Diana (click here to follow her!) was inspired by the current situation the world is going through: the cruel pandemic called COVID-19, so she sent me an illustration. We agreed that I would write a poem. However, when it came to write, I couldn’t write a poem. I had so much to say. Plus, her illustration was literally worth a thousand words, it was telling a story. And every time I looked at it, the story spoke of hope. When I sent the short story to Diana, she came back with three illustrations. Here’s the result! Let me know what you think!
Tag: words
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Disclaimer: This blog post is not detailed, assuming the readers already know about the content of the Bible. To know more about the Bible and the Book of Jonah in particular, please visit the following link: https://www.stmarystmark.ca/books-articles/articles/174-jonah-s-fasting-fast-of-nineveh
Last week, from February 10 to February 12, I fasted three days for Jonah’s fast. Orthodox Christians do this in order to commemorate the three days Prophet Jonah spent inside the fish and Nineveh’s repentance. This year, I actually cared about fasting and reading the book of Jonah, not because I didn’t know the story, but because I never related to it, nor understood in what context I could apply the lessons learned in my life.
After reading the four chapters of the book of Jonah and researching the meaning behind them, the prophet’s story hit me close to home, especially the last chapter. The chapters might seem short, but you have to read them in between the lines to grasp the main message. Here are the things I learned.
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Last week, I went to the States with my lovely parents. I’ll share all the things we did and where we stayed without writing a novel. Let’s start!
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To the ones that made me feel like home for five days straight, that made me promise to never change who I am, that loved my sense of humour, that have golden and open hearts, that warmly welcomed us, that cook super well, that encouraged me to serve, that are bold in their faith, that were our second or third mothers to us, that have a height I look up to, that can sing, draw, and be talented like no one else, that are soft in their manners like doves, that are funnier than America’s best comedians, that share a passion for books, that are little innocent geniuses, that have the best semi-broken Arabic, that know how to read Arabic and Coptic (props to youuuuu), that are wannabe Montrealers, and that are amazing travelling companions… this article is for you.
Last week, I embarked on a short spiritual trip. I had no idea, not even the slightest clue on what to expect. No one told me what we were going to do, nor what to expect from a week at a monastery. I didn’t even know who from church was going to the trip. And you know what? Not knowing anything led to the best surprise ever.
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It’s surprising that not many have heard it. I mean, Christina Aguilera is one the most amazing and influenceable vocalist of our generation. How come no one is freaking out? Maybe not everybody’s a fan, but hey, like I said, it’s Christina. We’ve been waiting for her ever since her hit “Your Body” and her collaboration with A Great Big World on “Say Something.” Now, the wait is over. Here she is with a new single, “Change.”
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It was an honour for me to meet Michelle Rempel, the current Official Opposition Critic for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, during a conference on Canadian immigration. She is an inspiration for all, and her energy and optimism are very contagious. She is the definition of being young, working hard, and accomplishing goals. Here is my article, from the El Ressala Journal, about the conference held on June 3rd.