Allah Malik :)

Even the strong, sink sometimes

 Twasn't the right time…

Just when I'd begun to gather the pieces of myself,
To breathe without flinching, To believe again....

This storm came, uninvited.

I was ready to brave the odds,
Maybe not all, but enough…
But this breaks the surface beneath my feet.
It pulls me under when I had just begun to swim.

I am not weak.
But even the strong, sink sometimes

 :(

Identifying ways to Navigate the Inevitable - #NoFear

It’s 13:31, and I should be fast asleep, but instead, I find myself wide awake, with a pen in hand, thoughts flowing freely. 

It's odd but something definitely feels different today. 

The worries are still there, unchanged, sitting where I left them. But the past 48 hours brought a kind of strength I hadn't felt in a long time; subtle, may even be fragile, but very real. Or may be it was always there and I overshadowed (well, that's not my version but this is what I retained in these 48 hours). 

I still see the hurdles ahead. The route remains uncertain, but something about sharing my fears, voicing my worries, brought a flicker of light into the tunnel I’ve dreaded walking alone.

You probably don’t realize how much your presence, your voice, matters to me but I need to say it: even a moment of connection, even the smallest drop of relief from the weight I carry, travels with me a long way.

I've laid bare my fears, my doubts, the things that hold me back. And still, you stood there — not promising solutions, but reminding me that I’ll get through. That matters more than I can express.

I’m scared of leaning too much on your voice, your reassurance scares me of needing it. But that one check-in, that one call, that tiny window of connection helps in rebuilding something I thought I lost - "Trust in myself".

It’s only been a few hours of interaction, but I value every second of it. I won’t make any promises tonight, but I will hold on to this one belief that this journey isn’t mine alone. It includes every single one of you I crossed paths with over these past 48 hours.

I’ll honor each connection with respect, and I’ll keep walking for myself, by myself, but with the swag you all reminded me I still have :)

Thank you for being you and remaking the person I am xoxo

(sorry, no specifics but if you are reading this, you are definitely part of it)

From Us to You :)

 Nana Bou,

Teachers day may have passed but your teachings remain forever.

This is from Us to You 🙇‍♀️

However rough the ocean may be, you have taught us to sail through:

with or without a kayak,


with or without a keel,


with or without a compass to steer.

Life has hurled us into storms
that many would never dare to face, yet your patience and perseverance have guided us to stand fearless:

with or without a clue,


with or without a plan,


with or without a map in hand.

And from this day forward we promise to rise,
to never again shrink from the fight:

with or without a shield,


with or without a sword,


with or without a flame to light our way.

Your SSN :)