powerless

Did you notice what’s in a number? Behind every closed door is a lock to a problem we have thrown away the keys for.

In searching for this key, we become powerless.

In 2010, 285 million people have type 2 diabetes worldwide.

More than 121 million people suffer from depression worldwide

64 million people have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease worldwide in 2004. By 2030, it is estimated to be the fourth leading cause of death worldwide due to an increase of people smoking. 3 million people died of COPD in 2005.

It’s estimated 57 million people die a year.

26.6 million people worldwide have Alzheimer’s disease in 2006.

10.8 million people are diagnosed with cancer per year and 6.7 million die from it.

8.8 million new cases of tuberculosis and 1.5 million deaths in 2010 worldwide.

7.6 million children under five years of age died in 2010 worldwide. That’s 21,000 children each day and 900 children every hour.

7.25 million people died of heart disease in 2008.

6.15 million people died from a stroke in 2008.

3.46 million people died of lower respiratory tract infection worldwide in 2008.

Multiple sclerosis affects 2.5 million people worldwide. In the United States, one person is diagnosed every hour.

Alcohol claims 2.5 million people each year.

1.78 million people died from HIV/AIDS in 2008. In 2010, 34 million people have AIDS worldwide.

1.39 million people died from lung cancer in 2008. 1.37 million people die every year from lung cancer.

Tobacco is a major cause of heart disease, lung disease and lung cancer. Tabacco is responsible for the death of one in 10 adults worldwide. Tobacco is a hidden statistic.

In 2008, 99% of children under five years of age who died were from low to middle income countries.

1.21 million people died from road traffic accidents in 2008.

Suicide takes the life of one million people every year and an estimated 20 million attempted suicides every year worldwide.

520,00 people were murdered in 2000 worldwide.

There’s 250,000 cases of rape reported annually that covers 65 countries.


It’s hard to notice when the window looking outside has a rainbow with no end. It’s hard to see the road back when the mist covers your tracks. There’s an empty seat here for you to notice that when the rain drops and hits the ground, to an ant, it’s a tidal wave of dreams never realised. And when the lighting hits on a rainy day, you will question that you thought the umbrella will save you from the fall. But you sing the chorus and you’ll wait for Christmas, but you know your family isn’t coming home. You put your dad’s old record of Elvis and listen to his sadness and by the time the song ends, you’ll see by all these numbers that you’re likely to be covered in darkness. In the night of despair, you wonder how your fear could be so heartless.

When did we become so helpless?

pondering the ceiling

Fate is uncontrollable.

Don’t believe in fate, however, the concept expresses enough truth to warrant its place in existence.

Lying in bed with the lights off, hands behind your head and eyes wide open with the ceiling welcoming your attention. What goes through your mind? Is there a sense of appreciation in pondering life’s many enigmas? It’s your quiet time.

Insecurities become apparent as they have always been; never clouded. Not noticing them for a while as the feeling of knowing is enough for you to stop going.

Stop caring? You understand and you’re certain everyone else stares at their ceiling; with this assumption relief gently passes over your chest.

It’s not so different.

We often believe we’re walking away from problems, but we forget how our problems are holding our hands. Problems don’t believe in an end or a beginning, they have always existed in the dark. Questioning their origin, questioning like if a God exists. A delicate system made by rules associated with no logical answer.

Answers, that’s a thirst worth craving for, a lusting divine so elusive, oblivion will enclose our curiosity in due time. Best to wait for hope, but it’s not coming.

Human is what we are, a process, rules and principles governed by time and aging. Once this concept is understood entirely, a moment of obsolete is born.

Obsolete.

The system whispers simulated emotions and feelings into your ear. It lingers while you understand not understanding this moment and for that moment to exist in something that didn’t exist.

If you’re overwhelmed with this emotion, your reaction speaks in actions. The tear’s breath chokes on its own moist; it’s that point where you cry and feel in the deepest part of your throat that something is embracing the loss. In that moment, it’s a matter of minutes before they have all gone.

It’s over, is it really over?

Bringing the camera back to you lying on your bed, powerless, you had it, it slipped, you knew it and you don’t know it.

All it takes is one blink of an eye and everything is gone, within a second is an eternity if you want it to last that long. There’s no reason, no explanation, it is what it is. The cycle continues with you lying on your bed with that tear falling and stopping, falling and stopping and eventually, suddenly, it moves swiftly past your cheek.

You realise, this experience will happen again in reality and in your dreams.

That’s the way it is. It’s not going to change, before you existed and in the darkness of your life, this is where you will be for the rest of your timeless existence.

escape (quest newsletter special)

If you were able to leave work tomorrow with a year’s salary included, what would you do? That might be too much freedom for some, maybe, not enough freedom for others. If you had one year before you had to go back to the routine of getting up the same time everyday, would you use it wisely?

If you haven’t been lucky enough to fall in love, take the time to look around and see if your smile might be melting the hearts of those that are around you.

Jump on a plane and leave to an unknown destination. Fly through the clouds and never look back. Travel around the world and go to places you have always dreamed of. You might not have had the chance when you were a little younger, but time isn’t making any exceptions, you have the opportunity, take it with both hands.

Understand the world in another language. Are you a poet inside? Maybe this could be your plan of attack for falling in love. Write a poem, if it doesn’t succeed in English, try writing it in French. If that fails, well, maybe he or she might think you’re cute enough for trying and you just might earn yourself a date. Watch the stars on a clear, summer’s night.

Love the water? Ride the waves. Set foot and explore the ocean with the cool breeze pushing gently behind your head with your eyes closed. The Sun rises to greet you as the calm of the water welcomes your presence to thank you for visiting from so far away. The water appreciates your company; something you thought was rare in this world.

If you have always contemplated about getting married, no need to wait anymore. Take a lengthy honeymoon away from the rest of the world. Enjoy your company and let reality drift off on to the offset of your imagination.

When you have ran out of ideas, think about exploring the hidden alleyways of your city. Then think about running away to other cities around the world and dine in exotic restaurants. It might be foreign, but the adventure will excite you, even making you feel alive for the first time since your memory could remember.

The only problem with all this is, once the year ends, you wouldn’t want to go back to work again. Unfortunately, as much as escape seems like an attractive alternative, at least you would have broken the routine. After all, that’s the main message to this story, it might be something that stays in your dreams, but it doesn’t have to.

As published in #1 of QueSt newsletter on March 2011.
- Michael Daaboul