amywayz

The Way

2009-10-19T13:17:00.004+04:00

"See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty. Malach 3:1

How many times have we pondered the goal rather the way, the end rather than the means, the target rather than how to get there? God did. He clearly had salvation well planned out since the fall of Adam and Eve and could have saved all his people even before Moses was in the picture - but that is not the way He works.

Our Lord is a God of preparation. A God of Planning. A Lord of well thought pathways. In His last book prior to the Old Testament, He declares, one more time, a messenger who will prepare the way. What about the years and centuries prior to the book of Malachi - wasn't that preparation? Clearly that time was not enough. That time was not enough to teach His people to stop sinning and whole heartedly follow Him. It was not enough time for His people to learn to worship and love Him as the only God. It was not enough time for the vessels He chose to be clean and ready for the refiner's fire on the last day.

Many times God takes away the goal and the targets we want or live for - no matter how noble or logical they may seem because - He is more interested in the way. He is more interested in us becoming pure, Holy and ready for the last day rather than the souls we desire to bring to Him, the good works we want to do for Him or even the talents we want to use for His glory. Not that the latter is not important but the former drives the latter. The way drives the quality of the fruit. The Vine Keeper refines the branches because He desires fruit that lasts.

God chose Abraham to become the Father of all nations but it took Him over a decade to fulfill that promise. The final test was very important. Abraham putting his will on the altar was the goal and only after that would the Lord hasten to do carry out His promise. And hence the meaning of the rest of the verse in Malachi, 'Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come."

Nobody wants to be in 'Under Construction' phase. The wilderness for forty years certainly was not pleasant. But it was critical for the Lord to fulfill the rest of His promises and more importantly, critical for the holiness and sanctifcation of the Israelites.

Many people I have known or not known recently were taken away from this world in the blink of an eye. It taught me how frail we really are. At the end of the way is a Judge who will rule according to the essence and not the outward fruit. 'But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. 3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.' (Malach 3:2-3). Only pure metals will endure the purifier's fire. It does not matter whether it was a ring that was used to save many souls or a pleasant pendant that attracted many onlookers. It does not matter whether it was a bracelet that wrapped around many people's thoughts or a chain that brought others to church services. What matters is whether each metal can withstand the test on that day.

In the midst of the hustle and bustle of the 'Christian' life we believe we are leading - many plans, ideas, many visions, many events - have we taken the way of preparation? Have we been obedient at all costs? Have we been pure and holy behind closed doors, in the secrecy of our hearts? Are we ready every day for a moment that will come like a thief when no one looking? That is the essence.

On Eagle's Wings

2007-04-04T11:14:00.001+04:00

It's 11:00 am and Im tired. I have been working for the past one hour. Yes, one hour. Because I spent two hours and fifteen minutes commuting here. I spend the same aount of time on the road on the way home. On my first day here, we lost the way. On our second day, we also lost the way. Today, we knew the way but they had to block the road that brings us here. The King wanted to go shopping or something. I have also had a weird week. Several strange things have been happening in my life recently that are difficult to grasp. They're not all tragic, nor painful, but only difficult to rationalize. Some people live in denial to maintain thier sanity. Others release the anger at work or take up go karting - whichever is more violent. I am one of the types that think.

Hence, I decided to read and meditate on way here. Then midway I started listening to my heart instead of my mind. My inner voice told me to listen to me, to get in touch with who I really am and what I really want. I decided to let go of the questions I had and the answers I wanted but didnt have. I surrendered to The Power that is greater than I am...and I listened. I was told to accept and believe for those who do shall never be ashamed.

Then I arrived. My legs were aching. My head hurt. I was feeling sick to my stomach. But a strange sense of strength carried me...on eagle's wings. I met an unpleasant woman who gave me a strange look as i entered the office. One of the curious guys here shocked me to my toes as I picked something off the printer with his squeaky but loud 'Good Morning (What are you doing, by the way?).' I had an unexpected meeting with a very very wary Chinese man who looked as cynical as Inspector Gadget. He asked the tea boy to bring his china cup (with its own little lid on it - looks like the mizo soup containers you get at sushi places) and then he left it untouched as if to set up a turf, lol) in our room. The meeting output made my task a little bit more complicated than it already was.

I drifted away in tought again. I had mixed feelings of joy and saddness. Then my cell phone beeped. It was a short message, only to say, "Trust in the Lord with all you heart and do not rely on your own understanding." (Proverbs 3). I think I need another ride...on eagle's wings.

Food For Thought Series Continued...

2007-03-12T10:39:00.000+04:00

Pottery Plans

Sometimes we face great pain in our lives and we blame it on many factors, including God. Because of the sense of blame and self pity, we fall into several traps: Anger, frustration, unforgiveness etc...By time we become chained and eventually these feelings build strongholds in our lives that become immensely difficult to break down. We read God's word and promises and we feel they are so distant. In fact, God Himself becomes distant, because we have shut ourselves away from Him, refusing to hear his reasons and his divine purpose.

Then, because of His constant providence, He continues to strip us away from worldly solutions. All of a sudden, we find ourselves cornered with no way out but Him. At this time our prayers become different. We no longer pray, 'Get me out of this' or 'Help me get out of this' but we pray, 'Lord I have tried but I have failed. I have no solution but you.' Then the surmounting peace of the Lord overcomes your heart and mind. You find yourself yielding. Yes, yielding. The key word. We yield and surrender our all. And we realize that this is all He wanted from the beginning.

I have come to realize that we do not yield for two reasons:

Our inability to logically accept the solution. We wonder how and why and keep running around in a vicious circle because the situation defies logic and what should be right.
Our inability to accept pain in a certain area of our lives. Quite often, we store up treasures for ourselves in a certain place on earth: Our careers, our relationships, our possessions, our children etc. And we fear losing them. We fear failing in that area. We fear any harm that might touch these things. However, in reality, we are actually fearing the Hand of the Lord. We are fearing His 'pottery plans.' We would actually sometimes pray, 'Lord touch anything, take away anything but that.' And the Lord decides to strike just that to consecrate our hearts and minds only for Him.

Once we stop arguing with the Potter, we know the truth and it sets us free. His shaping is still painful, but merged with loving touces. His fingers become sometimes unpredictable, but He slowly reveals His plan. His pressure might become unbearable, but His accompanying Breath of Life eases the furnace. The shape might look strange, but our slow yielding will break the shell of our understanding. The process is slow but every day of yielding brings closer His deliverance.

2007-02-22T13:04:00.000+04:00

Until Your Cross Is Mine

How did you carry me when I couldn’t care less?
How did you wipe my tears when I couldn’t caress
Your head in my arms and heal your pain?
How did you love me like that with no restrain?

How can I follow you carrying my cross?
How can I deny myself and consider it a loss
Incomparable to the greater gain, as you nail
My old self and revive the new man again?

How do I heal my pain with yours -
When I am humbled by my failures
Broken and sore? How do I follow you to
The Golgotha when death is so sure?

I followed you with my self-pity,
It looked like your cross.
But I walked alone.
I followed you carrying my anger
It felt like your cross
But I walked alone.
I followed you carrying my despair.
I nailed the pieces together. I built a cross.
But I walked alone.

Then I gave you my cross and yours became mine
And you walked beside me as death took its time
We passed through the grave, and then your light did shine
And I rose with you because your cross was mine.

2007-01-14T14:30:00.000+04:00

Why Don't We Trust?

Why don't we trust when we know there is a way out?
Why don't we trust when all the lights go out?
Why don't we trust when we know there's a stronger Hand
Holding together the earth, the seas and the clouds?

Why don't we live like we're taken care off
Singing, smiling - and dancing to the One
Who's there when lifes' curves throw us off?
Isn't there a time for everything under the sun?

Why don't we render control to the One
Who sits on His throne only to summon
the angels, the saints, the rulers, even the waves
To the service and aid of his needy ones?

Why do we fear to break our human arms
And believe that there will never be any harm
When we lay the reins at his Holy feet
And break the bonds of fear and charms?

Why do we believe that we have to control
Every minute, every second of our days
Lest the night arrives and our plans fall
Crashing and taking with them our all?

Why don't we ever release our planning
- And the jamming - and the damning,
To the One who only wants you to trust
While he for us ensures a safe landing?

For when I do let Him play in time,
He orchestrates all events and times
To a beautiful symphony that becomes mine,
For he is always faithful to keep time.

Yet, I ask - Why don't I trust
- All the time?

2006-11-15T11:44:00.000+04:00

Somebody tell me something will change...

I haven’t been on too many consulting projects in my life. This is only my second one and I must say that change management is the most frustrating experience in the world. I am currently having a thought on what is wrong. We have a program in place, we have a structured approach, we have a slogan, we have a vision and we have a training plan. Yet, all in vain.

I still walk in to the customer service department and I see employees shouting and arguing with customers – taking them for granted. I still walk into other departments and see people lost in their own frenzy about the latest Gucci bags or the next meal they’re about to have.

The real change here is behavioral change. How can you get people who’ve operated in one manner their whole lives to change their behavior?! Psychology 101: How to get dogs fetch a stick? Give them a slab of meat when they do. Positive reinforcement in the form of some sort of appreciation: verbal recognition, bonus points etc.

How to stop a dog from sniffing around people eating? Lock it up in the kitchen. Negative reinforcement. Verbal warning, note it in their appraisal etc. Have we tried this? Yes. Has it worked? No.

If I correctly remember the reinforcement theory, the idea was to be consistent. However, it never said how long. In this place, I think, it takes a lifetime.

I was told to cascade top-down. Get the top management to buy-in. Most of the management has internalized the need for change. Yet, there isn’t much happening. It’s the archaic concept of: People come to work for a pay – and they will do whatever they’re told for that pay. Taking your people for granted.

Top-down also does not work because there is another reverse order. Suck up to boss and guarantee your next pay check. Boss also sucks up to his boss to guarantee his next pay change. And the sucking up, goes all the way to top

I guess that’s the pivot – if you’re taking your own people for granted, why won’t you take your customers for granted? If you’re taking your salary for granted, why won’t you take your current position for granted. A cultural dilemma. Wrong values. Zero work ethic.

Managing the people side of change is important. People need to be educated on the reasons for change, motivated to change and given the necessary skills to change. But then again, if the culture doesn’t sustain long-term change…you need to restart your change management program by building awareness, desire and ability once again …I guess that’s why consulting firms make so much money… Anywayz.

2006-10-16T17:07:00.000+04:00

SWIPE

Being a new junior consultant, my company decided I need some Consulting 101. This guy was flown in from France – worked for the largest consulting firms in the world, graduated from INSEAD, speaks five languages and just steals the show during his sessions. On the first day, we were discussing consulting basics and he said it can be partly explained in this five letter word: SWIPE. I scanned my brain for any scientific definitions and finally figured it means chopping your client’s neck off when they cross their fine lines with you. When we all failed to guess, he wrote: Steal With Pride

He said that because consultants are typically bored people who read and flip through anything they see, they can easily create slides and concepts from various things they have seen before. This “mosaic” is customized to fit the current, specific problem and normally this impresses their clients – and hence “with pride!” I gaped in utter shock. This guy is advocating plagiarism! I was ready to storm through the door and didn’t mind stepping on him on the way out.

I later went back to work and started adding a reference list at the end of all my presentations and reports. When my team had issues with it, I would mention the reference verbally to the client. I referenced every single thing I used. A month later I was assigned to a softer/less technical work stream – managing change. Google “change management and you’ll generate half a million hits if not more! And then it sank in – my mosaic skills were improving! I was creating so many concepts and frameworks out of nothing – from things I just stumbled upon – the idea was to stop reinventing the wheel, somebody out there must have done it before! (sales pitch).

Last week, I worked very hard on a workshop. By ‘hard’ I mean, a mosaic of some old slides plus a few other projects’ slides plus some random surfing – tweaked the output a bit and VOILA! Only one slide was missing. I looked everywhere for something similar that I could ‘customize’ but NONE, ZILCH, RIEN! I finally gave up and decided to actually create something from scratch. I wasn’t really sure whether I was ever going to upload that slide on our intranet for somebody to ‘swipe’ it. I had ideas about copywriting it or probably even putting it in the hidden folders on my laptop.

Today, I reopened the file to make a few changes and mistakenly deleted the slide. I could not undo. I lost the slide. I got frustrated and started blogging this. In being so tight on time, the next time I work on it, I will definitely swipe it….so much for personal ethics...anywayz!

2006-09-25T15:51:00.000+04:00

Much Ado About Nothing

An intrinsic part of Egyptian culture – cherished by many and understood by few.

Once there was a man with a broken door. Everybody knew he had a broken door because they spent hours every evening staring at his door – or each other’s doors for that matter. The man then fixed it by tying a rope around the broken knob. Everybody then knew he had a “broken but newly renovated door” because, once again, his door was public property and it’s important that the public become concerned about public property.

Being a low profiler, the man decided he could not neighborhood’s talk any more. He brought down the door and fixed a brand new one. Everybody then walked over to look at this brand new door. They of course did this to ensure they were spreading the right talk. They now ensured everybody not only knew had a brand new door now, but that he used to have a broken door and later a broken door with a repaired knob. Being responsible citizens, they have to be accurate in what they pass around. What goes around comes around.

One day, a wise man got sick of the neighborhood’s attitude, so he called in all the people and asked them: Why are you still talking about the man? He fixed a brand new mahogany door just to ensure your tongues are tied. Why can you not spare him any peace?

Three people responded:

1. Come on old man, how many broken doors are there? Being responsible citizens and working for the good of this town, any news is our news. I mean, we do respect his privacy but we’ve just gotta let our neighbors know about the plight of our poor neighbor. Perhaps they could help him. We know he has never asked for help, but that is community service – meeting unmet (unheard?) needs.

2. We’ve also gotta tell our neighbor’s neighbors just in case they’re awake the night any thieves break in. You know, with a door like that, this guy is an easy target. We would not want our neighbor to be robbed and killed alive. Being responsible citizens, we’re all here for each other

3. And wise man, there is still another group – the thieves themselves, just in case they come in at the wrong time…now being responsible citizens, we must ensure everybody gets a piece of the pie…

I could never find any accurate vocabulary to describe the utmost foolishness of idle talk, or any to describe the ignorance of its supporters. I wrote this anecdote to draw a picture instead.

Food-for-thought: A picture is worth a thousand words!

2006-08-20T13:22:00.000+04:00

Miracle Log

Years ago we landed in Nairobi airport with computers, sound systems, fridges, curtains, carpets, loads of tuna, cereal and peanut butter, amongst other items, that would have been certainly heavily fined if not declared, heavily taxed if declared or possibly confiscated in either of the two cases. I remember we all prayed in our hearts that we would pass through smoothly. And then I remember walking through the customs gates with at least 15 trolleys of huge boxes (difficult to miss!) with all the customs inspectors looking at us but saying nothing. On the way to the Coptic Center, I remember thinking that our group leader must have had some contacts in the airport or he must have given them “some gifts from America (Synonymous with money or gift items in Africa).”

My miracle was that they accepted the bribe and let us go through. Many times we limit the Unlimited Creator and so we see the miracles we want to see - mainly the miracles that are backed up by some human effort – and in today’s terminology we call that “worldly wisdom” or “rationale.” I have tried several times to share a few of the miracles that I believe were purely diving work with others. Most of the time the reaction is either that I must be missing something, or that I got over excited, or that something else must have happened.

A week ago, I was inspired to begin this miracle log and surprisingly enough I have exactly seven miracles:

Three days ago I left home late for the millionth time. I reached JAFZA in 25 minutes on a speed of 180 km/hr. Food-for-thought: I had no accidents, there was no obstructive traffic and I normally arrive at work later than that at the same speed.
I resigned from my last job October 10th, 2005. Food-for-thought: The proposal of the current project I am on was signed on that date.
I liked a song I heard in a meeting so much. I looked all over for a cd that had it and found none. A few days later a girl asks us for a ride. Food-for-thought: We end up talking about this song in the car. She opens her bag and hands us the tape.
We proposed something to our client and then figured we didn’t have the resources for it. I had never done anything like this before and my manager was becoming increasingly frustrated with me. Food-for-thought 1: One morning, I stumbled upon a book that solved the problem in no time. Food-for-thought 2: I stumbled on an article on the internet yesterday that said this solution was Best Practice and world renowned.
I got stuck with a few ugly assignments at work that I have never done before. I walked into the meetings and I cannot remember what I said. I do not even think anything I said made sense. Food-for-thought: Decisions that were pending forever were taken on that day and issues that had been open for ages were closed.
A municipality bus rammed into my side a few days ago. Food-for-thought 1: My wheel got stuck in its wheel – so the bus had to stop before it ran me over flat. Food-for-thought 2: I only have a minor dent that nobody has even noticed. Food-for-thought 3: I was late to work and the accident was the perfect excuse!
I wanted to go see a dermatologist for some skin rash. I hoped he would write me a decent medicine. I also hoped my insurance would cover it. Food-for-thought 1: The doctor prescribed the medicine but wrote different reasons on the claim form so that the insurance would cover it. Food-for-thought 2: He gave me a free treatment that normally cost thousands, lowered the price and wrote something else on my claim form to cover it. Food-for-thought 3: I walked away with not only the medicine, but a free gift bag of other goodies – like lip balm, soap, juice, cream, lotion etc.

I am positive there may be many out there who will still consider these ordinary coincidences. However, I am beginning to realize that miracles are what experience if we adopt a humble, simple heart that is completely reliant on the only true provider.

We sometimes decide to believe in the miracles that are possible to believe and then wonder why God doesn’t raise the dead anymore…anywayz!

2006-07-18T16:36:00.000+04:00

“Thy Kingdom Come…”

Everyday I see this guy who looks a bit like a character in X-men, so Ill just call him X-man. X-man is always relaxed and smiling. X-man is always truly himself – very sincere and honest in all that he says – never ingratiating nor flattering anyone. X-man is always courteous and forgiving. When verbally attacked, X-man responds with amazing calmness, wisdom and humility. Two days ago we had a company event and they wanted a volunteer to dance alone on the stage in front of at least 200 people. X-man gladly volunteered. He didn’t care about the onlookers, he just enjoyed every moment. X-man is never down, never angry, never stressed. Frustration doesn’t get the better of him, injury is never done to him, and pain never gets to him.

In his own words, “We are living in a big dream. Have you ever taken your dreams seriously? When I come to work, I enter a game – one of the many games I play all day. All games end and nobody takes them seriously. When I face other problems, I know I am not in reality – I know there is a bigger reality to come. I don’t take this life seriously, the way you don’t take your dreams seriously. This is not reality, reality is to come. Everything in this word is three-dimensional. We can only be truly alive when we know and experience the fourth dimension. Have you found the fourth dimension?”

X-man explained that his fourth dimension is some meditative therapy where he connects with another world. X-man reads all sorts of science fiction and is waiting for it to crystallize to “reality.” His belief is in the Matrix and is looking for a Morpheus to guide him. His belief is that the world will end and we will pay for the Karma of our actions – to reap what we’ve sowed.

Amy, of course, believes in the good ol’ rich n’ REAL stuff. Amy’s fourth dimension is Christ – the Alpha and the Omega. Her belief is in Heaven and is being guided there daily through God’s providence. She believes that the world will end someday too and that if she doesn’t repent, she will also reap what she sowed.

Enter Amy’s daily life – as observed by X-man. Amy convinces herself that reality is here and that every day is the be all and end all. She is upset when people wrong her. She is frustrated when things don’t go as planned. She is stressed when things go out of control. Amy is not smiling when offended. Amy is not patient with rude people. Amy is not relaxed when being verbally attacked. Amy will NEVER be exposed to onlookers the way X-man was – she has too much ego to caress….Amy… has just hit a stop sign…but will she stop?

Anywayz…

2006-07-05T11:35:00.000+04:00

Blaze a trail, Please.

A French naturalist once conducted the following experiment. He placed a few caterpillars on a flower pot rim and left some pine needles (caterpillar food) in the center. The caterpillars began their procession along the flower pot rim, one following the other, hour after hour, day after day, for an entire week until the last caterpillar was almost touching the first, forming a complete circle. After a week, all caterpillars died from starvation. Although, the one thing that could have saved them was only six inches away, a processionary caterpillar will only move if it sees another caterpillar leading the way.

Today not very different from processionary caterpillars, we have many recessionary human beings. Largely contributing to the degenerate state of today’s world, they come in several species.

Some “proceed” only to survive - too selfish and unconcerned to contribute to the world around them.
Others are the fearful majority who play second fiddle: Social compliance is top priority regardless of whether it was purposeful.
Last but not least, you have the default type. They stick to the trail somebody left behind, close their shutters and follow in a trance. In case you’re wondering, this type is not too close to extinction yet. Their trance phase involves nibbling off somebody’s nerves....anywayz….

2006-06-16T14:03:00.000+04:00

The Terminal

He slumps on the bus stop bench,
watching the minutes tick by,
A bumper sticker says 'sold out!'
He wishes he had time to buy.

He ascends the bus as others hurried
To find the best seat this time,
He rolls out the newspaper he carried
And hides behind "The Times."

Buildings fly by, new ones fly in
While flowers color the scene,
Seats are freed, new faces come in
As he tries to look too keen.

"Where are you going," the driver
Wonders, staring back at him,
"You've skipped all stops
And to the last, we're now checking in."

"Back to where we started, sir
All I did too long was hop,
I realized all I waited for,
Was just another bus stop!"

2006-05-17T21:33:00.000+04:00

Food-for-Thought Series 2

Song Title: Can't Remember.
Singer: Would like to give him more acknowledgement but don't know.
Impact: Lifetime

Renew me down again,
Ever at your feet,
Show me how much you love humility,
O Spirit be the star that leads me to,
The humble God of love,
I see in you.

You are the God of the broken,
The friend of the meek,
You wash the feet of the weary,
Embrace the ones in need,
I want to be like you Jesus,
To have this heart in me.
You are the God of the humble,
You are the humble King.

The song above is the closest to my heart. More than the words, the songwriter amazes me. I always find it the hardest to truly sing this song was when I go through a difficult time. One day, I stopped singing at "I want to be like you Jesus..." because I was going through a lot and having Jesus' heart wasn't really my concern, so I rewrote it:

The hardest time to give
Is when you want,
The hardest time to love,
Is when you're hurt,
The hardest time to walk,
Is when your feet,
Can't carry you no more,
To the rest you need.

And you are the God of the broken,
The friend of the meek,
You wash the feet of the weary,
Embrace the ones in need,
I need to be like you Jesus,
To heal this pain in me,
For only you can be worthy
To change this heart of mine.

I've loved too long in words,
Day in and out,
I have carried when I could,
But failed no doubt,
O Spirit, how can I bear any more?
When all my strength is gone,
And my arms are sore.

For you are the God of the broken,
The friend of the meek,
You wash the feet of the weary,
Embrace the ones in need,
I tried to be like you Jesus,
To bear and to care,
But I have fallen away,
And failed once again.

O Jesus, take me home
Where I can reach,
The rest you promised me,
That the world can't teach
O Spirit, be my guide that leads me to,
The humble heart I need,
to be with you.

Yes you are the God of the broken,
The friend of the meek,
You wash the feet of the weary,
Embrace the ones in need,
I want to be like you Jesus,
To have this heart me,
You are the God of the humble,
You are the humble King.

2006-05-07T14:29:00.000+04:00

Give me something to live for. (Arabic Song Title)

Yesterday, I met a young, vibrant, extremely charismatic HR director at a huge conglomerate based in Dubai, who, frankly speaking, blew me away with what he had achieved over an extremely short career span.

After volunteering some “expert advise” on an engagement I am currently working on, he talked a bit about a job offer he was pondering. Since I promised utmost confidentiality I cannot really type the details here but lets just say it’s close to the one of the highest titles you can achieve in a lifetime career.

Gaping back at him I asked, “and?!” He said, “Nothing, I turned it down thrice before.” I said, “Why?!” He said something that I think will forever remain ingrained in me: “What do I live for after that?!” This opportunity meant he would be hitting the ceiling … and from his eyes I could see that scared him to death.

Ironically enough, right before this discussion, him and I were talking about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. I wondered whether that opportunity for somebody who is so career-oriented would be reaching the state of “self-actualization.”

When I was first introduced to this term as a freshman, my professor said she was “very close to that stage.” She went on to explain her life from a waitress-turned-MBA-holder, to a professor and a mother. I still think about her and wonder if being “only close” is what keeps her wanting to live for a bit more.

Self-Actualization (redefined) (n): An imaginary state that we would all like to see from afar and yearn to be at. We are motivated and sane as long we are working towards it. Once we’re close to being there we search for another milestone to make ourselves feel alive. We would rather die getting there rather than die once we’re there…

Exit Music: “Ill see u… when you get there…see when you get there…if you ever get there…yea yea”

Self-Actualization (Actual Definition) (n): The most fulfilling state of being alive…Anywayz…Next.

2006-05-01T10:23:00.000+04:00

Please Send me Back on Same

Every morning, when I walk into our mini-pantry at our current client's site to make my coffee, I see the neat, smiling and courteous office boy making the staff their tea and coffee. When I take out the spoon from the coffee jar, I almost always forget to put it back. Every single morning, I remind myself not to stir my coffee with that spoon but I still forget - for the past two and a half months now! I always told myself I had good intentions. At least I'm making my own coffee! I am very new to this concept of office boys making coffee for employees. I actually find it particularly demeaning.

Today morning, I made a point to remember. I found a neatly printed label exactly trimmed to fit the spoon handle and laminated to be waterproof saying in all the English he could gather: "Please send me back on same." Just, how polite and cute is that? In a more "professional" environment, I think he would have been slighlty unforgiving. As the rapid commercial and professional development takes its toll on this city and people's egos, many forget simplicity in reacting when they don't get red carpet treatment - let alone when intentional damage is done unto them.

A lady at my last job not only openly trashed a team mate because he used her mug (not that he knew it was hers and stil wanted to use it) but also demanded he wash it and then she sanitized it. When somebody repeatedly used my mug, I put a little label with my name on it. The whole company then started to use it.

A courteous "No" wouldn't work too well in many places....anywayz...

2006-04-27T15:07:00.000+04:00

Food for Thought - Series 1

Pain is a well of opportunities.

Disappointment breaks your shell of understanding.

Tragedy is the magic that creates beauty out of ashes.

2006-04-24T22:46:00.000+04:00

Who's rules is it anywayz?

Setting: One morning on a very bad day, I was supposed to meet somebody at Dubai Municipality. This happens to be located in the most congested area in the U.A.E. so the experience comes with the most frustratingly hopeless parking process in the world, complemented, of course, with the effects of the desert midday heat.

Scene 1: After a semi-sun stroke, I decided I was not going to park anywhere beyond two minutes from the building, even if it took me all day – not that I had all day, but oh well. I finally decided to pretend I was meeting somebody in the Intercon next door, have my car valet parked and then walk out of the back door to the municipality *evil grin.* As if reading my mind, the valet attendant warned me I had to stamp my valet ticket from any of their outlets or else I would pay AED 37 (I would love to know how they arrived at a figure that specific!). I did everything possible to explain to him the defects of that as a control: What if I meet somebody in the lobby? What if I’m meeting somebody in your offices? What if somebody else paid for my lunch? No avail.

Scene 2: I then decided to buy a small bottle of water for AED 5 to get my ticket stamped. Half way through, I discovered I was drinking Evian, i.e., a bimbo rip-off that cost me AED 15 instead.

Master Scene: Still maintaining composure, I finally made my much yearned for entrance into the main building and asked the seemingly polite building receptionist, who just smiled at the man who left before me, for directions to the person’s office. Apparently allergic to women, she made fun of my accent in pronouncing the guy’s name, told me I had better have an appointment and screeched “it’s the door on the left!.” For complete picture’s sake, she happens to be the information desk, i.e., not the person’s personal secretary; she does not keep his daily agenda and does not even control who comes in or out of the building. Secondly, she happened to be pointing to the right of the building where there was no door. Still smiling, I politely pointed to the left and said, “You mean that door on the left?” She gave me a look that made me feel I had a dunce cap on, pointed again to right and said “No that one on the left – over there!! Can’t you see?!” Then, reading my confused face, she snapped at the security, “Brother, please take her there!” Enter the security guard, who takes hurt and confused Amy to the door she was ORIGINALLY pointing to ON THE LEFT.

Behind the Scenes: Angry Receptionist is going through a serious personal crisis. She is unappreciated at home, let alone work. Probably married, she is lonely, unhappy and stressed out to make a living to meet her expenses or she will have to go through a bitter time with her husband for extra cash. Work is monotonous and doesn’t pay too well but it’s the only job she fits with her current qualifications. The sight of other seemingly happier women makes her bitter and resentful about the wrong choices she made or was forced to make.

Climax Scene: Guard brings Amy out into an open space and points towards the middle and says “it’s the building over there.” I decided to use the process of elimination again to avoid offending him: “You mean that building on the right?” He yelled at me and said, “No THERE, the SMALL ONE on the left!” and walked away frustrated. Needless to say, there was no SMALL office on the left.

Behind the scenes: Angry Guard misses his family back home. People told him this place was a gold mine but he is broke again this month. He discovered some cheap alcohol stalls in satwa, not to mention the cigarettes – loneliness sometimes gets the best out of him. He still managed to get his daughter to go to school, but he hasn’t seen her for the past five years. He’d rather send her the money rather than buy himself a plane ticket.

Final Scene: Angry Amy on the way to HR Director’s office (the person she was originally supposed to meet) seriously pondering reporting Angry Receptionist and Angry Guard but deciding not to because of a sudden guilt streak. She didn’t see behind the scenes but remembered her valet ticket. She just had her go at breaking the rules too -and for reasons that couldn’t be more pathetic - but being an average member of the corporate world, she got out clean.

Food-for-thought: Sometimes people play the same game but with different rules. You don’t win because you played by the rules. You win because your rules were chic.

2006-04-19T17:09:00.000+04:00

Amywayz

I have had this blog space ever since August 2005 but never used it because I was always trying to pin down my blog-perspective into entertaining and understandable material. Often when pondering about funny, serious, world or personal issues that will take a lot of patience to change, I reflect for a while, make a mini conclusion and then write it down to read when I need to maintain my sanity. Although I called this series “Food for thought,” I originally planned to call it "Anywayz."

The term "anywayz" normally occurs to me when I am in the middle of a friendly argument or conversation where I agree to disagree – internally or externally - because I realize we’re at a point where we both can’t really do much to penetrate each other’s minds or views. Human Psychology hasn't been completely fathomed as yet by the world's greatest scientists and so murmuring “Anywayz” just ends the possibly infinite dialogue while still respecting our differences.

While this blog may not discuss rocket science nor current world affairs, it does always promise a "matter-of-fact-food-for-thought-anywayz" message and tone. If you're into comic strips, this place is for you. Comic artists are actually the few gifted ones who see just the right color of the other side of the lawn. I was recently looking at the work of some of the world’s renowned cartoon geniuses about topics like the mess in Iraq, the gay marriage bill, the cartoons in Denmark etc. and could not help admiring their ingenuity and preciseness. Later on, one comic strip enraged me because it was so offensive to Christianity. The artist then responded to his angry audience by making some serious, convincing points about the world’s common perception of religion. I was impressed by the depth and also shocked at how applicable it was to my life but did not respect the technique. However, it was exactly "food-for-thought- anywayz" material. I chose to store it in my mind but maybe not on my laptop.

Having laid the setting, perhaps now is an appropriate time top define Amywayz:

(n). Derivative of Anyway. "An "anywayz" thought generated by Amy and commented upon by fellow bloggers, after which the blog community, including Amy, store them away in the archives – of their blogs and/or their minds – and move on anyway… "

Besides publishing some of my "Anywayz/Food For Thought" writing please expect coverage on ‘anywayz’ politics, ‘anywayz’ peace treaties, ‘anywayz’ leaders, ‘anywayz’ conference calls and round table meetings in the corporate world(Dilbert?), and the ‘anywayz’ head-nodding, never-changing majority of the public in a culture saturated with Dr. Phils and Oprahs . Sadly sometimes the term "anywayz" also becomes the cliche to "Yea, it’s the way things are, but now lets get back to our black- boxes to survive..."

Should you have found this remotely entertaining, please do come back when you’re in an “anywayz” state and I promise you will not be disappointed. If not, you could still click next and perhaps murmur ‘anywayz…’ as well :)