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contemplations Germany inspiration Photography street photography war

Daily Coffee Talk~ 89/365

This cloud shall pass~ Germany

Hi again from Germany. It has taken me a while to force myself to come back to this blog since current events threw me completely off balance lately. But if there is anything I am sure of, it is that I am the boss of me and there is plenty of coffee left in the world to drink while I write my blog.

I chose this image today because it has felt lately as though a cloud is over us, casting a shadow on what we love to do and how we love to be, but all clouds dissolve and all storms will pass as they have always throughout history. We live on a planet of duality after all and there is always an up that follows a down.

I still remember spending hours trying to ‘melt’ clouds with my sister in Lebanon by firing force at them with our extended hands, and you can believe me or not, it works! Try it next time you feel like having some sunshine in your life.

The best way to get over a hurdle is to help break it down, and with the sad situation in the Ukraine and other wars, well, help, find a way to support the people who are helping by donating, creating, communicating, being compassionate and all of that somehow feels like a breeze that pushed the clouds out of the way.

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art children contemplations Germany inspiration morning coffee talk Photography

Daily Coffee Talk~ 77/365

Sometimes my mind goes back to when I was a small child and I can for a split second reconnect to a time of pure joy.

Those were moments when all that existed was the present. Time had a different nature to it. It did not threaten me with the future or blame me for the past.

Is that child that lives in a state of pure joy still there somewhere? How many complex parts come together to make us who we are today?

I want to be that child again even for a brief moment every day.

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children contemplations Germany inspiration morning coffee talk Photography UAE

Daily Coffee Talk~ 55/365

free at last~

Hi my friends,

Lea’s quarantine ended today! We have a negative covid test and the birds are singing again in our neighbourhood. You don’t realise the importance of human contact till you go 10 days without it.

We have been smiling a lot today, hugging and being silly. I am grateful for her recovery and wish for this global pandemic to disappear and allow for a new kind of normalcy to return.

Stay healthy and well. Happy and gratefully signing off from Germany.

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animation children contemplations morning coffee talk Photography

Daily Coffee Talk~53/365

wishing on a star~

Hi again,

Today I decided to create a small animation from a favourite photograph of mine simply to wish you a bright weekend, a better tomorrow, an a healthy year.

This is especially dedicated to my beautiful daughter Lea, who sits in quarantine upstairs, and I miss her so much. The hand in the image is hers and the starfish was put back in to the sand safely.

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children Germany inspiration lockdown morning coffee talk parenting Photography Tuscany

Morning Coffee Talk~50/365

Lea playing on the swing in Tuscany~2012

Good Morning,

This image is one of my favourites that I have taken of my daughter and is both sentimental for me and expressive of her playful nature.

I was looking at it today and thinking of how important it is to remain lighthearted and free. We get that bashed out of us as we get older and what a a pity that is.

I tend to dedicate a part of my life to silliness and I don’t plan on giving that up any time soon. So cheers to the goofballs of this world, some of which are dear friends of mine. I miss you all and quarantine will end in a few days! Yay.

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myanmar Photography

Where is your happy place?~

You often hear people escaping mentally to their happy places where they can reconnect with who they are meant to be for a moment; rewriting some chapters, rearranging some priorities and for just a short moment, just ‘being’.

I found my happy place when I went to Myanmar. I could not stop smiling there, it was a wellness trip of sorts where I met the ‘me’ that Life had made me forget.

Have you met your happy place?

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contemplations myanmar Photography

Between Earth and Sky~

between earth and sky~ MyanmarThroughout my travels I have seen places where people felt content with who they are, blissfully living between earth and sky without want for anything more. That would seem to be the ultimate goal and the secret to happiness, being able to feel truly satisfied. These people seemed to be always doing something, busy, working, creating, in harmony with life somehow as they toil in it. Our modern world keeps dangling carrots in front of us to make us want more, with hardly any time to appreciate what we already have.

Day 56 of 365~ย 

Image taken on Inle Lake in Myanmar

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Photography street photography

The first day of the rest of my life~

Every morning I wake up, I get the same feeling: “today it can all be rewritten”. I was never one to believe in a determined destiny or a life already preplanned, or at least I was always questioning the process and processing the question.

Today, the first day of 2018 of all days, I decided to begin a new commitment, a daily heartbeat, a photo and a thought every day till 2019. It is not written but here I am attempting to write it.

Let the journey begin.

I took these images this morning on a drive that I took to reflect on the new year, somewhere in Germany, where I happen to find myself these days.

day 1 of 365

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CHINA Photography Uncategorized

Quietly They Toil~ Yunnan

The tug go venture into new territory~ YunnanTobacco road~ Yunnanthe strong backbone of the working man~ Yunnanthe loads we carry~ Yunnanspinning tales over gernerations~ Yunnanfield of dreams~ YunnanFarmer in the fog~ Yunnan

For some of us here on earth, theย dayย begins and ends with physical work, and that brings a simple satisfaction of a hard-earned existence. Every working face I saw during my travels in Yunnan was always ready to break into an unapologizing smile; they possessed a contentment that can be forgotten to us in our boxed offices and multiple screens facing us every waking moment. They commune with nature, the wind, the elements, the land and that rewards them with a sense of belonging. They remember that they are earth dwellers and that simple truth is their fountain of wisdom.

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art inspiration Photography street

loving what you do and doing what you love

fisherman~ Penang~ Malaysia
fisherman~ Penang~ Malaysia

Have you ever tried to photograph or just picture in your mind an office worker who does not like what they do, but do it only because they have to? Can you imagine the expression of discontent and almost despair on their face? I still remember having jobs before where I did a mental countdown daily until the time came that I was free to go home. How unnatural it is to live that way…

Imagine finding what you love to do and doing just that all day, every day, wishing you had more hours in the day to do it. This is how I feel about photography and my work in it. I love doing it, sharing it, learning it, teaching it, exploring the world with inquisitive eyes, mind and faculty and remaining constantly at awe of everything I see and everyone I meet.

All of this has become more and more intense since I found another photographer who shares my vision and who was willing to dive into the unknown of a new amazing project of taking our love of photography and exploring the world while sharing it with others who have the same passion.

We found and keep finding ourselves in the streets of the city, where we meet the unexpected, exchange unforgettable moments with other humans, and then capture and share bits of it with the world.

Please visit our new project ‘finding yourself in the streets’, where Tokyo photographer Michael Kistler and I are beginning our photographic adventure, and hopefully see you one day in the streets!

Please ‘like’ our facebook page if you have time and help us kickstart this exciting adventure!