Reminding myself

 Assalamu aleikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh all :) how are u?

Peppermint tea. And the kitchen. I can focus better on the writing here, and of course there's the almost endless supply of tea here too, hehe. But this will be my last cup for tonight. The day was good, we had sunshine, we had rain, I'm feeling love and loved, and I have done all my chores, alhamdulillah.

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This week has started with inspiration. Most recently I bumped in the singer Sade Adu in social media, and her style. It's so beautiful and effortless, minimalist before it was a thing. She is one of the people who have done their own thing and been true to their self, and found success. I remember some of her songs from my childhood. She definitely has her own voice ♥ She reminds me of Tracy Chapman, a singer of same era, who was introduced to me by a friend, a stranger now. 

I used to sing and make songs too. Maybe that's why music is so important to me. I know it's commonly deemed as haram in islam. I more of listen to artists and songs who sing about life and love, and what could be considered more decent, I guess.. There's differences on opinions. I do listen to Qur'an too, daily. I don't want to lead you astray with this, dear reader, so keep following the scholars you prefer. 

I love the early and late 90's. I was born in -88, so I'm a 90's kid. Maybe my fondness of minimalism comes from there. Lately I have been needing to remind myself why do I like it, with this slight shopping addiction going on.. and there's many pluses that come with it. Things like

- it's easier to clean and do laundry

- it's easier to move from place to place

- it teaches letting go (of the worldly life)

- it shows how little we actually need

- it is a more sustainable way to live

- you'll save money

- home feels more peaceful and calm

- you'll always find outfits to wear

But what comes to style, ohh.. I noticed now that so much of my feed, no matter if it's Facebook or Instagram of Tiktok or whatever, there's just so much adverts. All these nice things, specially curated for me, are on my screen and fyp all the time. I may not purchase anything from the ads, but it feeds the desire to buy something new. Then I scroll a bit of Vinted and there we are again.

And there's so many beautiful garments waiting for their home.

And then there's Tracy Chapman singing that "All that you have is your soul" ♥

I want to be more present. That's what it is really about. It's the moment we are living now which matters, and which also determines partly our future. I don't want to be constantly chasing dopamine, it is exhausting. And learning to give away dopamine is really difficult to me and all of us who take antipsychotic medication, because it affects our brain's natural dopamine levels. So yeah. I have quit smoking and nicotine, that was a tough one. So maybe I can learn to buy a little less these pretty shiny apples, in sha Allah. 

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But yeah, being more in the present moment is something that is my current goal. These screens make it hard. I am a bit of a lonely person, I don't have much friends and even though I spend much time with my spouse, I feel like I need to find the interaction online too. You know, the likes, the comments, the posts.. my goal is not so much to be liked really, I just genuinely love the idea of connection. And because it's all behind the screen, it gives enough distance to not to get so anxious of an actual social situation.

The connection can be something else too. I also like to feel the connection with nature, and possibly animals too. There's something magical and divine in connecting with animals and finding same wavelength. It's so interesting to read animals and their body language. Learning to know our ninja turtle has been extra special, because he is such a different kind of communicator, and it's still learning in progress. 

Then there's the sisterhood, between us muslim sisters. I was at one dear friend's walima last weekend, and it was great to meet up with the sisters, some who I knew before and some who I met there for the first time. It's just different, you know, when we all share same values and faith. We didn't all know each other, but we could talk about everything, addressing difficult matters and also the joys in life, and it feels like having a family. That's why we muslims call each other sisters and brothers, because we are all created by God, and we are the same. Equal, and handled with care. Like we all are, not just muslims of course. 

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Well, maybe just a one more cup won't hurt. Basically I'm just drinking a lot of water, let it be flavored, so it's just healthy, hehe. Right now my choices are either black vanilla tea, basic green tea, or this peppermint I drink on the evenings. I'm so used to drink a lot of tea that it is normal for me to drink even 6 cups a day, sometimes more. I just like to relax, and curl up in the sofa corner with a warm cup. Or write and sip, and enjoy the process. 

I like this kitchen writing, it makes me feel almost professional, hehe. Here I am blogging to all of you dears around the world. This month you have been away, but we have been able to reach a 22000 overall reads, since 2021 :) sometimes it's been quiet, sometimes we are many, any way I hope you have a good time reading :) I like that we are a small cute community. Always feel welcome here :) also feel free to comment! I think it's been so quiet and I don't always know what you think, so I would like to hear your thoughts too. But if not, I understand that too.

I think it's getting late, and even though I finished with my chores, I need to get ready for maghrib prayer. So later then in sha Allah! 

Aisha