Hi friends,

I haven’t sent a newsletter since April. And I haven’t posted a video on my YouTube channel since around the same time.

It all started as a break during Ramadan. I was feeling overwhelmed, so I shut everything down—WhatsApp, social media, YouTube videos, all of it. I wanted to fully immerse myself in the fast and the spiritual fuel that comes with the month.

The only thing I continued doing was writing. I thought I’d be more consistent. I wasn’t (more on that later.)

After Ramadan, every time I tried to record a video or write a newsletter entry, it felt awkward, like I was doing it for the first time. That awkwardness quickly turned into overthinking titles for videos, topics for newsletters.

Do people actually read this stuff?

Do they even enjoy it?

Am I wasting my life right now?

Maybe I should be doing something else.

Maybe I should read more books.

Write more stories.

I say I’m a writer and I barely publish anything.

Maybe I should try writing in Arabic; maybe I have a hidden talent or something.

It’s time for dinner!

The longer I waited, the busier I became with things that gradually filled the space I had once carved out for videos and writing. Things like scrolling, bingeing podcasts, watching too much TV, reading article after article. The kind of distractions that sometimes feel productive… until they aren’t.

I kept giving myself new start dates, after a big trip, after a draining work project. But something “important” always came up afterward.

Until one day—today—I just sat down and wrote.

I didn’t think about when I’d send this out.

I didn’t worry about what you, dear reader, might think.

I just forced myself to type one word after another.

I ignored the grammar. The spelling. The awkward sentences that happen when I think in Arabic and write in English.

This is just a stream of thoughts from someone who’s trying to write and make videos about the thing he thinks about the most: writing.

I hope you’re doing the thing!

Mohamed

💎 New From Me

I HAVE A NEW STORY PUBLISHED. It’s called No Place to Belong.

It’s about two young men with opposing goals, sharing a car ride. There are cigarettes. A conversation about California. And a quiet moment looking out over the Arabian Sea from Aden, Yemen, while talking about what it feels like to live in America.

It’s a story about trying to find a place to belong.

I’d be honored if you read it. And if you do, I’d love to hear what you think. Just hit reply. I’d truly appreciate it.

🔖 Quote I’m pondering

The purpose of a habit is to remove that action from self-negotiation.
You no longer expend energy deciding whether to do it.
You just do it.
Good habits can range from telling the truth to flossing.

— Kevin Kelly

Source: Excellent Advice for Living: Wisdom I Wish I'd Known Earlier

📸 Through My Lens

Please give me feedback on the newsletter by replying to this email. Do you find it worth your time? What do you want more or less of? Or other suggestions?

Thank you for reading!

Mohamed