a cooking pot and twisted tales
Thoughts and Tales…A Lifestyle Blog with a Zing.
Thrumming heart beats, with butterflies in stomach pits,
Entangled in the first kiss,
It’s simply sweet bliss,
Hurtling off to the bed sheets,
A hurry to meet,
It’s a tangle of feet.
The ardour cools off and off goes the heat,
They sigh and ponder, where is the love beat?
Off to search for the next hit,
Becomes a habit,
To satisfy the hungry lust,
Seems to be a must,
Failing to realize
That lust
Is just
not
LOVE!
♥
Life is a constant flux of change and naturally as all humans are prone to, mine has evolved in little and huge ways.
My cycles have gone through mountain peaks and deep valleys, through Tropics and Savannah and each evolution has contributed to my story; to my growth in personality and maturity of mind; to the pathway of better understanding of myself as a complete entity.
Some changes have been premeditated while some, were thrust on me by Providence, but the most important aspect of these changes has been the strengthening of my inner mental core, resilience and spiritual walk.
For close to two decades, I have gone from a care-free single, all career guns blazing young lady to become a wife and proud mother. From formal employment, to part-time/voluntary service and self-employment/entrepreneurship.
In this space of time, I have migrated within 3 different Continents and when you are talking about leaving; I just left Texas to United Arab Emirates a couple of moons ago!
It has been a major shift especially in culture mentality. I am still in the bid of catching my breath even though I know that my sojourn in this place will not tarry for too long.
The challenges that such changes predisposes you to, which goes beyond leaving your comfort zone and familiar grounds to places of new beginnings are numerous, that the experience alone can constitute a book.
However, the trick in handling these things, is to keep a very broad and positive mind. Make a concerted effort to have a positively motivated outlook and become a sponge that soaks in all the good vibes around you.
That way, you will acquire the best experience that your life is teaching you at that point in time.
I am presently focusing on self-development and as I continue to transform, my hope is to cascade my support outwards to others and also to persevere in my efforts as a writer.
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
In response to The Daily Post prompt If You Leave
Life is a series of beginnings and endings. We leave one job to start another; we quit cities, countries, or continents for a fresh start; we leave lovers and begin new relationships. What was the last thing you contemplated leaving? What were the pros and cons? Have you made up your mind? What will you choose?
The quote above is my third quote in the 3 quote series and it speaks for itself.
In my quest for positive transformation, I try to base a lot of my actions and reactions on this guiding principle which also applies to everyone else.
This quote is simply not a biblical tenet or any religious balderdash!
It relates to everything that pertains to our lives, even this blogging exercise that we are engaged in. For instance, when you stretch out a hand of fellowship and engage others, 99% of the time, it is reciprocated and vice-versa! Keep your circle as positive as possible.
Our actions revolve around us as surely as the Earth revolves around the Sun.
When we are in search of happiness, the first question we should ask ourselves, is what seeds we are sowing?
Happiness is not something that we get from other people. The happiness we feel is in direct proportion to the love that we are able to give.
Take a peek at those embittered people who expend so much energy pulling others down; they forever remain miserable.
They fail to realize that in the attempt to keep someone else down, they hinder themselves from rising to their optimum potentials.
Be loving to yourself and others and you see that love reciprocated.
It is the law of Karma which works every time, whether we are aware of it or not. It occurs in the small things and in the big things that surround us.
It is also wise to remember that treating others right does not imply being blind to their shortcomings or giving them permission to treat you poorly.
Leannenz, I sincerely thank you for inviting me to participate in this quote series. It is a good opportunity to reflect on those things that matter and I think I am going to continue the quote beyond this stage 🙂
I would like to invite 5 awesome bloggers to share their favorite quotes in the series of 3.
Warm regards to you all. Be happy.
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
PLEASE Feel Free To Share. IT’S ALL PART OF LOVING ♥ 🙂
Whats on my mind you ask?
This evening, I went grocery shopping with the children and as we traipsed lazily down the aisle, a young, tall, slim, beautiful lady passed me by with a young child.
The first thing that I saw was her hair that was shaved to the scalp and she wore the skin-cut with pride.
I tried not to stare, but I knew. My spirit grew disquietened.
In my heart, I knew that this lovely soul is battling for her life.
We walked past her and continued our shopping but my mind couldn’t focus.
After a while, I backtracked several aisles down to find her. I felt a bit nervous that she might not appreciate my disturbing her peace, but a little voice in my heart said Go! So I continued.
I approached tentatively and out-rightly told her that I noticed her shaved scalp and she confirmed that she has breast cancer.
My heart went out to this total stranger. I have witnessed first hand the heart-rending havoc that cancer wreaks on sufferers.
We talked for a while, it turned out she has a chemo/radiation session tomorrow and of course she is trying to live life as normal as possible especially for her young child.
By the end of our discussion, ironically, she ended up comforting me. We shared a blessing and a hug.
I admire her strength and really wish her well. I wish her miracles. 
I wish more Grace and strength to those who are suffering at this time.
May faith, peace and healing hands be your portion.
Kind regards.
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
The term prized possessions sounds like I simply purchased them from a supermarket, which actually places a finite value on these treasures of mine.
We do not own our family/children but we are mere custodians of these young souls who decorate our lives and our families are gifts bestowed upon us.
The elixir obtained from experience shared, the roads traveled and joy from loved ones can neither be bottled nor sold.
My family are my pride and joy.
They are my treasures of inestimable value and for these beautiful ones, I am exceedingly thankful.
Every other material possession is disposable and replaceable. It’s simply there to satisfy a specific need.
Below is a short related prose that I wrote earlier in the year.
Life on a short lease….
Posted on May 25, 2015
In deed, nothing I have is truly mine,
I am simply a beneficiary,
Of the benevolence of a Supreme Being: God,
I am only a conscious receptor of goodwill and grace,
I am simply a custodian of blessings bestowed upon me,
A mere guardian of gifts innumerable.
Not to be taken for granted.
However we look at it.
I know this.
I am just a sojourner, a wayfarer.
Nothing I have is truly mine.
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
In response to The Daily Prompt Pride and Joy.
What’s your most prized possession?
In my second quote of the 3 quote series, I would like to share the often forgotten sense of ourselves as miracles.
I love to remind myself of this quote, which unfortunately, I have no idea where I learnt it, but when I started meditating on it with regards to myself, the sense of awareness of the miracle in me, simply grew and keeps growing.
Most of the time, we are seriously enmeshed in the entire drama of trying to eke out a living, the drama that unfolds around us everyday, the stories of our lives and the wishes that things should be different, that we lose sight of the fact that our mere existence, our every moments, are ”miracles in action.”
Our miracles start to happen when we channel as much energy into our dreams and being as we channel into our fears and shortcomings.
Leannenz, I thank you for inviting me to participate in this quote series. It is a good opportunity to reflect on those things that matter.
I would like to invite 3 awesome bloggers to share their favorite quotes in the series of 3.
Kind regards to you all.
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
For me, it is a conscious effort to make and reflect on positive affirmations each day, so that I don’t get drowned in the sea of negative vibes and occurrences which pervades today’s life.
Not that I don’t get affected by the rotten stuff that life tosses, but I try to deal with it and move on. Worrying, adds no value. You can’t keep carrying an umbrella hoping that rain will fall, when the sun is shining brightly 😉
If I choose to dwell on the constant personal negative challenges that have stared me in the face, not only will I be swamped with complete disbelief in the wonder of life, but my life would be a total mess.
I try to mindfully apply certain quotes to my life and I will share some with you.
This is the first quote in a series of three that I will share of the next three days in the quote challenge. Thank you for the invitation leannenz. I really enjoyed your first in the series of quotes. I would like to invite 3 awesome bloggers to share their favorite quotes in the series of 3.
Random Pictures taken in Dubai
If I have only 7 words to share with you, I will by-pass all the niceties like ‘how do you do’ and go straight to the meatier part of things.
These 7 golden words are as ancient as ever.
Your time spent here on Earth represents your life!
A simple analysis will give a clearer picture of the brevity of it all and how impoverished we all are when it comes to time.
A 70 year old gets 25,500 days.
An 80 year old gets 29,200 days.
A 90 year old gets 32,850 days.
A 100 year old gets 36,500 days.
With the stress level associated with today’s living, attaining old age has become a rarity.
Not every one will be lucky to see 70, 80 , 90 years and over.
Therefore, we must utilize the share that we get of this most precious and scarce resources judiciously.
Focus on the things that really matter such as: Living in Grace, Love, Joy, Hope, Happiness, Peace, Unity, Kindness, Gratitude, Family, Friends, Fulfillment, Self-Actualization, Understanding, Passion, Patience……
Don’t waste it by robbing yourself trying to live some other person’s life and do remember that in the expenditure of your time, the time taken to rejuvenate is not wasted time!
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
In response to The Daily Post Prompt Seven wonders
Khalil Gibran once said that people will never understand one another unless language is reduced to seven words. What would your seven words be?
Joining Colline’s Gratitude challenge will help me to stay hinged on the blessings that I am surrounded with, no matter how minutiae they may seem.
The song ‘count your blessings and name them one by one,’ plays in my mind as I write this. It will indeed surprise you what the Lord has done!
There is always something to be grateful for and when we are thankful for what we have, it actually makes it enough. Fear disappears and abundance appears!
Our lives may not be perfect, but gratitude bestows reverence on us, changing the perspectives of how we experience Life and the World.
Today, I am simply grateful for the simple things of life.
Take not for granted the little things that makes your life beautiful. Like my people would say, “when you are eating a piece of fruit, think of the person that planted the tree.”
Be happy and kind regards,
© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
I do exclaim quite a bit, even in real life! I think we Africans tend to like a bit of drama, with all the Ahs! Ohs! Hei! O’s, Ehh’s! Hmm’s! that dots our spoken words to emphasize the thoughts that goes with the words.
So genetically, I practice this as a true African to help you get the drift of my thoughts!
I very well can’t add all the hmm’s and hah’s to my writing or can I?
I think those punctuation marks were created for a purpose and I am not even sure that I am using enough of them!
Therefore, when I am making an expression that goes on and on and I am not sure how to do that, I use continuous spots or should I say dots! It represents a pause……., so that you can mull over that thought!
I love little bits of colours here and there ( sometimes, I think I am a magpie that is forever attracted to shiny stuff).
I love to smile too! Even on paper. 😊 Well, not on my thesis, I guess Master Prof. will not find that very impressive and will assume that it is a lame attempt at buttering up 😕
When I write, a lot of times, if I don’t have my headphones on, I say out my words as I type or write them, as though you are in here with me and I try to simulate your answer and how we would twist the topic to 7 Sundays.
My pencils do suffer anxiety attacks from not knowing which of them I will chew to bits the following day and my keyboard has suffered a nervous breakdown a time or two.
My family have grown used to the queer awesomeness of this Lady of the Manor and my husband’s roll of his eyeballs when my laughter gets raucous makes me share tidbits of juicy bits from this awesome community.
Sometimes, most times, I have to reduce my words when I am bursting with so much to say. I keep silent in my head to allow you get in a word sideways as well.
It is a shame that the banter we share has to zip through the cyberspace, bypassing some
word- nappers across all the oceans before making it safely to you and sometimes it takes forever to arrive.
No, I am not a mad-hatter, but I do have my writing and real side quirks which makes me who I am.
That’s some of my quirkiness (I hear that they grow as you get older). So let me know about yours.
Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha
In response to The Daily Post prompt By The Dots
We all have strange relationships with punctuation — do you overuse exclamation marks? Do you avoid semicolons like the plague? What type of punctuation could you never live without? Tell us all about your punctuation quirks!
a cooking pot and twisted tales 