What Life Is

Seasons change, night falls, day breaks, wealth fades, and technology ages but life is way more than that.

One cool summer night, I was gazing at the dark but starry heavens lit by the fullness of the moonlight when a scene caught and captivated my clouded senses. A scene that reminded me of what life on earth should be. A family in their barong-barong just meters away from where I am. A shelter made up of a recycled and rusted aluminium roof that, should an ant sneeze, would surely be blown off. Uneven wood flooring on which they spend their nights dreaming of their unrealized dreams and routine candle lit dinners. Sofas and toilets that flush shall forever remain a mystery to them. Their children go to school with faded and crumpled school uniforms, worn out bags, mismatched socks and- if they’re lucky enough- a good pair of shoes. Life was kept out of complexity. They don’t have televisions to spend watching dramas through the night; they don’t have Steve Jobs to reach the virtual world; they are strangers to Android; they don’t even have a bed to call their own. They don’t have Louis Vuitton or Hermes; they cook their food on firewood; they study their lessons through candle light, yet you can still see happiness and contentment in their eyes.

The scene made me feel light-hearted and realize how lucky I was to have parents working their butts off to send me to prestigious schools providing all the decent things I need. How lucky I was that when I was younger, I always had a new set of school supplies at the start of every school year. How lucky I was to own a Barbie when I was a kid, that I’m a computer literate at the age of 11, that I can goof around the club and eat on buffet anytime I want, that I am here writing this with an excellent power source.

Life is neither about wealth nor prestige, they are just merits. But real life? It is appreciating what you have and being happy despite of the detours, humps and road repairs during the journey. Learn to appreciate everything. If you are in pain, feel it! If you are confused, pray. If you are happy, scream at the top of your lungs, laugh your heart out, dance under the rain, and take chances. We’ve got only one life to live, dare to be different and make memorable memories.

-Julie Anne Damudara
Inspired, Inspirational, and dedicated, Julie Anne is a 20-year-old writer from the Philippines.

Artwork by Marta Dahlig

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The Trace

                          

                                                       Hashthemag- Tumblr

I was lying on the roof top one evening, staring at the glowing sky. I was mesmerized by the twinkling stars, how they are so far away yet you can still see their beauty. Then the weirdest thought occurred to me... What am I really bedazzled by? Travelling light?

I say I'm looking at stars, but I'm actually staring at the trace they left behind. It was an illusion.

It reminded me of the people who walk in then walk out of our lives every day. They always leave something behind, something to remember them by. Good memories. Bad memories. Their belongings. Maybe even things they "accidently" left behind.

I think of how they appear to be one person the moment they walk into our lives... how we bond, build trust, create a foundation for the relationship to be built upon... and then think of the person they are when they walk out. You get that feeling that the person walking out that door is a complete stranger.

I remember personally thinking... How could I have not known that he or she would turn out to be like this? How could I have been so blind? How could I have not seen this coming? How could I be so foolish?

I was living an illusion.

Then like everybody else I sit and I mourn, I scream and I yell, I curse and I cry, sooner or later... I move on.

Five years down the line, I meet someone, I become part of his life, we become good friends for three years... maybe even more than friends. And the moment I was in arm's reach of something better, something I thought to be "valuable" at the time, I walk right out of his life and go on like he never existed.

I get a flashback of the person who was very important to me and walked out of my life. And the reality of what I was doing was like a slap in the face.

The person who I walked out on, who was suffering because of me didn't deserve the pain I caused him. And for what... for genuinely caring about me? Who was I to do such a thing?

And, ironically, I followed back the trace I created.

Its so easy for us to walk over each other to get to where we want. But wouldn't it be much easier for us to just let them tag along the journey of success with us?

- Sara Omar

Shakespeare, brownies and warm milk is my kind of cocktail.

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