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As I close my eyes and drift away to a land where there is love, health, peace and blessings. I wanted to take the time to think and reflect. The truth is I am genuinely an optimist. When things are not going so great I always try to remain positive, always trying to find the little details to be grateful for. However, I have been a little unsettled for the past week. A relentless sense of hopelessness. A "hitting" a rock bottom type of feeling if you will. Almost as though I am standing at the bottom of a well, with my hands scraping the sides, reaching, stretching, trying to find a way to climb out. But with every push, with every pull, a simple sense of getting no where. This feeling over took me, not only at the level of emotion, but also at the physical level. So it decided to take over me, but I decided to take myself out so that it would not take over me. As I wondered this land, a land that I had never walked before, but a land which is so near and dear, my heart - America. I wondered to find beautiful blossoms. I walked and walked feeling the air, admiring the sights, a sense of deep peace shrouded my entire being, it was the peace that I had been searching for, for years, it was found. I walked and was grateful, for these moments and memories. I climbed the stairs to find myself excited to discover The Library of Congress. Wow! Can you believe it? A library devoted to Thomas Jefferson. Wow, a beautiful delight!  She walks into her Majesty Colors of royalty, igniting, arousing, tenacious, tasteful, glorious, delights. Stunned of the magnificence, the beauty. I simply had to stand still, let my eyes wonder, to breathe in this magnificent splendor. As I write I am taken back to this moment. I reflect. Why did I travel to Washington anyway? I never leave the kids, it is almost as though I was fated to travel these lands to re-awaken the heart. As I continued to explore, well what can I tell you, there are no words to describe what I felt, but I will say: My jaws dropped, I was in a state of shock as I entered to see Jefferson's library collection. I found Shakespeare and even Plato books on these shelves. My heart was ignited. I began to relate his collection to my own book shelf, we have the same interests. I felt a heavy tear roll down my cheek. And guess what? As though I wasn't stunned enough, it was astounding. I saw Jefferson's hand-written letters. Jefferson wrote letters, just like me. Can you believe this. Jefferson wrote letters, it took me a while to take in these beautiful gems. I thought about the book collection, the letters, and simply could not help but to connect these to myself and my own interests. What is this yearning, what is this calling in my heart that I have been searching for, for years and years? What is it? If only Jefferson were alive. I wish I could have met him. On a note of learning: As I walked I came across a piece of writing and image that was called: "A New Library For Congress And The Nation." In this piece I learned about the British forces that burned the unfinished buildings in the Capital city (1814). This truly saddened my heart. As I take the time to reflect, I think. Our histories are harsh, however it would be misleading if our human mind / brain did not take the time to acknowledge and learn these. When we learn these we simply expand our own knowledge and ways of thinking. As I traveled back to the present day, I thought about the event of the National Security Summit 2016, I felt grateful for the presence of world leaders including the British Prime Minister, David Cameron, the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, meeting with our President Barack Obama. This meeting gave me hope, a hope that our leaders will strive to work together. To promote a positive outlook for the children, whose eyes are yearning for a peaceful today and tomorrow. When we learn the harsh histories, it is through this level of awareness that we can begin to cultivate, and develop a sense to prevent these histories from repeating. If we want a new today and tomorrow, we must seek out new solutions, new strategies to promote dialogues and understandings between nations. Dedication - The words of this being are dedicated to Thomas Jefferson, I am so grateful for the opportunity to visit this beautiful piece of history. You awakened my heart. These words are also dedicated to the American people a sign of my trust, especially the cab drivers, I learned so much from you all, thank you for all that you do. My thoughts with love and kindness, Shazia.
Notes: These thoughts were originally hand-written on 11th April 2016.
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