Over here in the Middle East you commonly hear the phrase, “inshallah,” which means “God willing.” If people feel impolite saying no to a request, you’ll hear them say, “Inshallah I will be there…” for example. It can also be an excuse for why something may or may not be fixed in your home. I think it’s a lovely and infuriating phrase. It acknowledges the many things that can get in the way of our goals for a day and the situations that prevent us from achieving them. And yet, being oh so American, sometimes I just want to stamp my feet and say, “If you mean NO, just SAY so!”

I woke up at 3:30 this morning for no apparent reason. I laid in bed for nearly 2 hours trying to convince myself sleep would return to me. It didn’t. I finally embraced my random wake up time and got out of bed to work on Artist Strong’s development. Obviously, if you make an announcement about big changes, you have to do the work to make it happen! 

I sat down at my computer and clicked the lovely little Chrome icon and waited. And waited. Some more clicking. And then waited some more. That’s when I discovered I had no internet. Again. (I’m starting to think this is a recurring quality of life this country). So there I was, before 5 am, up and ready to write and work, without a key tool to make the blog post, or Aweber email work happen. I spent two hours playing with settings and talking to reps on the phone. I got nowhere. At least this time I didn’t hear one of the technicians tell me “It may work later, inshallah.” So, I did what anyone would do: I went back to bed.

I woke up after a short nap determined not to let this wrench in my plans impact my mood. I ran some errands, which included collecting some of my recently framed artwork (It looks great! Yay!). I decided on the drive home from Seeb souq, jamming to JT (Yes, I like Metallica, and JT. It’s possible.), that I saw this as an opportunity. I had a great excuse to get out of the house and go to the dreaded Starbucks. I chose it because it has a lovely view. I would have a leisurely afternoon of grading IB extended essays and blog-business related work. All while enjoying an ocean view. Beautiful weather, writing, and the white noise of a coffee shop. Score!

I settled down into a comfy chair with a quality window view and set up my little AirBook for work-time. That’s when I was told, their WiFi wasn’t working.

I have to admit, I’m thinking getting out of bed today may have been a bad idea. Is it a full moon in Muscat?I’m thinking about my best laid plans for today. Obviously, my day is not going to be the day I thought it would be. But I think I’m okay with that. I’m not calling the company for help anymore today, because all they do is repeatedly set my password and while I feel pretty good, I can tell my patience is limited. (It’s called self-love people.) So, if there is time, inshallah, I’ll get those groceries. And inshallah, I’ll finally work on my TurboTax, when, inshallah, I have internet again. Somewhere. Someday.

Yet, I do have plenty of grading to do. And I brought a journal to write my blog posts in. And then, there is this wonderful ocean view. So, I’m going to accept my circumstance and enjoy this writing disconnected afternoon.

God willing.

 

BE COURAGEOUSLY CREATIVE: How do you navigate a day that turns out nothing like you planned? Can you utilize your creative superpowers to remain positive and enjoy the changes that come your way? How can we apply this to our creative practice?