Some say it’s the simple things in life that count. Such people stumble on a beautiful today and trip on a wonderful tomorrow. Such people have these little and simple things that bring moments of pure magic and joy.
Imagine turning on the radio, and hearing your favorite song. Thinking of someone, and they give you a call. From watching the sun rising above the horizon to the first sip of tea in the morning. From listening to the harmonic thrumming of the rain to walking through the crisp autumn leaves. From hearing the birds chirp on your window to looking at the soft white clouds fluttering in smooth cadence. From long walks in the countryside to lighting a scented candle after a long soothing shower. To returning home to your favorite scented sheets from a long trip to flying miles to see your parents smile. From hugging your loved one to belly-laughing with them hysterically. From a great workout to pampering yourself with a fancy meal. From enjoying being indulged in work to taking a sweet afternoon reprieve. From a gratifying deep clean of your home to konking out afterward on the couch in the afternoon. From a warm cup of coffee on a cold day to ice-cold water on a hot one. From watching your child giggling on a swing to listening to them read. From having productive conversations with your neighbor to getting the feeling of being welcomed in a new place. From giving in to your craving for sugar to enjoying every bit of it. These are some examples of the many small things in the grand scheme of things that sprinkle magic.
Little things on their own aren’t much, but when you add them, they can become something huge. Focussing too much on the bigger things makes you feel like a victim of circumstance. Whereas, in reality, the small simple things are actually the big meaningful things because they reflect what truly matters to us. For instance, if your sickness isn’t allowing you to eat, having a single proper meal would carry so much significance in your life then. Life would be a tragedy without all such simple little things we always take for granted. I believe life would feel crippling if they ever went away.
Sometimes, I so want to pave a path back to simplicity where humans were uncomplicated, elementary in form, and plain in appearance. For once if we stopped trying to make everything so tangled, complex, and obtuse we end up being grateful for everything we have in life.
Waniya is my rainbow baby and a blessing I always prayed for. I am always charmed by her persona, grace, and warmth. As much as I want her to be ready for the real world, I struggle to provide her with the best tools to do well. I try to give her nuggets of practical wisdom to help prepare her for life. I think of it as my utmost responsibility to help her navigate the incredibly long process of growing up because it’s a life-long event, and she will always be my baby.
Here are 7 important things to tell your daughter when she turns 10.
Spreading love is synonymous with spreading happiness around. How many of us think of spreading love and happiness while believing we are equipping ourselves in reality? Not too many, right? You must be knowing that negative energy attracts negativity and vice versa. The type of energy emerging from you carries a boomerang effect. Fellas! they were right when they said that what goes around comes around.
Canadian winters, admittedly, have a less-than-favorable reputation with those not thrilled with the promise of hiemal days and brumal nights. Conversely, not only is snow enchantingly beautiful in reality, but it is as warm as the glow of topaz. You only need to embrace it. If you look profusely, you’ll see this beautiful season brimming with subnivean secrets. It’s filled with unique beauty and wonders, like winter flurries flying in the sky, a fresh layer of white powder falling on the ground, and frost-covered branches dancing in the wind.
The Qatar edition of the FIFA World Cup was undoubtedly unique. The peninsula, other than showcasing its culture, ideology, hospitality, and identity, made the event an unforgettable experience for every fan, spectator, and player, as promised. Other than making history by hosting the region’s first FIFA World Cup, the Qatar edition made its mark as the World Cup of Firsts.
Qatar kicked off the FIFA World Cup 2022 with a flair on Sunday, November 20th, at its most iconic Al Bayt Stadium. The opening ceremony was pulled off with verve and gave the world a taste Qatari flavor. The world saw the fusion of the traditionalism of the East with the contemporaneity of the West during the ceremony.
Al Bayt in Arabic means ‘The House’, and the architectural design of the stadium takes its inspiration from the traditional tents of the nomadic people of Qatar and the region. The opening ceremony took place in this beautifully designed stadium because Qatar wanted to project that everyone, no matter where they are from, is welcome in this ‘Bayt al Sha’ar’ [ Al Bayt Stadium].
The ceremony was led by seven panels that interlaced Qatari traditions with the global culture. It highlighted the country’s culture and values, the importance of respecting others, and the need to change the misconception about the Arab world.
First Panel: ‘The Call’
The first panel was entitled ‘The Call’. We see stunning cinematic visuals where a golden mortar is struck twelve times and a whale shark is seen flying over the sea and the Arab land. The visuals show that a call for unification has been made and the people have gathered in Al Bayt Stadium which is shining in its inspiring glory.
This rhythm of the Mortar called “El-Hoon” symbolizes Arab hospitality. The twelve strikes represent Qatar’s twelve-year journey towards making this dream happen and a long-awaited call for unification in Al Bayt Stadium.
Before the great discovery of oil in the 1940s, pearl diving was the driving force behind the peninsula’s wealth, and this gentle giant is considered to be a good luck charm that gave company to the pearl divers in the sea. Other than that Qatar’s waters host some of the largest congregations of whale sharks on the planet. Whale shark was chosen in the visuals because it very symbolic for Qatar and its people, it symbolizes optimism, inclusiveness, and a spiritual compass for the navigators. In a way this panel was also a tribute to Qatar’s once-booming pearl diving industry.
Dana Al Fardan’s mesmerizing voice, while she in her folkloric song is telling everyone that no matter where you’re from, please come home, is a candy to the sore eye.
The ceremony symbolically presented two luminous bridges, carrying an important message that extended an invitation to unify humanity, bridging gaps and connecting ideologies through comprehension.
WHAT I LIKED: I liked the very fact that Qatar kept its roots intact and paid homage to its history and culture. For me, countries that value their culture and preserve it by keeping it intact against factors trying to change or wear them away are solid.
Second Panel: “To Get to Know”
The whole stadium was awestruck in surprise when Morgan Freeman, with his unmistakable voice, appeared on the stage. He gets acquainted with Ghanem Al-Muftah and each crosses this luminous bridge and reflect on inclusiveness through dialogue. I have put the dialogue into writing because to me this was the highlight of the whole ceremony.
Freeman: I heard something beautiful, not just music, but also this call to celebration. This is all so new. All that I have known before was a land that seemed to be in turmoil, with families being forgotten, and I stopped hearing your voice.
AlMuftah: Come on over!
Freeman: I’m not sure. Am I welcome?
Al Muftah: We sent out the call because everyone is welcome. This is an invitation to the whole world.
Freeman: Remember, even after hearing the call, instead of seeing another way, we dismissed it and demanded our own way. And now, the world feels even more distant and divided. How can so many countries, languages, and cultures come together, if only one way is accepted?
[trans: O humanity! Indeed, We created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and tribes so that you may ˹get to˺ know one another. Surely the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous among you. Allah is truly All-Knowing, All-Aware.]
We were raised to believe that we were scattered on this earth as nations and tribes, so we could learn from each other and find beauty in our differences.
Freeman: I can see it. What unites us here in this moment is so much greater than what divides us. How can we make it last longer than just today?
Al Muftah: With tolerance and respect, we can live together under one big home. In Arabic, Bayt al Sha’ar, is the Bedouin tent. Wherever it is built, that is home. And when we call you here, we welcome you into our home.
Freeman: So we gather here as one big tribe and earth is the tent we all live in.
Al Muftah: Yes. And together, we can send out the call for all the world to join us.
Qatari artist Dana Al Fardan adds the final touches to this segment where she with her powerful voice is seen welcoming everyone with her song ‘hayya’ which means ‘welcome’ in Arabic.
Freeman: In celebration, in hearing from our heroes through all the differences in language, there is a common thread of hope, jubilation, and respect. We may or may not understand the words, but in the deepest part of us, we must understand and appreciate the emotions that connect us all.
The show ends with the “Hayya” [welcome] song indicating a warm welcome from this Arab nation to the entire world.
WHAT I LIKED: I liked the concept where the divergence of opinions was presented through a dialogue. I loved how misapprehension about duality is rectified with a Quranic reference. I loved the theme of bridging differences through patience, respect, and inclusion. The representation of the concept that football allows us to come together as one tribe and earth is the tent in which we all live was worth the applause.
Third Panel: “Rhythm of Nations”
This panel was brilliantly led by world-class talents that interlaced Qatari tradition with the global culture. It displayed a collection of the most famous cheers for the 32 participating teams, previous FIFA World Cup hosts, and foorball legends. It was entirely a tribute to football and football fans from all over the world.
WHAT I LIKED: Qatar respecting all the previous FIFA hosts, the participating teams, previous FIFA anthems, and the FIFA mascots, and paying tribute to them showed how respect and inclusiveness can never harm anyone but can bring nations together as one.
Fourth Panel: “Football Nostalgia”
This segment revolved around spherical football nostalgia. The screens at Al Bayt Stadium displayed the most memorable moments of the previous World Cups through musical artwork, floor projections, and geometric visuals that resonated with football fans all over the world.
WHAT I LIKED: I liked how the themes of inclusiveness and coexistence ensured the negative narrative is nipped in the bud.
Fifth Panel: “Dreamers”
As evident from the title, this panel projected that the dream that was promised 12 years ago is ‘Here and Now’. Qatari singer Fahad Al Kubaisi, and international Korean star Jungkook from BTS performed on this meaningful song ‘Dreamers’.
The song “Dreamers” embodies the aspirations of a nation that dared to dream and made that dream a reality. I felt every single world.
WHAT I LIKED: The lyrics of the song showcased how Qatar chose to manifest its dream with patience, respect, and love. The Arabic part took the song to the next level by wisely interweaving the Qatari flavor leading to its perfect execution.
Sixth Panel: “Roots of the Dream”
Qatar’s own story with football is presented by the sixth panel of the opening ceremony. It displayed a visual historical narrative that showed the world that how this dream was ingrained in the heart of this country from the very beginning.
Footage of this historical video was shown to the world for the very first time, in which we see HH Father Emir and a group of his friends while playing football.
At the end of the video, HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of the country, hands a copy of the historic shirt seen in the video to HH the Father Emir to sign as a symbol of legacy.
A copy of this historic shirt with Father Emir’s sign was among the many welcome gifts given to all the attendees of the opening ceremony.
WHAT I LIKED: I liked the way they added individuality in showcasing the roots of the game and how the visionary visioned it for his nation. I liked the smiles on the faces of HH The Emir and HH Father Emir. Their happiness was fulfilling to the spectator’s eye and was a testament that they made their dream happen.
Seventh Panel: “Here and Now”
Lastly, “Now is All”. This panel progressed the ceremony to its conclusive phase with a distinctive appearance of the 15 meters high official logo of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022.
The Emir of Qatar HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani made a very meaningful and significant speech at the occasion.
“In the name of God, the most gracious, the most merciful. From Qatar, from the Arab world, we welcome everyone to the 2022 FIFA World Cup. We worked hard with our partners for this to be one of the most successful tournaments. We have put in a lot of effort and have invested good for the sake of humanity, and now we have finally reached the day of the inauguration. Starting from this evening, and for a period of twenty-eight days, we will follow, and with us the whole world, God willing, the great football festival in this spacious ambiance for human and civilized communications. People of different races, nationalities, faiths, and orientations, will gather here in Qatar, and around screens on all continents to share the same exciting moments. How beautiful it is for people to put aside what divides them in order to celebrate their diversity and what brings them together at the same time. I wish all the participating teams a magnificent football performance, high sportsmanship, and a time full of joy, excitement, and delight for you all. And let there be days that are inspiring with goodness and hope. Welcome to the world to everyone’s Doha. Welcome and good luck to all!“
Speaking at the opening ceremony, FIFA President, Gianni Infantino, said:
“Family of football. Welcome to Al Bayt Stadium. Dear friends, welcome to Qatar. Welcome to the World Cup. Welcome to your home. Welcome to celebrate football, because football unites the world. Now, let’s welcome the teams and let the show begin. All the best to everyone. Congratulations!”
The ceremony ends in a spectacular finale where various elements of the ceremony gather in the spirit of the game and the fireworks fill the sky.
WHAT I LIKED: The Emir’s speech was very powerful and revolved around the same themes of inclusiveness, coexistence, and respect. He welcomed everybody to Qatar and hailed diversity. He chose to do his speech in his native language, that is, Arabic which to me kept the Arabic spirit and their individuality alive.
Conclusively…
The ceremony was very meaningful. It was a contemporary global show that carried an important message of harmony, patience, and respect from Arabs to the whole world. It extended an invitation to unify humanity, and bridge the gaps between all differences based on race, culture, color, and nationality through acceptance, respect, and coexistence, with the World Cup serving as one tribe connecting peoples and the earth as a homeland for all. Good job Qatar for keeping your individuality alive and making history by bringing the FIFA tournament to the Arab world for the first time.
~ QuratulAin Hamza
Disclaimer: The pictures used in this blog are taken from various resources on the internet.
Pumpkin spice and everything nice! Yes, it is the Golden October. Fall is all about a crisp morning breeze and a splendid silent sun. This golden and crisp time of the year is as golden as an apple and as crisp as a wintergreen berry. It is a season that has drawn lines of great sentiment and powerful emotion from almost every poet. This peculiar season for sure leaves some inexhaustible influence on the mind of taste and tenderness.
I don’t remember being a talkative person in my life. I have always been like that, quiet, peaceful, and sensitive. I loved contemplating. Putting myself, sometimes, in another’s shoes helped me at predicting others’ feelings and experiences. This part of my personality helped refine my sensitivity, which matured into sensibility with time and made me more empathetic and considerate, which I am glad for. Given my being sensitive to stimuli I liked knowing about feelings that eventually made me less prone to emotional lability and more buoyant towards emotional stability.
Yesterday morning on my way back after dropping my kids at school, I was taken back to the past where the younger me always wanted to know what my mother used to do while we were at school and she had the whole house to herself. Somewhere the little me wanted to have an immersive feel of that. Not that I was in a hurry to grow up. I loved my school, but there was this lingering curiosity just to know how she felt while we were away. How did she spend her time? How she experienced ‘peace and quiet’? Did she love her alone time? Or did she miss us? So many such questions dawdled. So, yesterday was the day this surge from the past paved its way through the sleek passages of time like a fresh morning breeze as if it was just yesterday when I was thinking about that, and today I am practically experiencing it.
Life is an amalgam of so many changes and transitions. Time is ticking, and things change even before we realize it. Things you once just wanted to experience, you don’t know when you start practically experiencing them.Two decades later, I am living what I once was intrigued by. This is life, short yet impactful.
So, now if someone’s wondering what I do while my kids are away at school, I can come up with a new blog post someday, OR someday Waniya might write about it because she asks me often, “What do you do while we are at school?”
Being mentally strong means you know which parts of your mind you can control, and you control them ably when needed. Instead of letting you sink into the alleys of embarrassment and self-criticism, mental strength redirects your attention towards something productive or diverts your thinking towards something less damaging. Yes, there are facets of your mind that you can’t take control over. And we don’t need to control them either because being mentally strong doesn’t mean that you can exercise complete control over everything going on in your mind.
Many practices can make you mentally strong, but for the start-up, I am mentioning just 5. I call them ‘The Vital 5’. Inculcating them in your daily life is vital and crucially important to help you be mentally strong.
1. DON’T PLAY THE VICTIM
Adversity is inevitable. While facing adversity you should trust that it is not a dead end. Trust always outweighs fear. By not playing the victim you are actually pushing yourself through to the blue skies. Don’t spend your valuable time pitying yourself. Try incorporating gratefulness in your life instead. Grateful people have healthier immune systems and suffer less often from pain caused by adversity.
2.DON’T WORRY ABOUT WHAT THEY SAY
Wanting others to like and respect you is innate, but you can not worry too much about thoughts others hold about you. People will always have different opinions about you. You also carry opinions about others, don’t you? The thing is you should expect and accept that people will have opinions of you and their opinions should not matter to you. What you can do is take control of your own feelings and feel good about yourself. Surround yourself with accepting and supportive people. Find a clan you can mentally connect with.
3.DON’T DWELL ON YOUR PAST
Resist unnecessary mental time travel. You should never dwell on your past but rather reflect on it to learn from it. You should refuse to live a life of regret and let go of the grudges. You should learn from your past and stand responsible for any mistake done because that is what mentally strong people do. You should choose to move forward constructively rather than indulging in reminiscing destructive past.
4.DON’T LET ANYONE PUT YOU DOWN
Being empathetic, compassionate, and kind is one thing, but staying shut when your values and morals get questioned, is another. One should be unafraid to speak up for oneself when it calls. Defending your self-worth should be your utmost priority. No one has the slightest right to insult you. It is one life skill everyone needs to learn.
5.DON’T ENVY OTHER’S SUCCESS
This is the last and the very important one. Although spite and resentment are common human traits, one must learn to overcome this preliminary envy of other people’s success and harness their power instead. There will always be someone better and more accomplished than you. Practice acceptance and acknowledge others’ achievements without passing judgment. People who appreciate and celebrate other people’s success end up creating a positive environment around themselves.
TO SUM UP
A person with good mental strength can consciously choose both their actions and reactions. Being mentally strong helps in leashing destructive impulsiveness. Your mental strength is the ability to control your mind instead of being controlled by it. And it’s a skill anyone can improve with practice.
They say ‘Hope’ is a powerful emotion. It is that overwhelming sense that everything will work out as it should, even if it doesn’t go as planned. Certain things in life are beyond control, but one can always be buoyant and hopeful.
QuratulAin Hamza 