There’s a type of tree that’s planted all over Singapore. It’s known as the rain tree because of its iconic umbrella shape. Not only is it incredibly striking to look at, the sprawling canopy provides the perfect respite from the oppressive heat we experience here year-round. It’s planted extensively throughout Singapore for this reason. It … More Nurturing Our Roots
A few days ago, I had a Zoom meeting with Omar, my nephew by marriage. It’s been a while since I last mentioned that I married an Egyptian woman—a truly beautiful person named Azza—a little more than twelve years ago, back when I was living in Cairo, Egypt, and teaching at the American University in … More I Wish You Well, Omar
Dear, Readers, I’m speaking for all Wise & Shine writers when I say that we so appreciate your continued support of this blog. To show how thankful we are, we want to ask you to share a link to your blog or site in the “thoughts” or comments section at the bottom of this page. … More Sharing is Caring
Most of us are familiar with the old saying, “When it rains, it pours.” I’ve been thinking a lot about that adage recently because there’s been quite a lot of pouring rain in my life over the past few months. A few weeks ago, I wrote about needing to take a leave of absence from … More It’s Been Pouring
Hi, all. Wise & Shine is looking for a few new writers. If you’d like to apply to join the team, send samples of your writing via our “Contact” form. Please familiarize yourself with the sort of things our blog publishes before contacting us. We’ll send a set of writing guidelines to those who send … More Want to Write for Wise & Shine?
Dear Wise & Shine Readers: As some of you might have noticed, I’ve been mostly away from the site in recent weeks. I’m writing to let you know that I’ll be taking a leave of absence from the blog. I’m suffering from extreme burnout. Additionally, I was recently diagnosed with an incurable degenerative condition. I … More An Explanation
The laundry is folded (or doing a passable imitation of folded), the dogs are silent and sleeping, and the house is freshly vacuumed, and even though, an hour later, its efforts have already become hard to spot as a fresh battalion of fur easily reclaims its beachheads, the house is still neat and clean (or … More Sunday Evening, Long Island, February 2023
Hello there! I hope everyone started off a great week! Today, I want to appreciate morning routines. I have always been an early bird. Well, not always. Always up to the last 1.5 years or so. This is when I started sleeping in for the first time in my life. I assume my body and … More Morning Routine Appreciation Post
I’m currently reading The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart, with “Willie” being the great Willie Nelson, musician and songwriter extraordinaire. As you might guess from the title, the book, coauthored by Nelson and Turk Pipkin, elucidates the singer’s philosophy of life, which was strongly influenced by Buddhist and Taoist … More Question of the Day (Inspired by the Red-headed Stranger)
In October of last year, Wise & Shine started a podcast. In the weeks ahead, we’ll be recording new episodes for your listening pleasure. Tuesday will be the day we publish new podcasts to the site. If you haven’t already done so, please have a listen to our recordings from 2022. We are interested in hearing … More Wise & Shine Podcasts in 2023
In the latest installment of the Wise & Shine podcast, I talk with Billy Osogo—one of our writers and a brilliant young man who lives in Nairobi, Kenya—about what the world can learn from Africa. In Billy’s very insightful response, he tells me about “Ubuntu” and a variety of other subjects. Have a listen and … More New Podcast: What Can the World Learn from Africa?
I would like to express my gratitude to you all for being affectionate readers, and active participants to Wise&Shine’ blog life. Without you, my posts on Wise&Shine would have been a box full of words but without emotions and sentiments. To conclude this year, I would like to share with you the lyrics of one … More Happy Holidays!
It’s that time of year again when my mind goes back to December of 2003, exactly nineteen years ago now, when I had one of the most profound experiences of my life. A bit earlier in that year, in May of 2003 to be exact, my maternal grandfather, a real-life cowboy and a man I … More I Said Goodbye to a Great Man
I find it strange that when some things happen, I realize that I actually have been wanting that thing all along. It so happens that I do not register them as an explicit dream or ideal, but it turns out they were what I wanted and what I needed. I am experiencing something like this … More Hidden Dreams in Life
In the barren lands of earth, our gestures of gratitude can often seem hollow and trite–an obligatory Thank You note written here; a box of chocolates given there; handshakes, hugs, and gift cards, though well intended, can also prove lacking. The worst, of course, is when someone’s precious gifts of time, effort, and heart are overlooked … More To The One
Hi! We’ve just posted a new episode of the Wise & Shine podcast. Have a listen as I talk with the uber-talented and insightful Art Russell. In this podcast, we attempt to answer the question “What’s Really Important?” Thanks for tuning in!
Who Am I? Depends Who You Ask Barring a few Zen Masters, all of us spend virtually every waking moment (and every non-waking moment) in our own heads. These accommodations may strike you as lightless prison cells, bright, soft palaces, or something in between, depending on your moods and/or medications. Hamlet claimed, “I could be … More “We Know What We Are, But Know Not What We May Be”
Check out Wise & Shine’s new podcast. In our latest episode, I talk with Wynne Leon about “Finding My Father’s Faith,” her memoir. Enjoy!
I realise that writing a book is like doing a giant jigsaw puzzle. Except you have to make the pieces first. You make the pieces and then work out where they go. You move them around until everything just sort of clicks into place. Then you flesh out the spaces in between. The hardest part … More Piecing Together My Thanks
Hello on a Tuesday! I hope everyone is off to a great start for the week! We talk a lot about what the best habits are to make our lives better. ‘How do I become more productive?’, ‘How can I be happier?’ are some of the questions we hear and probably ask ourselves a lot … More The best habit of all