Otherwordly

Otherwordly

Friday, 11 April 2014

Broken Hearts and Torn Up Letters

False face must hide what the false heart doth know
  - William Shakespeare

Games. As much as we had to admit it, we are all involved in a game. Whether you're the one making the rules, or the one following them, you are in a game. Just like any ordinary game there is a winner and a loser. Sometimes, the rules can change and the people playing both lose. The outcome of the game can depend on strength will-power and logic. If you become to emotional the results can be disastrous. Once you start playing, each move you make becomes dangerous and risky. There is no way out.

Take this game for example. Two people caught up in a game of Lust. Actually make that four people, more dramatic ending. It's the classic  'I want what I can't have but I will try and take it anyway' scenario. One person caught in a trap with several entanglements Does she choose the spark between a lover known for a day, the chemistry with a dangerous attraction, or does she choose the connection between a 'more than' friend?

Lets break it down even further. The first: The Lover. An instant spark between two people set in a scene fuelled by alcohol. Surprisingly the lovers met during a moment of sobriety but as more liquid was consumed, the hormones began to take over resulting in drunken promises of faithfulness, protection with the inclusion of number-swapping. The outcome will most likely result in akwardness and perhaps the blocking of the whole night were the two people will never meet again. Or it could swing the other way and something beautiful will become of the meeting. However this causes friction amongst others included and changes the game completely.

This takes us to the second part: The attraction. Two people once caught in the trap of attraction mixed with passion and intellect. A dangerous combination with consequences that have affected the whole game and its' players. Two people who had to draw a line in their meeting to keep one player from a broken heart. Yet the attraction has now become all one-sided. A mark has been left in one's head and is saddened when the other player is in charge of his own game with many other contestants, maybe one or two in a night. The loser then watches from the sidelines constantly comparing the winner to other participants in her court. She will be wondering when can she break free from the spell to play her endeavours free from jealousy and longing.

The two situations bring on the final part, the result. The decision: The Connection. As the act between The Lover and The Attraction unfolds, the understudy is waiting behind the curtains, watching every move she makes and every line she speaks. He patiently waits for his turn in the game but it never comes. She has placed him in a compartment in her heart safely locked away. Two people caught in a never-ending circle of hidden emotions which threaten to explode. The Attraction fades away in to the night one more time and The Lover takes centre-stage. This is the moment in which the players will know the outcome. No more rule-changing. No more manipulation. Brutality is amongst them. The Connection admits defeat and walks away leaving the lovers to their finale. They win the game and each other.

However, like all games, there is a final twist: The Heartbreak. As The Connection player walks away, he is forced back in to the game when she realises the consequences of dallying in such a sport. The Connection no longer wants to be a part, and two hearts break at once. The Lover is forgotten immediately, The Attraction is no longer holding a spell over her but it's too late. She has lost. No more drawings, no more communication with words and technology, no more smiles. She realises it's her fault. It was her all along. No one was playing games but her. She was manipulating situations to suit her, not noticing the effects it would have on the participants. A moment too late and the game is over.

Wednesday, 9 April 2014

The End is Near



The end is near. Well for my contract in the Middle East that is. It is hard to believe that this time last year I had sent off my CV to a teaching agency on a whim. I wasn’t hoping to get an interview after all I hadn’t even completed the PCET course. I had a back plan of course – supply teaching. I didn’t want to raise my hopes for them to be knocked back down. Yet never in a million years would I have thought of applying for a full-time teaching position in the Middle East. For me to do that I would have to step out of my comfort zone and open myself to rejection on a grander scale.  Nevertheless I put myself out there and waited for the inevitable reply. I didn’t have to wait long though. A few days later and I received an offer letter to be signed and returned as soon as possible. Time after that seemed to pass in a blink of an eye.  A year on and I am currently going through the same progress – signing an offer letter for next yet.
The thing that has me most excited is my vacation time in July. I will be going home. Though I will only be in the UK for four weeks as I have my very own Euro-trip booked; by Euro-trip I mean Newcastle – Amsterdam – Rotterdam – Stockholm – Gothenburg. Hopefully my next summer vacation will include Finland, Hungary and Denmark. When discussing my plans with my family over skype, my brother appeared and stated I should visit Krakow, Poland. His reasoning for this, which is horribly amusing, is to see how many Polish live there since the UK is swarmed with them. Slightly racist brother I have there.
I have been thinking about my plans for the British summer and I realised I will definitely need to make time for my best friend’s first new-born baby.  I am so ecstatic for her. It’s surreal that the girl  I grew up with for eleven years is about to be a mother.  She’s all grown up now. It also reminds of my little girl waiting at home for me – my beautiful nightmare of a niece. I can’t wait to shower her in kisses and maybe cause some mischief around the town with her. My Lillie-bug is one hilarious child. I am so grateful that she hasn’t forgotten me. 
In other news, someone recently mentioned to me about remembering me when I have published my work and it got me thinking; why do I need to publish my work? Is it to earn money? For someone criticise my work publicly? So everyone knows who I am? If these are the reasons  then my answer is no. I write to let my feelings out. I am not bothered if no-one or everyone reads it. It’s my hobby, my own pleasure – no-one else’s. I may link my posts on social network sites, but that is so one of my good friends can read it- and nothing else.
I am currently in the middle of writing a book – continuing what I had started in university for an assignment. Again this is for me only; to see what I can accomplish. I remember listening to my English tutor say to me: “Even if you only write a 100 words a week, you can still write a  complete novella or even a novel, but it all depends on your state of mind and whether you want  to finish something you have started.” This stuck with me for 3 years, but I didn’t return to my story until recently. 
It’s amazing what changes a person can go through without really knowing. I am still the girl who watches the world rather than participates, but at the end of the day I know what risks are worth taking and which choices are simply unrealistic. Whether it’s my upcoming plans for the summer, or my continuous need to write something, I know life has plenty of things in store for me.
Well that s enough writing for now,
See you on the other side of the Internet
Melissa

Wednesday, 2 April 2014

No lights with tealights.

And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet, and the winds long to play with your hair.
                                                                                 - Khalil Gibran


 At 8.30pm on 29th March, the UAE became involved in a worldwide movement known as Earth Hour. As an attempt to tackle climate change households, businesses, and individuals are encouraged to switch of all sources of unnatural light for one hour. It was this particular event that shed light upon another topic - technology.

Let me recreate the scene that unfolded before my eyes to help you understand the nature of this topic. I was sitting in my usual spot in a bar when tealights were placed upon each table, the lights were flicked off, and the televisions no longer played the monotony sport of football. As odd as it seemed, the atmosphere was quite romantic - that is if you looked past the a collection of guys drunkenly raising their voices in a dark corner. For that one hour it felt nice to take a step back from reality. Yet it made me wonder; what would happen if the world shut off more than the lights? Would the world crumble around us, or would humanity adapt to the change. Evidence in my surroundings would support the former. It had only been five minutes and the majority of those present, including myself, resorted to using a mobile phone as a source of light or entertainment. Five minutes. That was all it took.

What had happened to the days were we weren't glued to some form of technology: mobiles, laptops, Ipads or Ipods. Is life really that bad that we need to check our messages within every second that passes? Is it too hard to talk to someone face-to-face? Is it too  difficult to put pen to paper and send a letter? Today's society would say yes it is. No-one has time to send letters instead of texts. No-one wants to take the risk of knocking on someone's door and speaking to them in person.

It shocked me that in the UAE, children as young as three have been introduced to and/or using some form of technology. Are we that engrossed in it that it has now ruled our lives. It is kind of hypocritical of me to type about such a topic when I had been texting throughout the writing of this post, but it further proves my point. We would not survive living in a world with no technology, no means to communicate faster. Socialising no longer exists in the original sense that it was meant to be. Could we ever go back to how we were before technology was given such power. Probably not.

The tea-lights have now burned themselves out and the power has been restored.


AAnd And And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/khalilgibr387063.html#6fOw9vq8RCFR7xVm.99
And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/khalilgibr387063.html#6fOw9vq8RCFR7xVm.99
And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/khalilgibr387063.html#6fOw9vq8RCFR7xVm.99
And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/khalilgibr387063.html#6fOw9vq8RCFR7xVm.99
And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/k/khalilgibr387063.html#6fOw9vq8RCFR7xVm.99