Message to My Future Self

RULE NUMBER 1: DO NOT JUDGE.

• Learn to have self-sustainability. Learn to have contentment over simple things in life. Be compassionate. Aspire to lead a simple rather than a glamorous life.

• Only worry about things that actually matter. Don’t fill up your brain with unnecessary trivia.

• Always strive to be better, rather than the best. After all, Allah did not expect perfection, Allah expected improvement.

• Focus only on impressing your Creator, not people.

• Information diet is necessary once in a while, especially at times when you feel overwhelmed by current problems in hand.

• Discuss everything with your partner and children. Don't let anything go unnoticed, unspoken. When your children throw a tantrum, ask them why. Ask them clearly and let them explain. Don't force them not to talk back (like most parents do), because this in fact is really dangerous. Always make room for your kids to be creative and it’s okay for them (and you!) to make mistakes.

• Don't just sit and wait. Go for the future. Go for anything you want before it’s too late. Go for it.

• Do not ever compare yourself to others, for comparison is the thief of joy.

• Follow the law of least effort. When you attempt to force an outcome, the Universe will only resist.

• Allah knows, and we don't know. When we give ourselves completely to Allah, that means we humble ourselves before Allah. Yes, it's not easy, it's even hard for Musa AS. But always remember that Allah has larger plan, since Allah never makes mistakes. Always pray for contentment over Allah's plan. This is humility that is so profound, that Musa AS even has to travel to learn this.

• Don't fill in too many blanks in your head with your own hypotheses which you don't validate.

• Daydreaming is useless, if not harmful. It does not prepare you for the freewill of those around you. Real life people don't follow the scripts you've created in your head. They don't say the things you would like to hear, they don't make decisions you would like them to make, they don't understand what's going on in your mind just by looking at you. Daydreaming will only bring you down with resentment when reality doesn't match the expectation you've subconsciously set in your perfect fantasy.