through a leafy suburb, I noticed a boy, may be in his twenties, on a wheelchair. He was holding a ball but looking sad, distraught and not all there. There was a man with him, obviously his caretaker. He was sitting - hand on his forehead - looking as though he has lived this day before and was totally bored of it.
I was driving from a baby shower that I planned and was on my way to memorial prayers of my friends father. It had been ten years since his passing. Look at the circle of life - I was literally passing it by on Saturday. From the dogs to this young man in a wheelchair to the celebration of a life to the celebration of a life to come. I am glad it was a long drive back and forth and finally a long, silent drive back home that allowed me to reflect on the day.
We dwell so much on the shit that does not matter that we forget about the things that do matter. How much time do we spend analyzing other peoples lives on facebook or instagram? Ok, may be we do not analyze, but we stalk. We have a look and dare I say it - we judge.
But put yourself in the life of the dog whose friends life was taken away, probably in front of him/her and because of your loyalty you sat by this once full of energy body and tried to understand what was going on. You braved freezing cold nights just in case your friend woke up.
Put yourself in the shoes of a young man in a wheelchair whose parents have been told that your son will never walk again - I am just assuming. Or put yourself in the shoes of his caretaker who lives day in and day out like his life is on repeat.
Put yourself in the shoes of a young girl who lost her dad at the prime of her life. Whose children will never meet the one man who made her who she is today. Who looks back and wonders how the time just flew by. Put yourself in the shoes of a woman who is about to have her fourth baby. The newness of life beats within her and although she has been through it many times before, she is still excited and cannot wait for to hold her brand new bundle of joy.
We are allowing life to pass us by because we are just caught up in looking at how other people live their lives.
What did she wear?
She looks so fat
As if she can even afford that trip to Paris
Yeah, like that is a real designer bag
We all know that the husband is cheating, why are they pretending
She bitched about her last week and now they are taking a selfie!
That quote will show them
Why is she/what is he/ where are they/ how can they
These are all the judgements we make either aloud or in our minds. Then we zoom into the picture and scrutinize - and make more of our sarcastic comments.
The thing is, social media has allowed us to 'show off" our lives in our capacity or even in a make believe capacity. So what?! Why judge, double tap if you like and move on. Don't stop to judge, it does not define the person you are judging, it defines you.
But what is important in life? When it comes down to it - you have to count your blessings more. There is so much negativity swirling about. I feel it more than ever. I get caught up in who said what about me, sometimes I am told that this person does not like you and that person said blah blah fishcakes about you. Dude, I will be honest with you - I swim in the negativity pool from time to time. But I am conscious of this and I get out - dry myself off and dive into the sea of positivity.
Not everyone will agree with you - not everyone will understand you - but not everyone is important. We must consciously move from being negative to positive.
Our vibes affect everyone. So if you are bitching and bad mouthing then the next person will do the same and so forth. It spreads and we all pay the price, we all get caught up in it!
What I am trying to say is this - you are not whollier than thou. You make mistakes. You have haters. You have an ego. You are not perfect so stop pretending to be. Work on yourself. Leave others alone. Focus on you. Better your life. Better your habits. Better your words. Be productive. Be positive. Be grateful.
You must stay true to yourself and value this life - it is a blessing, in every sense of the way. What you have right now, where you are right now is all that matters - the rest is just background noise.
Play with a ball, sit with your friend, tell your father you love him, celebrate life- because you can and get of your phones.
Focus.
X
As much as I love to travel, it is hard for me with the 2 kids to go off on shopping sprees. And even when I do travel getting as much shopping in as possible is a bit of a task as at most times designer labels are not under one roof and it takes time to get from one place to another.
So I have to say a big thank you to Vanitaa Bhatia - the brain behind DIVAlicious. She had a simple idea of gathering the crème de la crème exhibitors for clothing and accessories, home decor & more by getting brands across the globe. The concept was very simple - something for everyone! DIVAlicious launched on 23rd April, 2011 and has since become an established brand outside of Dubai!
This weekend we will see a beautiful mix of local and international designers as they come together for a unique experience with shopping and shows combined. The venue is the plus Villa Rose Kempinski and the dates are Friday at Saturday.