I love that serenity prayer: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference. “ The older I get the more I realize the only thing I can change is myself. My attitude. The work I choose to focus […]

My family is unusual. Me, I am the sports fan whereas my husband could care less. It was one of the things I admired about him when we got married. He wasn’t into watching sports. So it is above ironic that I became the sports person. I see it as halal entertainment. There’s nothing kinky […]

I’m really worried about this next generation of children. In response to serious abuse from some nefarious teachers (that absolutely had to be dealt with!) we’ve really undermined the whole system. As an author/storyteller, when I go into a school I’m fully aware that most of the children have no intention of following my line […]

Isn’t it ironic that my last post was about the risk of burn out and here, in the new year, I’m already feeling burned out? I keep hearing that Bee Gee’s song Words in my head: It’s only words And words are all I have To take your heart away… If you think about it, that’s […]

On the tenth of November I conducted a workshop for Packaging Your Imagination, a one day conference for children’s writers and illustrators. It’s part of CANSCAIP, the Canadian Society of Children’s Authors Illustrators and Performers an organization I joined at the very beginning, to learn the craft of writing. Oh what a journey it’s been! […]

What possessed me to embark on three trips in six weeks? Towards the end of September I visited Sharjah UAE for about three days. Yup. I traveled on a plane for 13+ hours to stay at a hotel in Sharjah for three days and come back. It was for an international storytelling festival. But the […]

I remember hearing, as a child, some boys talking about an incident they’d witnessed where a girl was being sexually assaulted. The boys were talking about how she was laughing nervously through the experience and they were confused, thinking that she was enjoying it. The conversation was so vivid, so gruesome, so appalling, and they […]

Why is it so difficult to put a price tag on your attendance at an event? I remember a while ago, I got an email from a school in northern Pakistan asking for a skype visit. There was no mention of money, so I assumed, quite correctly that this school expected me to just do […]

It’s always such a blessing to usher in this incredibly special month. What a year it’s been since last Ramadan. Last year I was feeling so shaken with regards to my writing craft and skills, but not my faith, and this year I’ve managed to slough a lot of that trepidation off. I feel more […]

…or is it? I know I need to stop watching the news so much. I know it isn’t good for my health. And yet the urge to tune in to the next bit of craziness, the next bit of ‘Oh no, what’s he doing now?’ is often too strong to resist. Last weekend a guy […]