Sunrise to Sunset

“To sleep under the stars, who could ask for more, and the moon keeping watch over me”
-Phil Collins

The camel ride into the sunset that took us to the Sahara desert was a bumpy, but beautiful ride. And no doubt would leave us sore for the next day or two, but it was incredible. We watched the shadows of our camels get longer as the sun dipped further into the horizon, while the sky was being illuminated with hues of yellow and pink. It was simply breathtaking.

After we dismounted from our camels, and watched the sun completely set into the dunes, we rested on the sand dunes of the Sahara on the mild may night. Stars began appearing one by one, soon decorating the night sky; the North Star the brightest, and the moon the sky’s nightlight. Seeing three shooting starts was priceless. A bright flashing light that shone and cut through the sky. At some point, you completely lose yourself in wonder, and it was just you and nature, you and God. When you get up, you shake the sand from your hair and occasionally crunch on the sand grains that managed to blow into your mouth. And the next morning completes the experience, with the sun rising up from behind the mountains adorning the sand dunes with a glow.

"Out There"

A poem I read on the tube, while I was with S.T. (who I accidentally called TP). For some reason we were laughing so hard I was crying and her insides were hurting, making the poem and the moment all the more memorable :)

If space begins at an indefinite zone
where the chance of two gas molecules colliding
is rarer than a green dog or a blue moon
then that's as near as we can get to nothing.

Nostalgia for the earth and its atmosphere
weakens the flesh and bones of cosmonauts
One woke to find his crewmate in a space suit
and asked where he was going. For a walk.

He had to sleep between him and the air - lock.
Another heard a dog bark and a child cry
halfway to the moon. What once had been
where heaven was, is barren beyond imagining
and never so keenly as from out there can
the lost feel earth's the only paradise.

-James McKendrick

"Are you searching for your soul? Then come out of your own prison. Leave the little stream and join the river that flows to the ocean. Like an Ox, don't pull the wheel of this world on your back. Take off the burden, whirl and circle. Rise above the wheel of the world. There is another view."

--Rumi

"Hope is not a plan"

They say things fall into place when the time is right.
For the most part, I believe this. Things do fall into place as they should when the time is right.
Things always fall into place in my life.
Almost always.
But at what point are you supposed to take things into your own hands?
Isn’t there a “shelf life” (Z.S. 2009) for how long you’re supposed to wait for something to fall into place?
At some point you have to take things into your own hands.
You can’t just sit around and wait for things to happen.
It’s easier to do that…
To leave things to God, the universe, fate…
But at some point, you realize you’re not 15, you’ve had enough “me” time, and you’re ready to take that next step.
And if it’s something that’s been on your mind or in your thoughts for a long time (going on 15 years), then at least you need to know that you tried..
Even if it means you have to make a sacrifice or step out of the comfort zone, it’s definitely time to take a stand.
If it’s an epic fail, and you have to be ready for that too, then at least you know you tried.
Is it better to take the risk than be sitting in Timbuktu (literally)?
Well, sitting in Timbuktu is actually pretty sweet and the fact that you might sacrifice doing that for something else, is huge.
But I think it’s time that I take that step and then I’ll leave it to God, the universe, fate to decide what happens next.
At least I can say I tried…
“Hope is not a plan” (S.G. 2010)