Just finished reading this book a while ago and I'm still intrigued by the last message Elizabeth Gilbert leaves:

In the end, maybe it's wiser to surrender before the miraculous scope of human generosity and to just keep saying thank you, forever and sincerely, for as long as we have voices.

I think that pretty much summarizes what I want to say to her in reality for writing such a book. Sure, I got bored along the way reading this book because I wanted to get to the end as fast as I could but towards the end I find myself being fond of it again and actually kind of sad that it had to end.

What more can I say about this book? Eat, Pray and Love. The three things that we do cyclically whilst living. I believe that even if you're an atheist there is perhaps still that wish inside you that bears hopes and dreams for the future or ones from yesterday that haven't been fulfilled. I don't ever believe it when people say they never pray because people have wishes every day. Like, wishing things would fall into place for them in terms of looking for the right job. You don't have time for spirituality but sure that wishing and hoping from within is putting it out to the universe that you're a believer? What more if those wishes come true? You'd forget about being selfless and be pleased. Pleased of the gift given to you from a higher power. In my case, being a Muslim, gift from my God, Allah SAW.

Alhamdulillah, with my thesis done and handed in today, I'm pleased and grateful that Allah has given me the strength to not give up and just carry on from the day I started planning for my task until the day I completed it and felt satisfied about it. I was even more satisfied when I printed out copies of my thesis and had them bound. When I got them back I actually let them sit on my table for about five days before flipping through them again, today, for submission. Oh, I feel so relieved! It's like a heavy burden has been lifted from my body, like an evil spirit that has been haunting me for the past year but now that spirit has left me and I'm new again. It's that wonderful feeling. And I hope after this the feedback from the product will be as satisfying as what I'm feeling today. I guess if it wasn't for my prayers and guidance from God I wouldn't have been able to push myself to finish this.

And if you read this book you'll be brought into a spiritual journey that you might be familiar with, and if you're not familiar with it yet, you will begin a spiritual journey that you'd want to continue even after you've finished reading it. I have just gone through a spiritual journey this year myself but of course that story has gone stale and if you see me I am a walking proof of that journey itself.

I don't know, it just feels different now that I'm always at a state of zen with myself. I think I found a common ground with the energy within myself. Well for a start, I used to be so angry all the time, always so emotional which clearly would reflect on my photography, my writing, my body language and myself. I guess all those wasn't intentional and was actually caused by a person because before that I was already always in a state of zen and never cared about what is being said about me, what is being thought about me but this person, well this person brought the worst from me. But anyway, all that has passed and I've moved on. I no longer am attached to that emotional obstacle because I found prayer and dzikir. I know that sounds so lame to 21st century kids but it works.

People would try their best to provoke your sanity and they would topple over and laugh when you've gone insane and out of your mind angry about something. It pleases them the fact that they have won over the battle of trying to piss you off because you accidentally pissed them off just being yourself. Point is that all that doesn't matter anymore to me, I don't care now because it was closure that I seek and it was closure that I found. Sure, a little limerick here and there could make me smile for a little while but you know, knowing how the other person has turned out now tells me a lot about who they are. I don't like to compare myself against anyone, unlike themselves, so they're a pawn in their own game because whilst they think I'm being made bait they're the ones who are actually being caught.

Ironic isn't it?

Now what can I say about Eating and Loving? Suffice to say when it comes to love now, I'm the happiest I have ever been in my entire life. I don't like talking about love too much because it would hurt a few people but seriously, I am so thankful to be given a person whom I feel so comfortable with and want to spend the rest of my life with. Alhamdulillah.

Eating. Well, in the book Liz talks about how much pasta and pizza she eats while in Italy. However, in my case, I'm trying to eat healthy because remember how fat I was a few years back? That was when I was a food snob. Always wanting to taste this, always deliberating that, always criticising another. What I thought was a passion for food actually tried killing me. It made me sick. Obese to be exact. Much to certain people's amusement really but it was really when I came to Australia that I decided I should stop being so unhealthy. I never used to eat a lot of fruits and I never ever liked vegetables at all but I have found that balance in my diet. I'm not as underweight as I used to be a year ago, and mind you looking back at those anorexic looking pictures of me breaks my heart because I looked so sick, but I'm at a very healthy level now. And surprise! I exercise more than I should. I'm 25 years old this year and our bodies shut down easily now that we're already in our late 20s. So I'm trying to take care of my body as often as I can because I learnt that going in and out of hospital not only hurts me but also becomes much of an inconvenience to those people who are involved, especially my family. So I'm trying my best to supplement my body with nutrients so that by the time I turn 50 I'd still be fit to run on the threadmill.

So yeah, there are as many advice I can give as the book can give you too but you know all these things are pretty much common sense anyway. The book only helps enhance the things that you already unconsciously do and makes you think of the things that you've done right and what you're doing wrong. I think that's a good thing.

But point is, when there's already a movie produced about this book, I'd still say I prefer reading than watching. You play a lot more with your imagination while you read and it makes you a lot more happier than when you sit for 1.5hours watching something adapted from a book. I've always preferred it that way.

Toodles!