chapter 1

The timing of this trip seems perfect. It could not have arrived at a better time. Because to be honest, my life is a mess. I am a mess. I’m losing touch with what’s important, what matters. Retrospectively, maybe I was relying too heavily on this one trip to fix everything. So looking back now as I write this, that was naive of me.

So what is this trip anyway and why am I so utopian about it? 

I am going back to Saudi Arabia. A place where I lived for 10 years. A place I left 5 years ago. A place I still call home. But I’m afraid. I know it has changed due to social changes and cultural shits. And I don’t know where I fit-in within the change. If I still belong?But I’m also excited, to experience the culture the culture that has been so alluring and the people who have been so magnetic. 

Although these thoughts were prominent in my mind, as I mentioned before this is not the reason for this journey. The intention is to make the holy pilgrimage to Makkah and ziyarh to Medina. People from all around the world, through-out history have made this pilgrimage. And I along with my family feel blessed for this opportunity.