This is a collection of my thoughts,troughout this Pandemic.

Day #1

Some people hoard food, my boys tend toward collecting toys, Thrift stores anyone?

I guess we hoarded a lot of Fidget Spinners ,Transformers, Bionicles, Star Wars and  Legoes. It came in handy in the year 2020 of our LORD when humans are living a new social experiment called ” Lockdown”.

Over all , what will mankind of 21st century do when most form of entertainment are stripped away ? Sporting events, concerts, travel, cruises, large gatherings , parties, barbecues, conferences, trips, vacations, faith venues,  Even work and money! Wait even Disneyland the happiest place on earth is deserted for a while.

Where will people find their values,identities, validation  and self soothing ?

 

Day #2

Coronavirus effect : WE may or may not gain 10-15 lbs due to forced sedentary life, grazing ,snacking ,eating multiple times a day do pass time. Stuffing our faces with food we bought .

Are we  going to practice self control? Look at food and ignore it ?  Or will  we adhere to the theory o”eating multiple small amount of food” is beneficial for your metabolism ?

Some other folks may  start implementing ‘Intermittent fasting ”

I am sure a lot of families will start cooking up a storm, baking, improvising  and learning new recipes.

Wich camp are you in ?

#homebound

#bingeeating

#noGym

 

Day # 3

You know how you get to wash your hands NON-Stop?

Immediately detach your dishwasher ! As you may know my dishwasher serves  as a storage unit since the beginning of time.

Hence  I washed my  hand in soapy Dawn water about 25 times today.

# flattenthecurve

 

Day #4

Online school hack

I told my 7 years old sone  that every time he has a meltdown, talks back, refuses to do his homework his teacher sees it from the computer camera.

It stopped him in his tracks,

#disancelearning

 

 

 

The Influenza sisters are  very ticked off. Their cousins SARS, H1N1 are livid as well.

Someone named  Corona ,Novel ,with number # 19 came out of nowhere and is stealing their thunder just like  that.

The sisters celebrity status is at stake. The Influenza bunch are no longer the most popular kids around the block.

Influenza who? Move over sisters ,we have a new public enemy # 1 and  this  Covid#19 is shutting down the world.  It has the classification Pandemic attached to it and it is making the other viruses blue with rage.

#Flexit

Too much screen time in the days of the Coronavirus..Said No one ever!

Hello screen time you might actually contribute to our sanity ,education , meetings ,appointments and such.

Screentime we love you , don’t ever let our batteries die, please stay charged and ready to go at all times..

Our kids need you ,our social life depends on you ,after Jesus we shall rely on you.

No we are not isolated! We ‘ve got our screens. Every word , every sentence we utter will start with “Tele..”

#Mankind in 2020 in  the times of the Coronavirus.

 

Long long time ago, in a land full of pens and paper ,people used address books .

Before iPhones were invented, before contact list were   added ,edited or deleted.

Before Googlemaps took over our lives , when we had not met its  annoying  cousins  Siri  and Alexa , basically before we could talk to our phones and tell them  what to do , we meticulously wrote every person’s information  and kept it secure in an address book .

Phone numbers , landline number , offices/home  addresses , directions, and much much later  Cellphone information .

Some people  had fancy address books with Van Gogh,Thomas Kinkade  style covers  , others gifted in calligraphy and cursive  could put  the Queen of England to shame with  their  pristine  penmanship  . I am almost sure they used  Mont  Blanc Pens, Fountain Pens, color coordinated , in  alphabetical order.

Mind you I was none of those sophisticated people  , although I have a massive address book to show off  for.

My poor address /composition book  of 20 years that I love so much   looked  like a wounded animal in bandages . Think clipped notes, scotch taped lists on top of eachother . New and old envelopes with cut down labels here and there . It was like  a crime scene that needed a major investigation .

So I decided it was high time to put that old, cranky ,suffering address book to sleep  and start a brand new freshly organized one.

We are in the Mari-Kondo era and things need to be in order, current,relevent and joyful.

So I went ahead and started going over these addresses, trying to decide which one I was going to transfer to my new book. Who is still in our lives?

What I did not anticipate was the rush of memories ,the Niagara Falls of emotions that washed over me ,and had me stopped in my tracks . Feelings of nostalgia, joy, aching , sadness, yearning , wondering , grieving ,loss, gain , excitement came in full force. Who knew ?

I mean this was my  life journey  written in many many pages. The essence of who I was, who I became .

Every single person’s information written in there was, is and will be part of my  story forever.

I thought a lot about that. I pondered on hundreds of relationships, how and where  these individuals came into my life. Some stayed for a season, some disappeared without any closure. I wonder what happened to them.. where are they now? I  knew them when they lived at that address. I visited, hung out ,watched movies  drank lots of coffee  overthere..  where are they now?

Addresses, locations, families , friendships I remembered millions of memories attached to them . Tea parties, slumber parties, family parties  , meeting complete strangers in the train, visiting cousins,  acquaintances , taking week-end trips, quality time spent  and so much laughter in these addresses .

In those days ,  we also looked through   the white pages   to find  long lost cousins or family friends  .Try to guess which one is the right contact ? We called and hang up lol, tried again until we got the right person .We tracked them   and I wrote down their  address. Years have passed but the memories are still vivid. 

Family members , local, out of state  and overseas. How I made sure I got all the info correct . Every move crossed out , re-entered  in a different page.

Church friends, work friends  girlfriends, close friend and not so close friends. People moved a lot , wondered a lot and I kept up  with their journey as well. My constant question every year to them  ” So what is your new address”?

I think what emerged from it all is that I belonged to something much bigger then me. The small, close knit family  friends, cousins , extended family to start with ..Then I ventured  out and forged so many new connections in different places .

So those new added addresses throughout the years speak for themselves .Seasons of life as a single girl, discovering a new country, living my best life with hundreds of girlfriends . A home I created  and nurtured .

Then season of dating, meeting the one, planning a wedding ,   new family  addresses added .Oh the research ,organizing that went into those Excel spreadsheets . Wedding list that  I kept safe and preserved to this day.  Marie Kondo says keep  the sentimental stuff,  so I did.

And the moves, the new communities we built in each new town  . People so many people . Few relationships became  fizzeled but a lot of them survived the test of time  and distance .

This gigantic address book says  that  communities matter .Relatioships matter.  My heart was stretched out , expanded , exposed, hurt ,loved on ,cared for  by a multitude of people. I’ll  remember all of it .

And now that we have   kids growing up  , I am adding their friends addresses, kind of starting their life journey  and see where it takes them and us.

It is our  life software that is getting a  much needed update , but not a wipe out . I wonder how this new book will look 20 years from  now.

Until then, I will keep adding , the old  fashion way in a good old address book , like a good  old soul  that thrives on connection and  hopelessly  needs   pen and paper .

 

 

 

 

 

Well Hello Blogging..

It has  been an eternity since my last blog entry . A lot has happened, a lot has changed but one thing has stayed the same . You guessed it ,yes reading has been my constant companion in this season of life. I almost doubled the amount of books I read from last year.

When do I have time to read? I really don’t , but I steal moments , minutes here and there  while waiting in my car to pick up the kids. At the Gym, in the sauna  room, in the lobby, at doctor appointments etc., . My favorite time though is at night when everybody goes to bed, when all is quite .

I virtually traveled all over the world with these books, many countries I discovered , learned about interesting cultures. I sharpened my Biblical knowledge , raced through  prophecy and End times.

I got to know closely a lot of famous individuals, and some non-famous. Their lives, families, careers, and passions.

I laughed so hard with few of the characters in the fictional world . Humour  and a cheerful content can be a good medicine for the  soul.

A lot of inspirational books,  I soak it up like a warm hug .

Books about mental health , ADHD, Autism spectrum and other resources that are helpful for parents with special needs children . Look it up ,its fascinating .

Some books I read but  was not too impressed,  so I will leave those out .

As  life moves through different seasons and phases so does one’s reading interest . This year I did not tackle a lot of heartbreaking or tragic stories. My heart could not take it .

Lastly  my  golden rule in reading is that you have to have chemistry with the story, click with it  right away  . Some best sellers I picked up but  never finished , and some other obscure books  I absolutely loved even if no one has heard about it .

So without  further delay, and in no particular order  below are few of Liza’s pick for 2019. Enjoy and let me know what you have read this year.

My Favorites:

1- Rich People Problems   by Kevin Kwan

2-My Name is Asher Lev  by Chaim Potok

3-Last Girl by Nadia Murad

4-Whiskey in a Teacup by Reese Witherspoon

5-Little Princes by Conor Grennan

6-Unveiling the End Times in Our time by Adrian Rogers

7-China Rich Girlfriend  by Kevin Kwan

8-Love that Lasts  by Jefferson & Alyssa Bethke

9-The Spiritual Warfare answer book  by David Jeremiah

10-The Whole -Brain Child  by DanielJ.Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson

11-The Mountains Are Calling by Jarrett Stephens

12-Spoken For by Robin Jones Gunn and Alyssa Bethke

13-FreeFall to Fly by Rebekah  Lyons

14-Autopsy of a Deceased Church by Them S. Rainer

15-Live Fearless by Sadie Robertson

16- Erasing  Hell  ,by Francis Chan

17-Brave is the new Beautiful  by LEE Wolfe Blum

18-The things we do for Love  by Kristin Hannah

19-Meet me at the Museum by Anne Youngson

20-The Third Option by Miles McPherson 

21-HomeSpun by Lorilee Craker

22-If I could ask God anything by Kathryn Slattery

23-The Daniel Prayer by Anne Graham Lotz

24-Letters to the Church by Francis Chan

25-The Tehran Initiative by Joel C.Rosenberg

26-The Kinship of Secrets by Eugenia Kim

27-Between Sisters by Kristin Hannah

28-Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

29-I should Have Honor by Khalida Brohi

30-Differently wired by Deborah Reber

31-Beyond Blessed by Robert Morris

32-Its not Supposed to be this way  by Lisa Terkeurst

33-The Persian Gamble  by Joel C. Rosenberg 

34-The Nehemiah Code by O.J. Hawkis

35-Let Her Fly by Ziauddin Yousafzai

36-The Girl with Seven Names by Hyeonseo Lee

37-Overcomer by Dr David Jeremiah

38-Imperfect Courage by Jessica Honegger

39-Point of View , Elisabeth Hasselbeck

40-Fierce Faith , Alli Worthington

41-The Armenian Genocide , ( Genocide & Persecution)

42-Face to Face with Jesus by Samaa Habib

43-Raising Boys with ADHD by James Forgan

44-Love without limits , Nick Vujicic with Kanae Vujicic

45-Deceivers by Terry James 

46-The Matchmaker’s List by Sonya Lall

47-The Bride Test by Helen Hoang

48-Look me in the eye  by John Elder Robison

49-Anxious about nothing by Max Lucado

50-The coming Islamic Invasion of Israel by Mark Hitchcock

51-If you Only Knew by Jamie Ivey

52-Not on my watch by Elizabeth Johnston 

53-The Rosie Result by Graeme Simsion

54-The End Times in Chronological order by Ron Rhodes

55-A woman is no Man by Etaf Rum

56-The Art of War for Spiritual Battle  by Cindy Trimm

57-Amreekiya by Lena Mahmoud

58-Willing to walk on water by Caroline Barnett

59-Not what I expected by Rita Eichenstein 

60-AS it was in the Days of Noah  by Jeff Kinley

61-40 Days through Daniel by Ron Rhodes

62-Eleanor Oliphant is completely fine by Gail Honeyman

63-Small  Fry by Lisa Brennan-Jobs

64- The Gambler by William Rempel

65-The Complete guide to Christian Denominations

66-The Insanity of God  by Nik Ripken

67-Fish Sandwiches by Troy Schmidt

68-After Life by Alice Marie Johnson

69-Lunch in Paris by Elizabeth Band

70-Can’t Make This Stuff Up By Susannah B. Lewis

71-Things My son Needs to know about the world  by Fredrik Backman

72-I’m Writing you from Tehran by Delphine Minoui

73-Unmarriageable by Sonia Kamal

74-The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict

75-A Spy in Exile  by Jonathan de Shalit

76-Called to Forgive  by Anthony B.Thompson

77-Everyday Millionaires by Chris Hogan

78-Shadow Strike by Yaakov Katz

79-Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

80-Things you save in a Fire by Katherine Center 

81-Funny You don’t look Autistic by Michael McCreary

82-The Scars that have Shaped me, by Vaneetha Rendall Risner

83-The Marriage Clock by Zara Raheem

84-Its Ok not to be Okay by Sheila Walsh

85-Shamed, by Linda Castillo

86-Raising Trump, by Ivana Trump

87-The Devil in Pew Number Seven by Rebecca Nichols Alonzo

88-A simple Favor by Darcey Bell

89-Own Your everyday by Jordan Lee Dooley

90-The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan

91-Rhythms of Renewal by Rebekah Lyons

92-The  Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris by Jenny Colgan

93-Who is the Antichrist by Mark Hitchcock

94-The Theft of America’s Soul by Phil Robinson

95- A Love Letter life by Jeremy and Audrey Roloff

96-the Au Pair by Emma Rous

97-Jesus and the End Times by Ron Rhodes

98-When Life gives you Lululemons by Lauren Weisberger 

99-Christmas at Little Beach Bakery ,by Jenny Colgan

100-Blood Moons Rising ,by Mark Hitchcock

101- The Cafe by the Sea ,by Jenny Colgan

102-Dear Girls, by Ali  Wong 

103-Agents of Babylon ,by Dr David Jeremiah

104-Dad is  Fat, Jim Gaffigan

105-The Dearly Beloved, by Cara Wall

 

To be continued..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What would  you do  if you have no phone for an entire day?

Couple of weeks ago on a fine Saturday morning , I left home in a hurry to take  my son to his swim lesson .  Once I got him there on time , got situated , I realized that my phone was missing in my Mom Purse and remembered it was still on charge at home .

Oh my God I though ,I don’t have my phone ! What if I need to use it ?What if there was an emergency and I had to call someone? What if someone needed to contact me, text me etc.. All  the what if’s rushed through my mind. Worse case scenarios started popping up.

I also knew we would be spending at least few hours there , so I was unreachable for a longtime.  Tragedy right ?

We do everything on our phones. Text, Instagram,Facebook, Pinterest ,take pictures , Google searches, Maps, News, calls.  Its a 24/7 access to information, content ,constant current of opinions, conversations, breaking news, crisis, comments, likes, dislikes, shares, invites, articles we read ,pictures we posts etc..overseas phonecalls, Facetime, WhatsApp,Twitter , Track our food, count the calories .

We also panic if there is  no reception , no cellphone coverage in some areas . God  forbid we can’t access our data. Danger !  Clear ,present and imminent fiasco !

The Digital world  is so attractive , curious , fun ,but oh so consuming .

None of these things are bad or harmful by themselves ,they are very helpful actually .But the sheer amount we spend on these phone is making us edgy ,stressed and impatient. The urgent , the instant , the constant state of being available  to reply to everything is not looking healthy at all .

Let me tell you it was the best thing that happened that day that I forgot my phone. I literally enjoyed being disconnected , not looking at my device 55 times. Not checking texts , not getting pinged, and realized we need a periodic break from being connected.

Being available 24/7 to everything and everyone is taking over our sanity . At least mine’s is under siege . Introverts  unite in this .

How did we live back in the day without the urge  to answer every e-mail , every text, every post, every phone call?  Life went on  and things  got done . I thought to myself even if I needed to make a phonecall ,I’ll just stop by the front desk and use their “landline “:)

Luckily I had packed couple of books that I got to read without distractions. I realized how my soul enjoys, craves the lack  of electronics . The freedom for few hours to just be, think, for a while , look at people around instead of looking down on the screen .

I realized I miss  being digitally disconnected . It is a rare treat  these days. We brought it upon ourselves and now we can’t get rid of it . The machines are also listening to what we are saying ,and analyzing every word, opinion, popping up Ads and Forums on our phones that we did not even search for . ( that is another topic for another day ).

I decided to  turn off my phone occasionally  for extended amount of time , early on some  night  till the following morning , to detox my brain , give  my hands and fingers break from typing or even looking at anything . Not doing extreme measures of Social media detox etc.. But setting time limits , training my brain and practicing impulse control 🙂

I did  it couple of days ago and it was an ” adjusting ” period .  Oh the urge, the habit   to check my phone  its BIG . But I also  enjoyed  the freedom of  not being controlled by the machine . I closed it   and forgot about it . It was lovely .

I want  to make it a habit at least once a week to turn off my wonderful  access  to the world  and be  a hermit 🙂

Talk to people in person instead . Since I am the electronics police with my kids, I might as well limit my time on these shiny objects .

Its  hard to do, but important to practice .

what  do you do to balance your phone addiction ?

 

 

So I decided  to chronicle some of the memories I have from the war time of my childhood years, also known as the Lebanese Civil War .

It is not a “Woe to me ”  or “Poor me ” chronicle . In the contrary my intention is to have it on paper , since ink and paper can’t  loose their memories “. When I am old and senile and can’t remember my name, my children can refer to these notes if they want to learn more about their mother’s past . A past  that is unique  to the generation that lived in Lebanon especially between 1974- 1990.

Today I want to talk to you about candles. Not the decorative , scented , beautifully engraved ,multicolor, that come in various shapes or aromas.  Definitely not the ones  that you will  find at Bombay stores or Home decor shops nor the candelight dinners of romantic couples.

I want to tell  you about the candles we used day in day out  for the sole purpose of having light.

Think about candles that you see in churches, cathedrals, long , plain ,white or pale ,with melted wax all around .

We had these candles handy  in each room  with a box of matches next to it incase our electricity went off . And  it went off more times then I remember in one day. So as practical people of those days, we relied on the simplest , most organic , natural way  to  carry our daily routines via  the very bright light of many candles.

We bought them by the dozens, from the candle factory. I recall vividly our trips to the manufacturer , see how they were made, in big huge containers , going from one station to another ,the cords that went in  and how they all came out mostly in identical shapes. Bought them in big brown bags and put them to use immediately .

Getting ready  to school , taking showers , eating breakfast ,doing homework, neighbors asking for some , and my all time favorite  reading under its light   ,holding it right on top of the page so I get  the full coverage  available :).

One inconvenience in this whole process  was the wax that dripped , sometimes fell on the floor when we transferred them   from one room to another . We had  to scrape melted wax from the floors  or from the bathroom sink . Sometimes it got slippery and we  fell.

We had beautiful Christmas decorative candles gifted to us  that were never put to use because who wants  to decorate with  half burn  used candles. No ma’am it went back in the Christmas decoration box  year  after  year .

Ofcourse at one point we got sophisticated , we moved on to gasoline lamps, propane gazlamps, personal generators , neighborhood  generators also known as the generator Mafia 🙂 distributing power  to families for 10-20$  month  mostly to keep   the fridge  running   watch endless TV and of course  use the hairdryer ( after you pulled  out the fridge power ).

Times  have change  but the memories remain .

Till  this day  I have a hard time using candles for any other reason then its original purpose that is giving light . I keep bunch of them in my cabinet , jus in case  we have a power blackout ,candles are as handy as it gets.

Keep  your candles , and if needed  to be decorate .

 

 

 

Is there anyone out there  who has not heard of this saying ? ” Love  your neighbor as  yourself”

It is one of the greatest commandments in the Bible. So lately I have been pondering about its meaning  .

So it dawned on me  that we understand perfectly the concept  of loving our neighbor . But how about the  ” as  yourself ” portion of it .

Hold up , what? Loving one’s self ? Seriously? Why would we do that? What if we don’t love ourselves?

Does  loving ourselves equals to  being self centered, self serving , self promoting , or appearing on the cover  of “Self magazine “?

How do we view ,care for  , serve others the same way  we would for our own person ?

This conflict arises in our minds  because we are trained to put others first , taught that giving is better then receiving  and in humility always serve others . That is  noble, sacrificial and absolutely vital. We are amazing at giving but struggle with receiving .

The question then shifts to  : How  do we dare to love ourselves? What if we never believed  that we are  worthy , loved, accepted, forgiven ? Can we extend that grace  and love to others once we believe it applies to us as well? Do we view ourselves as highly loved redeemed by grace  and  accepted as our Creator sees us?

Do we have permission to care  for our own soul, weed out  the torny stuff , tend  to our spiritual ,physical, mental needs ,be whole  and then freely love the people God has put in our lives?

Or are we in the habit of loving our neighbor but not loving ourselves ? Carry shame, refuse help, ignore promptings ,put what we need on hold, but freely pour into others to avoid focusing on personal growth or healing.

My theory is that  both concepts are so important to lead healthy  purposeful lives . Loving others as we really love ourselves .

As always , I am your humble writer who thinks about random sayings ,presents you with   a mambo jambo of ramblings  or  sticky topics . The  process of  loving myself enough to give a voice to deep thoughts,use the space  that I have been given to write , pondere  and ask questions.

Always ask questions . Inquiring minds need answers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We all have our favorite grocery stores, preferred shopping systems, traditional way, online ordering, store pick up, home delivered  ,Instacart, Amazon Prime  etc.. Once a month Costco run. Quick Target trips or Walmart adventures every now and then.

We look for organic brands, certified organic produce , non-GMO approved and all the other customized  Gluten, dairy, soy, corn, grain, egg  free products.

However according to a recent  nationwide study/survey/score , consumers are reporting that Trader Joe’s wins the  most popular, beloved grocery chain from cost to cost in the US. They beat all the other major  chains ( Kroger, Publix,Sprouts, Wholefoods,online )  in customer satisfaction  and pleasant shopping experience .

It is fascinating  that in the age of internet , online deliveries , and convenient curbside pickup, people still crave great personable, in store ,amazing customer service .That is why multitudes  still flock  to Trader Joes  ,like a  cult  following because it puts us in a great mood just  by  showing  up and being  greeted  by welcoming smiling employees , who constantly ask how they can help.

Personally I am in an instant happy place  as soon as I set foot in there . The store is not too big, not too small, it carries everything I need in general, just enough not to be thrown in a sensory overload situation . The products are unique,yummy,affordable designed so beautifully thanks  to  creative, colorful  packaging . Most food allergens are accommodated and not too expensive . The desserts, chocolate and cheese selections are mouth watering , just to name  a few .

Their tasteful shelf  presentations, brilliant store layout   has a deep psychological pleasant effect.  Believe me it works every time 🙂  Especially with free coffee available around the corner .

You will actually start planning your next party or  get together as soon as you lay your eyes on the appetizer /snack selections .

The human element ,the connection ,casual  chatting with  the workers  , the number of store associates   available in every aile  who actually know their stuff , can’t be compared at the moment with other  grocery chains.

Everyone who works there seems to be genuinely content . It is truly a neighborhood store where you get to know the people  and see them every time .

The seasonal arrivals are topnoch, make  us crawl there each  holiday season and stock up before they ran out.

Even more interesting  is that they don’t do any online adds, digital coupons, point system , buy one get one  free , flash sales etc. Their store   fearless  flyer reigns supreme .

So I was not surprised  when I read about   Trader Joe’s popularity and favorability with US  grocery shoppers. I have been proclaiming about their successful  business model  for years, and I finally feel validated by a national survey 🙂

What is your favorite product from TJ?  How often do you go?

P.S.  this is not a paid partnership with  Trader Joe’s . I  am just a regular ,faithful patron that will do a weekly pilgrimage to my happy place .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The other day we were hit by a mild case  of Gastroenteritis commonly known as a random stomach virus. I got it first and few hours laters my oldest joined the concerto of throwing up. Luckily it lasted just few hours and we were back to normal within the next day without extending that grace to the other members of our family .

While I was “suffering ” from this ailment my first thought was : ” Get me 7 Up”  It will  fix this.  Yup  you heard it right .

Not Sprite, not Gingerale, no Mountain Dew nor any other electrolyte . Only 7 Up with all its unlimited amount of yummy sweetness.

See ,growing up in Lebanon that was our go to medicine for stomach issues, vomiting  and we sincerely believed that 7 Up cures most tummy aches,indigestions,and dehydrations. Who came up with that Golden Rule? I am not sure .

And since we were very aware of the environment , once a week we returned our empty 7 up glass  bottles to the local grocer  and exchanged it for new full ones. Evidently  we believed in recycling  . Same with all the other soft drink bottles. No plastic or aluminum . For a long time it was glass only .

We also carried loose mint in containers ( home made from dried mint leaves ) and that was another resource to calm upset stomachs , feelings of nausea or   the common cold.It worked wonders to soothe us.

We practiced  homeopathy  before we knew what that meant.

Baby has gas ? Easy ! Just  boil some anis seed, put in baby bottle  and it will take care of it .Baby  will go from wailing to giggling in a quick second .

Someone is passing a kidney stone ? What ER trip?  Just boil some parsley or some other weird herbs , that stone will come out kicking and screaming  . Or get drunk on Beer , apparently that pushes pesky stones out .

Broke an arm? Make some quick dough wrap it around your elbow or area of concern with olive oil, it will help gel things together 🙂

Coughing? Get a case of Vicks and rub it all over your chest . Mucinex has nothing on Vicks.  If your grandma knows cupping  ( known as shisheh), go for it . It will take  the “wind” stuck in your lungs.  I have vivid memories of my paternal grandma “cupping “. Puting a burning paper in  small glass cups, applying it on shoulder blades , seeing the skin puffing up, becoming pink , then removing it after few minutes.  That was not  traumatizing to watch  right ?

Toothache? Drench a coton ball in any alcoholic drink , ( Arak was our go to drink of choice ) bite  on the said tooth ,it will relieve you from acute tooth pain ) .Did not matter if you were under 21.

We used many many over the counter ointments for various skin issues and they worked.  Never seen a dermatologist .

Got a burn? Some ground coffee or toothpaste will calm it down.

Every medicine cabinet carried an antiseptics called ” Tincture of Iodine ”  or Teinture iode in french , or Mercurochrome, the Red bottle. Knee cuts or scrapes ? Teinture diode will take care of it . No we did not perform surgeries but used those solution left and right to clean out wounds .

Don’t judge ,these quick fixes were passed around between  neighbors , the Moms from one building to another in the absence of urgent care or a doctor visit .

Speaking of doctor visits or annual check up they were scarce to say the least . Who had  the money for unnecessary things like that  ? In a society that operated on a cash basis  and lack of  insurance ,you really did not go to see professional unless  you had a baby or gave birth at the hospital .

We did rely on neighborhood pharmacists, apothecary type shops who were our go -to health experts . They gave us antibiotics like candy (not that yucky liquid with seringue we shove down our kids throats these days ) ,anytime we had sore throat or imflammated tonsils they saved the day . We had not heard about prescriptions drugs . We showed up, described our symptoms and voila , pharmacist to the rescue.

Pharmacies  were not located in  grocery stores , no sir,honorable  pharmacists operated from their private property , knew everyone in the neighborhood , who was well and who was sick. Almost like  the town mayor.

This was ofcourse 30 years ago , and these days things have changed  drastically . Doctor visits are plentiful and available . Anything and everything is at one’s access. Beirut has the most renown doctors , surgeons , dentists  and specialists , just show  the money 🙂

But in any case always  carry a  7 Up bottle , you never know when it will come in handy especially during the winter season .

You’re welcome !