A Tale of Three Trees

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Oak

It was pouring last night, and I had to bear the brunt of the storm. That’s the curse of being the tallest tree in the forest. They call me “the mighty oak tree”, but I’m anything but mighty. I was wet and cold and shivering and miserable throughout the night, while Willow, Bamboo, Sycamore, Pine, and the others were sheltered under my canopy. I even had a couple of my arms snap in the torrential rains, and now I look deformed and ugly.

-

Bamboo

I could hear Oak screeching and cracking all night. He’s rigid in mind and body, but he’s the one who keeps us safe. When lightning strikes, he gets hit first. When Fire arrives, he gets burned the worst. I feel for him, but I don’t admire him like I admire Willow.

Unlike Oak, Willow sits serenely by the lake, contemplating Water. Willow sees beauty wherever she looks. She sways with Wind, dangles her arms, and gently brushes Earth’s soil. I can see her reflection in Water’s face, and she is always smiling. Never have I seen Willow complain about anything. She bends to make room for the other trees to grow, and she never gets burnt because she stays close to Water, the source of life, the source of peace.

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Willow

I can see Bamboo learning and growing with every day that passes. It seems like it was yesterday when he was only a seed and then a sprout, but now he is almost as tall as Oak. Even though he shot up in a relatively short amount of time, he hasn’t become old, brittle, and cynical like Oak. Instead, he’s been a good, humble student and learned the lessons I’ve taught him well. He draws on Water to nourish and sustain him, and he bends with Wind to avoid cracking.

Bamboo stays strong and supple by aiming high, and he shoots up toward Sun, the source of light. Throughout the seasons, he stands erect and strong… but never rigid…and hence he will remain everlastingly green. 

A Letter to My Son

You were born in Al-Andalus, a land that was the crossroads of diverse cultures, faiths, and traditions. A land that brought Muslims, Christians, and Jews together in a spirit of tolerance and harmony. A land where Arabic, Castillano, and Hebrew were spoken side by side. A land where the pursuit of knowledge was prized above all. A land that witnessed the rise and fall of some of the world’s greatest civilizations.

 

Where are you from?

 

Your father hails from Egypt and your mother from Spain, two lands on diametrically opposite ends of the Mediterranean. Despite both being parts of the same Roman and Islamic empires, Egypt is now Arab and Muslim and Spain is now Western and Catholic. Your father speaks Arabic and your mother speaks Spanish. When they talk to one another, they speak English.

 

What is your nationality and what is your native language?

 

You are spending the first years of your life in the United Arab Emirates, a young and ambitious country. Even though you are a foreigner here, you are part of the multicultural majority. You have friends from every corner of the world here. You and everyone who lives here belong.

 

Where is your home?

 

You are a child of the East and the West. They are not separate. They might seem like opposite directions on a compass, but they are united in you. They might appear to have different cultures, faiths, and traditions, but they need one another to survive and thrive. They are like the yin and the yang. While they can clash at times, they ultimately complement and enrich one another. Transcend the differences and strive for unity. You were brought into this world to be a bridge between the East and the West, the past and the future. You were brought into this world to bring peace. Go beyond the superficial and strive for the universal and the eternal.

 

You are a citizen of the world.

The Key

 

I find an old key in my pocket. What does it unlock?

It unlocks the heart of my beloved.

I take a closer look at the key, squinting to make out the words etched on its handle, and I read the following inscriptions:

Speak kind, compassionate, soothing words

Forgive the faults and forget the pain

Be present in the moment and see the good in everything

I follow the prescriptions of the inscriptions and the gate to my beloved’s heart opens once more.

Book Launch: "The Young Man and the Sea"

Dear Reader,

As we start the new year, I wanted to share some good news. I'm launching my third novel, The Young Man and the Sea. I really enjoyed writing this novel, and I hope you'll enjoy reading it. The book is available in e-book and paperback versions on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CN33Y8QX

Happy reading! 

Sincerely,

Mostafa

Siddhartha

 I asked myself, “What is the best use of my time?” A perennial question for which I was hoping to find an answer when I opened Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha.

I flipped through the book’s pages and landed on a page with the following short passage:

The Yogaveda will teach me no longer, nor the Atharvaveda, nor the ascetics, nor any other teaching. I will learn from myself, be my own student. I will learn about myself, about the mystery of Siddhartha.

This was the guidance that I had been seeking all along. I will learn from myself, be my own teacher, be my own student. I will learn about myself, about the mystery of Mostafa.

I realized that I had been spending a disproportionate amount of my time learning from others. Reading their books. Watching their videos. Listening to their podcasts.

And not enough time reading my own writings, observing my own thoughts and emotions, and listening to my own inner voice.

It was as if that inner voice – that Mostafa – had drowned beneath all the words coming from the outside world.

The only way to listen to and learn from Mostafa is to give him the time and space to express himself.

Give him time to:

• Meditate in the morning so you can observe his thoughts
• Write his stories so you can understand what is going on in his life
• Sit in nature and be one with it so you can find peace
• Commune with the source of creation so you can find meaning
• Experience life as he was meant to so you can find joy

Let Mostafa guide Mostafa.

Let him listen to his own thoughts, feelings, and insights. Let him learn from them. Let them become wisdom.

Sunrise, Sunset

 Sunrise, sunset

There are moments in life that I live for

Holding you in my arms during sunrise is one of them

Sunrise, sunset

Life is fleeting every day  

There is always a beginning and an end to every life

Sunrise, sunset

Why are we oblivious to the magic of every day

Night gives birth to day, and day gives birth to night

Sunrise, sunset

We are born every morning and die every night

Blessed am I to spend the moments between my birth and death with you

Sunrise, sunset

Watching the sun rise in all its glory awakens my soul

Watching the sun set reminds me of our mystical encounter

Sunrise, sunset

Boxes

We might not realize it, but we spend most of our lives inside a box. Whether we are working, studying, eating, sleeping, or just living, we find ourselves in a box. I say this literally and figuratively. Let me explain.

If you stop reading for a second and look around you, you will realize that you are inside a box. Yes, that’s right: the room you are in is a big box. That room is one of several box inside a bigger box, your apartment. And the room and the apartment are inside an even bigger box, a building. It’s like a Russian doll. One box inside another inside another. Some boxes are warm and cozy. Others are cold and bleak. Whether they are comfy or not doesn’t change the fact that they’re still boxes.

We spend most of our lives inside a box.

On some days I feel like a caged animal. On those days, I want to break free and roam freely in the wild like our ancient ancestors.

I am happiest when I am outside a box.

I love the warmth of the sun on my skin, the wind brushing against my face, the sound of chirping birds and rustling leaves, the smell of salty air, and the sight of lush greenery, blue sky, and flowing water.

I love breathing real, fresh air.

Spending too much time inside a box can be suffocating. It is like putting a plant inside a shoe box with no water, light, or air. As time passes, the plan shrivels up and dies.

Like plants, we are meant to be in nature.

We cage ourselves inside boxes. Unlike nature, boxes can be made to be very comfortable. They lull us into complacency. They make us sedentary. They make us forget where we came from and where we belong. They tame and domesticate us.

We are truly connected and alive when we are in nature.

We forget that we are children of the forest, the meadow, the valleys, the seas, the rivers, the deserts… the wild. We instinctively know that nature is our true home and yet we choose to cage ourselves inside boxes.

There are boxes we can see and there are boxes we cannot see.

The invisible boxes are more insidious than the visible ones. They are the boxes of the mind. If we are not aware of them, they can imprison us forever. They can keep us mired in beliefs, mindsets, and worldviews that limit us and hold us back.

Just like the visible boxes, the invisible boxes can stifle us.

We must remain vigilant and notice when we are trapped inside one of these boxes. We must live (and think) outside the box. Better yet, we must completely get outside of the box.

We must set ourselves free.