Lilac Bellflowers

A lilac petal frozen in time
Random souvenir from the golden day
Borrowed in passing from a bellflower
Tucked gently into her hair
Though in truth no relic is needed
And memories cascade upon each other
All following from the well of the first
The day when everything went right
And my fears fell after, toppling like dominoes
Showing me how unfounded they were
Slowly I was cajoled, coaxed, encouraged
Becoming more than I believed I could be
Her laughter and smiles light the way
Keeping me guided and grounded every day

My prison was self-made, but she set me free
And now I dance with her who gave her hand to me

The Minimalist Wardrobe Formula

How many clothes does a dude need? I mean really, give me an actual number here. Not counting socks and other small items of clothing, and accessories like wallets and belts and jewellery (more on jewellery later).

I’ve gone on and on and on about minimalism. And its not been just words. There has been some action too, and I am mostly pleased with it.

But now, I intend to approach one facet of my life in a more holistic way. Clothing. Whilst I don’t obsess over how I look infront of the mirror everyday, I accept that part of the reality of this world is that you are judged on appearance. And part of your responsibility as a Muslim is that you make sure that Muslims don’t have a bad image as a result of your actions, or the way that you dress.

We have hadith from our Prophet and Imams that they used to dress respectably, modestly, but were not extravagant, and did not have lots of clothes. So that’s the model for me to follow, obviously.

But I find myself straying every now and then. A football shirt here, a nerdy geek-chic T-shirt with a snarky inside joke there, a significant period of wanting a hat like what Matt Bomer wears in White Collar (I didn’t get one, but I did come very close), a one size fits all belt (I love these), my collection of performance base layers (ditto) and so on. And soon the limited space I have for clothes is bulging again. Thank God I wasn’t born female, eh? Then we’d have to discuss shoes, and thankfully, here I am happy with what I have, and what I do not have.

What I’m going in search of now is something so simple I feel stupid for not seeking it earlier. I’m going to hunt for a formula. An algebraic one. Yes, its a bit nerdy (or a lot nerdy, actually) but it might just work. A mathematical relationship between the different types of clothing it is necessary to own, from which I can work out the minimum necessary to get by. And it could be liberative - once I hit my quota, so to speak, if I want anything more, I know I'll have to either make space by getting rid of something, or do without.

I don’t expect to get it right first time. More like an iterative process. But I will get it right over time. Wish me luck. I think I’m honestly onto something here. This could be great...


Jewellery

Jewellery is a special thing. More than clothing, jewellery beautifies the self, and also, we have wonderful hadiths describing the spiritual value and benefits of certain rings. I won't have any formula here. It feels wrong.

I have mixed results here. I used to wear a silver chain with a dhulfiqar pendant. I loved it, almost like it became part of my Shia identity. Those who knew treated me special, and I’m quite sure I once got a free coffee just because someone saw my pendant. Same goes for an aluminium bracelet I used to wear that was engraved with the verse of the throne (Ayatul Kursi). But three years ago I stopped wearing both. Its like I was taking advantage of it, and shame made me stop. In any case, I’m not sure I have them at hand anyway. I haven’t seen them for years.

I have a different history with rings. Them and me don’t get on. I’ve always felt maybe they were ashamed to have me wear them, strange as it sounds. I have carcasses and shells of quite a few rings with me, where the stones have fallen out, and in one bizzare case, a work accident squashed one so badly it snapped (the stone fell out of that one too). I still love them though, and I’ll continue to get more as time goes on. Maybe my luck will change.

A Few Words from Mr. Jobs

I distinctly recall the moment when I knew I would never look at PCs in the same way again. We were living in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, in January 2002. I don't know why, or how, but a copy of the current TIME magazine caught my eye, and it showed Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive standing proudly next to their latest, greatest creation - at the time. It was the G4 iMac, and it was beautiful. Realisations then were twofold - why aren't all computers like this? Why does everyone make their computer in a dull grey box? Secondly - What? It doesn't run Windows? What does it run then?

As is my wont, I delved deeper into the history, origins, products, and people at this company. And I was won. When I switched then, the mac was the countercultural choice - used by creative professionals, design nerds, and few others. Most people only knew Windows PCs and didn't want to know anything else.

Watching the company's growth over the next 9 years has been astounding. From the much-mocked, much-maligned countercultural choice, Apple now makes the #1 MP3 player, the #1 smartphone, the #1 tablet, the #1 laptop, and the #1 desktop….mostly thanks to the vision of one man, who passed away a few hours ago, at the age of 56. He had been struggling with pancreatic cancer since 2004, and eventually, it won.

The most he ever revealed about himself was in the commencement speech he gave at Stanford in 2005, and I'm going to quote a few of my favourite lines. He tells three stories, and then the lessons he learns from the three. The whole video, as well as the whole text, is a Google search away, for those who want it…
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"Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life."


"I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle."


"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart."


"No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true."


"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."

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Apple will continue, in much the same way that Disney and Ford continue and succeed when they lost their legendary founders. Will what you build today continue after you leave, and carry your legacy into the next generation?