identity crisis cure? (part2)

Hellooo ladies.. sI'm terribly sorry I didn't post anything these past weeks, I had a respiratory infection and I could barely stand on my feet.. it's all good now alhamdulillah :)

I wore the veil..
And when I did, it became so clear to me who i am, who I want to be, and how to make the transition.. 
The limits I've always tried to break throuh were boundries that defined my territory as a muslim girl, and ignoring them made me feel lost, kinda homeless..But I was numbing myself by saying that I was just being free.. in fact I was, but getting too much freedom can get you high, and we all know how an overdose can kill sometimes.
so, hijab was a reminder of these long ignored limits, and here's what i found:


1)I am a girl, but i'm not defined by my body: by ordering me to cover my figure, God is inviting me to find more ways to prove myself in.. It may be work, a hobby, helping others, whatever it is, we all have something we are great at and that can be a great fied of fulfillment!!Besides, using the mortal to define the immortal doesn't seem right to me.. 


2)I am tunisian, but the whole GOD's earth is my home.. Islam is everywhere (alhamdulillah!) and wherever I go i can definetly see hijabs! yeah, details may change from culture to another, but hijab is always the same not matter what land on the planet you're in, a constant thing in a fast changing, fashion crazy world! I hope i'm not being a math geek here, but the concept of constants relieves me :)


3)I am 21 years old, I often hear the "what do you know? you're still young!" thing and I dislike it! Yes I may be young but in islam wether you're 6 or 66 you're evenly precious because the soul that's in you is as ancient as the universe and holds all the answers within, and the culture you belong to goes back to fifteen hundred years ago.. how unique is that? :)  hijab gives me confidence as it reminds me of my strong roots.. if you know where you're from than you know where you're going :)


4)I may have various goals; become a successful doctor, lose some pounds, start a business.. but everything I do will be a constant seeking of GOD's satisfaction with me..hijab symbolizes my seek for god's satisfaction, so it helps me stay focused on that  holistic goal.  many successful bloggers, businessman, parents are muslim simply because the mindset islam offers eliminates unecessary thoughts and concerns, the only mesurement scale to use is the "is Allah satisfied" one..  they see the bigger picture and don't stand long in front of every little obstacle they come across, . This concept is life changing for me, the burdens on your shoulder's lighten up and you feel more relaxed.. 


I still have many thoughts on this subject, but let's keep it light today :)


Now, ladies, I really want to hear from you. Did hijab help you rediscover yourself?  if so, how?
I'll be waiting for your answers, you can write in the comments below or write a post about it and link it to this article.
much love :)
salma


PS: here's the link for this post's image, it's for a great artist!
http://browse.deviantart.com/?qh=&section=&global=1&q=word+hijab#/d1pl9hp

An Identity Crisis cure? (Part 1)

Q: what does this have to do with productivity?
A: If you don't know where you are, how can you possibly know where you're going, let alone excel there?


Did anyone notice how different cultures are melting together into one?
You did? Great!
Now, did anyone notice how potentially dangerous can this be to everyone of us, especially the new generations?
I'm not here to propose a miraculous solution, but sometimes asking the right questions is the first step to solving a problem, and i'm simply telling you, dear reader, what has worked for me..


I like to think of every person as a little dot, inside a small sphere, floting inside a huge, spacious sphere (I'm a math geek so i hope you'll bare my mathematical approches ^^ ). The little dots are us.. the huge sphere is what's called international culture, and that small sphere holds our personal experiences, our social standards, our beliefs..
Now as long as the small sphere is there, the balance is maintained, one can go through the world knowing whe he is and what or who to allow inside his small sphere.


As an arab muslim teen girl, there was a time, there was a time where my small sphere cracked and just broke under the pressure of the flow from the outside world. The breaking doesn't hurt, on the opposit it feels somehow refreshing, empowering to be exposed to an infinite world of possibilities, to feel united with millions and millions of others.. and that felt like a previlege I had to prove I was worthy of.. No place for your little "perfect imperfections",  so my clothing style changed, my manners, my relationships, I allowed people in my life that I'd never thought i'd let in..  I felt a bit schezophrenic as my outside didn't match my inside, but that that didn't last long as that same hand that shaped the new me, touched my beliefs. The transformation was then completed.
"Living a lie" is what describes that phase of my life best. I was constantly running, in every direction, but never really getting anywhere, because i didn't know where i stood in the first place... I was doing good at school, just for the sake of being first, I was doing good at dieting, just to fit into that dress, I was good at saving money, just to spend it on the lipstick shade that goes with the dress... It was a shallow, desperate life.. I didn't have a constant, solid base to buid a life upon, so I remained lifeless for 3 whole years.. maybe more, during which the flood has erased most of me after the breaking of my small sphere..
Traces of the old salma were still there, though, showing with very few people, the ones that were actually part of my sphere, and participated in shaping me as I grew older: my mother, my father and especially my best friend JJ who has always seen the good in me even when I didn't.. they're not the only ones, but they played the biggest roles.. and thanks to God's guidance and to them, I decided to stop the cycle..
I had 2 choices:
1) go with the flow and ignore that little voice of conscience until it's drowned under the flood
2) make a life changing decision that will turn all the pain and the losses into a fruitful journey...


I chose the second option, and I didn't think much about what this radical decision might be.. I had a pretty good idea of what I am supposed to do.. God showed me the order things should be done by, i had to start with who i am, rebuilt my identity on solid bases and go from there..


And I wore the hijab..


                                                (to be continued)


In the next post:
how did it help me find who i am?
how did breaking out from this identity crisis make me more productive?

opening post..

I wore the veil..

I wore Hijab...

Saturday march 5th, 2011, was, still is and will forever remain a remarquable date in my life, the day that witnessed the new me coming out to the light.. a new birth.. a new life.. No words in any language can describe my feelings as I walked through the door, and took my very first steps as a hijabi girl.. I guess that alone describes them..

For the first time I could sense, feel, see things around me..

I was looking at the sky, the sun and the trees surprised, and it hit me that I’ve never truly seen a blue so limpid, a yellow so shiny or a green so freshly happy!!

It’s like I’ve been seeing the world through grey glasses, dim, pale and vague..

Hijab made me take those glasses off, let’s just say they didn’t match J and the world’s colors became brighter, more real, more alive..

It's a new beginning, an overlwhelmingly fresh start and a life changing step I never thought I'll be taking anytime soon, and now that have seen the beauty of this new path, I wish I walked through it sooner..

But i would never say that i regret my old ways, or my "old" life, cuz that's what has got me here.. it's been a big maze, one hazy, rocky road but it led me to a paradise, so i'm thankful for all that i've been through.. and most of all, I’m thankful to Allah who led me to where I stand today.. So thank you Allah for your guidance..

And as I walked in life as a hijabi girl, I noticed a big increase in my daily productivity, and that’s what this blog is all about..

How can hijab make you more productive?  If you want to know the answer, keep on reading the posts in this blog. They will be posted regularly once a week as a start (every Friday).

Let us know what you think, constructive feed back is always wanted J