Blessing Around

Alchemy, the ancient mystical art where common substances are transmuted into precious minerals. At least, that's how I first learnt about it, from the books I read in primary school. Alchemy was this pseudoscience, where one could start with a worthless piece of coal, and end up with an ingot of gold. I can't go any further on this topic, without mentioning one of the greatest pieces of fiction, that I've come across. Full Metal Alchemist, a story where two brothers Edward and Alphonse, learn how to do alchemy, and live with the consequences of their actions. Within this mythos, there is a law termed, the law of equivalent exchange.  The law states, "Humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost. That is Alchemy's First Law of Equivalent Exchange". Philosophically this way of looking at alchemy, really does ground the art into everyday life. Although there are exceptions t...

I'm writing this piece after an reflecting on an interaction I had with a friend. He had done away with a vice for quite a number of weeks. Then after a sequence of frustrating events on a Friday. He picked up the vice again. Bewildered didn't even begin to capture what I felt in the moment, when I found out. He was doing so well. Now we had gone back to square one.  The situation was an unpleasant reminder of human weakness. Surely, we all have vices that we struggle with. Habits and tendencies we are not proud of. We all just crumble in different ways and in different circumstances. Taking a leaf from material science, carbon exists in two forms. What we know as diamonds and graphite. Diamonds are the hardest naturally occurring substance on Earth, and they cannot conduct electricity at all. On the other hand, graphite is soft and an excellent conductor. Both are made of the same carbon atoms, just arranged differently. As a result of that, their physical properti...

The first means of communication I learnt was crying as a baby. It's even expected for one to cry as soon as they leave their mother's womb. Roughly translated, an adage in my own language says, the baby that doesn't cry dies on its mother's back. Meaning that if one doesn't express their grievances, then they shouldn't expect change to happen. Very early on in our lives a feedback loop is created, where we cry and we get something after.  In one of my favourite sermons by Frederick W. Robertson, he puts across the fact that, seeing something, desiring it and wanting to have it, is a sign of spiritual immaturity. Just think of how whiny toddlers can be for their favourite snacks. Then it humbles me, to think of how whiny I can be in my thoughts prayers, when things aren't going my way. It makes me wonder why wanting stuff riles me up so much.  Perhaps there's a sense of wanting to belong, that drives me to want what my peers have,...

A while ago I read the anti-war novel All Quiet On The Western Front. It's about the perils of war, faced by young Germans, during the first world war. The book touched on a phenomenon I found to be quite interesting. When the soldiers were stationed on the front lines and had to engage in trench warfare, their experiences tended to be horrific, to say the least. Then when they got rotated to other parts, where there was no conflict, they would simply forget all the horrific events they had just gone through. If what happened on the front lines, followed them immediately into the rest of the barracks, they would not be able to function in any other capacity.   The ability to forget is one that is quite fascinating. It's as though the brain can delete certain bits of information, and continue as though nothing ever happened. The down side to it is that, it is not in our control as to what we can forget, or unfortunately how much we can forget. Imagine getting to for...

 To be loved is to be known. Those I love I seek to know. As I pursue to know people more, the more I come to love them. The greatest expression of this, is found in the Psalter, where it is shown that God who knows us, better than anyone else ever could. Created us, knows us, and loves us. I find it to be such a privilege getting to know people. Peeling back the layers and getting to see who they really are. I really do delight in getting to learn about people empirically. Getting to see those I hold dear when they're, hungry, excited, bored, sleepy, loud and quiet.  Due to a growing sense of self-awareness and other people's observations. I have been diagnosed as being a very inquisitive person. I really do notice it most of all when I meet new people. The first conversation is usually an onslaught of questions. I can't help myself but want to know what language a multilingual person thinks in, by themselves versus with others. The end to my questions, is me b...

The first lesson I learnt in my IGCSE economics class, was that there are unlimited wants and limited resources. That was my formal introuction to the concept of scarcity. A concept that there is not always going to be enough to go around, no matter how much you wanted to spread things. It's one of the means through which we make decisions, as to how we spend the resources we have. Whether it's food, time, money or effort we try to use it in such a way that it does not go to waste. I grew up in a state of perpetual economic chaos. I did not have to ponder much on what it means to lack. Everything was rationed, water, electricity, money and even food at a point. It instilled a sense of gratitude, for what people would think of as the bare minimum needed for living. I remember when I was eight having to wait for hours, which seemed like a lifetime at that age, to be able to get to buy a rationed bag of flour. Years later as a teen after getting my drivers' license...

If there's one thing I'm self aware about, it's the fact that I'm not the world's greatest communicator. Growing up, my mother would always tell me people are not mind readers, nor are they prophets. In the event that I had to air out a grievance, no one could tell by looking at my face. I remember the hindrance to my ability to communicate, was the angst I would often feel. As a seven year old, I would have rather gnawed on a raw potato, than talk to a distant relative on the phone. Thankfully, I am mostly past such feelings now.  A more apparent challenge I face with communicating, is assuming that an issue is apparent for all to see. What tends to happen is that I end up in  a misunderstanding, due to the fact that, I may have omitted sharing certain information. The reason being that, I assumed it was obvious and not really something to prioritize sharing, or it seems to be unnecessary information. Such mishaps have had me on the receiving end of qui...

  Dear Christian, I hope you are doing alright. It's been ages since I left the house. One day you will have to do the same. It can be a bit daunting leaving the nest and going out into the big wide world. I was still a teen when I stepped out. I felt verily under-prepared for the things unknown that were to come.  I had so many questions about whether I would be able to fend for myself. I see it now that it was divine intervention that lead my steps, there is no way I could have navigated so much by myself at such an age. The feelings of nervousness never truly go away, I chose to become familiar with them. My stomach turning now means I am approaching an opportunity to experience something new, and I have to remember to cast my cares upon the Lord.  Enjoy your days of being sheltered. It may be annoying to have to submit to an authority you may not always be in agreement with. Especially, on days where  you can not seem to understand the other party's p...

 Today marks the anniversary of the last time I physically saw my mother. Some of the last words she said to me before I went through the boarding pass, were to not look back. I would like to beg for her pardoning because I am about to get retrospective now. A lot has changed since I last saw her, on a global scale as well as a personal one.  Leaving my mother that summer evening, was my departure from the nest going into the big wide world full of the unknown. I never felt that I was quite ready to step outside of what I knew to be home. I think my bravery was partially because others my age were going through the same transition. I guess I was not immune to peer pressure. More than that, I just had the conviction in me that it I was time that I go.  Could it have been youthful naivety, because I had this faith that everything would fall into place, even though I was stepping out of my comfort zone. Falling is perhaps a loose way of describing it. Rather I wa...

 As a man, there's one thing that I want from the many other things I might disclose someday. It is to show up heroically and turn a situation around. There is just something intrinsically that wants to have that hurrah moment. It could due to the fact that I grew up around stories of knights, ninjas , aliens, pirates and so many other fictional beings. What pulled me into these stories is, how there would be a valiant character who goes against the odds  and saves the day.  In cricket there is  a term called a captain's innings. Allow me to paint a picture of it for you. The team is fighting an up hill battle as they are batting. One of the star batsmen could not play today due to food poisoning. The opposing team seems to be completely in sync in their fielding capacities. It is very apparent that everyone on the team is not having a good day. That does not make things any easier. Another factor is that the team you are going against has got two of the ...

  We are communal beings. It's wired into our brains that we should live in community. I came across something that said loneliness can have the same effect as smoking cigarettes. Another fact said that those who played tennis, lived longer owing to the fact that a game of tennis, always involves interaction with another human being. Healthy relationships and inclusion physically affect our wellbeing just that much.  In an age where geography and time zones mean little as a hurdle to the connections that can be made. We can build social relationships globally with such ease. Across cultures friendships can be built at the speed of light. Meeting likeminded people has never been more convenient. Where people gather cultures develop even internet cultures are a thing of the present.  Being part of a generation that is dubbed as being chronically online. The effects of internet interactions are quite apparent. It could be the use of a slang term that ...

I recently discovered an amazing jazz musician, Emma Nissen. She has  an incredible amount of soul and she sings so smoothly. There's a song that caught my ear recently that she performs, titled, Am I enough.  She does a great job of diving into the self doubt, that one can have in their walk with the Lord.  It's something we can all resonate with in one way or another. We can start to wonder as we assess our spiritual disciplines. Are we praying enough, are we reading scriptures enough, are we doing enough to be found faithful? How much is enough really? You can try to compare and you will somehow, always find someone, that is doing more than you. It can be encouraging and at times, it feels as though you've got a long way to go. It can make one tired before even starting. If perfection is the standard, can our cumbersome ways really amount to anything? By the time I get this far into my train of thought, it means I'm being self centred in my th...

Adolescence a time where I had to figure out who I was. It was an adventure navigating the waters of what I did and did not like. I discovered what my interests are, who would be my lifelong friends, what I was capable of doing when I put my mind to it, even how to talk to the opposite gender. Coming out of it. I can say that was a rough introduction to who I am.  I still haven't gotten all of it down yet. I do know that I have a more refined understanding of who I am. Leaving home does help one to learn to lead one's own life. If we're still on sailing metaphors now I have more durable sails on my boat as I course through new experiences.  Now I'm well into my second decade of existence. It is a very volatile time. So much can happen and a lot is achievable. I just have to look at my peers and that rattles me at times. Some are wedding, some are graduating, some are birthing, some are mourning and some are even eligible to win the Ballon D'o...

In an age where getting attention has never been easier. There so many voices and opinions online, that it can get overwhelming. It's a double edged sword how we can so easily let out our opinions into the ether.I doubt there has ever been a time,  where one can be exposed to other schools of thought and cultures so easily. Imagine the echo chamber one would be stuck in,  five hundred years ago, because all that you knew was limited to the boundaries of your village.  The issue now is discerning what is actually edifying and true. Eloquence is not always a reflection of trustworthiness. The fact that something is packaged in an appealing manner, does not always mean that it is the genuine article. Unfortunately what is superficially appealing can garner so much attention quickly. All it has to be is a well edited clip that baits the watcher into following whatever the philosophy of the day is.   I have to be weary and conscious of it myse...

  I stray from identifying with titles other than that of my faith. I do it quite often when asked to talk about myself. When I was trying to draft a CV for the first time, I had to get a friend to help me figure out what my credentials are. It's not to say that I do not appreciate my accolades and what I am currently doing. I have just never seen the necessity of introducing myself as a blogger.  When it comes to the subject of humility, it's a bit tricky for me to figure out how to toe the line. How exactly does one live a humble life in a healthy manner? There's a quote that says, ''Don’t think less of yourself, just think of yourself less.''. This helps me frame things in my mind. It's not tearing myself down, rather it's not puffing myself up.  An illustration I remember coming across, tackles the matter in this way. Let's say you are at a gathering and there happens to be need for a guitarist. Hypothetically, let...

I thoroughly enjoy stories where the protagonist goes through adverse times. When I see how tenacity and willpower are being displayed, it hooks me into a story. It is motivating to see and resonate with a character pushing past hardships to achieve a goal that once seemed impossible. We can all connect with such stories in a way, because we all have our own adversities that we face.  This trope never gets old. Seeing a pauper going against all odds,  and becoming the prince, at the end of the story. We all have dreams and desires which at times seem out of reach. The question is are we  all on the same footing, to truly identify with the underdog of the stories we  enjoy so much.  We can tend to underestimate ourselves, to the extent that our goals start to seem like over achievements to mimic being underdogs.  I have realised that there is a culture around me. It undermines the work of those who come from a place of privilege. It g...

 It's a bit ironic going about this topic as an Arsenal fan. I will not let that stop me. What's worth being second place if all the glory goes to the one in first place then? First place is the one who lifts the trophy and has their name recorded as victor. Only one competitor can be described as the fastest, strongest, greatest, ultimately the best. Such superlative descriptions over shadows everything else in the results of the competition.  There is a glorious burden that comes with being the one at the top. You are the one at the cutting edge of your field. All eyes are on you to shine and outperform those around you. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. The pressure would be too much for me to bear all the time. Any mistake made is leeway for a competitor to gain ground or even over take you.  Which is why I would present the argument that second best is better. Some may retort that second place is first loser. Maybe even the fact that the...