It's a couple of hours after sunrise and I feel a sudden urgency to write. The thought has indeed been lingering on my mind for quite some time now but I've waiting for the right moment, for my writing was never quite going to be the same after my recent experiences. I no longer want to write for the sake of writing a well-written post (although it helps) but rather I want to focus more on the meanings and messages that I want to convey. You'll have to excuse me as I've gone in the deep end quite abruptly but everything should soon become clear.
It's been over a week since I returned from Makkah, but while the physical journey has ended the spiritual path progresses. While I draw upon the lessons of my travel for spiritual enlightenment, reflection, perspective and purpose of life, certain facets of my life become crystal clear while others become irrelevant. As a result, the first few days of my return can be summed up by refining. Refining in the sense of cutting out the unnecessary and focusing on the more pertinent. I drew my own conclusions on my ultimate purpose of life, and I think it's important that everyone does so in their own time but I'm glad that I've been able to grasp it earlier on. With a realisation of what it is exactly that one wants out of life one begins the tedious task of setting oneself measurable goals and then a plan of how to execute them whether a daily, weekly or a monthly plan depends upon the nature of the goals.
Travelling as my fellow travellers will agree with me here is a change in comfort zone, it is a change of scenery and it is a change generally from our hustle and bustle of everyday life. As such, a physical change always brings about an intellectual and spiritual change. Whilst being a traveller one unloads an immense amount of responsibilities that burdens the intellect and as such this freeing up of the mind allows one to really think about higher things which really is a luxury for everyday life unless one has a specific retreat for reflection. And so I embarked one month ago in the blessed lands of Saudi Arabia on an insightful adventure that took me to truthful realisations and periods of introspective reflections.
One of the key learning points of my trip was my need to focus. Living in London everything grabs your attention, one day you want to be a still-life photographer, the next day you want to try your hand at calligraphy and the day after that perhaps in introductory 101 (beginner's guide) into Photoshop. The point is I started to dabble in a bit of this and a bit of that but I realise now that in each field I got nowhere! The problem was everything was marketed to be able to accomplish so easily but it wasn't true. So I needed to focus on perfecting one or two things see it through and then move on. This is exactly the perspective that I needed in order to move forward.
There's little point in travelling if all you bring back is souvenirs; a traveller brings back a wealth of learning experience and the best ones are the ones that have an immediate effect on your life. Over the last week and a half since my return, I feel like I'm finally in control of my life. My emotional and mental state has remained sustained. And what is this state? This is my resolve to live life to the fullest, my determination to fulfil my life goals, seeing blessings in the smallest of things, being happy for whatever little that I have - and this mentality has remained with me everyday since I've been back. The effects on my life have already been changed for the better: my productivity has dramatically become efficient because I don't have 'I can't be asked' episodes that last for days, my general well being is happy because everyday is progressive for me - I set myself daily goals with flexibility and I manage to accomplish them and this gives me a satisfaction that I'm doing something with my life and moving forward.
So what has kept me consistent, determined and motivated for the last week and half? Personally, I realised and understood that my source of motivation, striving and living emanated from my relationship with God and once this was clear to me I began to do actions that enhanced my relationship with God so I would seek reliance from Him in all my matters no matter how trivial. I would remember Him constantly throughout my day. The days in which I was the most ardent and the most passionate in seeking closeness to God those days were the richest and most meaningful days for me. The challenge now remains as to how long I can keep this up for. I am confident that this is a new new beginning, a fresh start, a new me.
