No. I refuse to live in your expectations this time.

This will not be your typical food blog where the narrator gets to present you an exciting dish with the full list of ingredients for you to follow at the comforts of your kitchen over the weekend. And, not even a sponsored blog post featuring an instagrammable go-to cafe for you to visit with friends.

This is just me, being sentimental on a late rainy Monday night, fronting my laptop and daily planner while taking a break from the gazillion of ideas that keep poppin’ on my mind alongside with my browser tabs.

Adulting will strike and time will come when we need to reflect on our personal journeys no matter how unprepared and in denial we are. Are we hitting the right path? Am I doing things straight from the heart? Or will my story be just one of the many disheartened souls, hidden at a dusty unnoticed bookshelf?

We do age. Our priorities change and we outgrow people so do situations. We now worry about our health as much as we enjoy dining out with our favorite burgers, crisps and sodas. We value socialization and get-togethers whilst our me-times at home. We keep track of our finances while at the same time try to collect more mementos from our travels. We are caught in between being practical and living our best lives like there’s no tomorrow. Every now and then, we are being reminded about the full responsibility and the consequences from the decisions we make.

We are like burnt cheesecakes.

Take a look at this sweet sponge-like cake. Bakers roll and bake it at a certain heat in an oven, letting it have its brownish outer layers thus the popular name “burnt cheesecake”. If you slice it into bits, you will surely notice its softness and fair texture as compared to what we have firstly seen on the outside.

Everyday we hustle never knowing what tomorrow could bring. We get burnt on the outside because of what is being fed around us from the news, from our annoying co-worker, our out of budget bills or for not being able to do what we want to do. But, burnt cheesecakes are being burnt for perfection.

Ever heard of this idiomatic expression? “to sharpen the saw”

It means enhancing something or someone for something great. And so is life, being burnt for the experiences that we may individually face our tomorrows braver and wiser.

On the other hand, the soft sponge talks about our soft side. Whatever we may appear on the outside because of that burnt along our journey, we always have this goodness within us. Something that is innate to everyone from the moment we breath into life. So, the next time you meet your grumpy childhood friend, always know that she is as good as your funky boss. Get time to know them more!

Life is like a cookie.

Sweet but it gets better when dipped in a hot bitter-tasting coffee; a perfect combo! Life too is indeed all about balance! It would take sadness for you to appreciate happiness, losing games for you to celebrate victory, a 6-day diet plan to savor a well-deserved #cheatday, and a vacation from work to cherish time with your fur babies.

Balance has always been the key to relationships be it to our work, family, friends, and one’s self. So always remember, when one aspect falls out, it means you’re missing your balance. Give them a cookie and all would be okie. Hahaha! Just tryin’ to poke fun out of this serious read.

We all need coffee!

I mean, who doesn’t? As we all know, caffeine keeps us awake and alert and most workers need it as much as their alarm clocks. Now, let’s all take this coffee example subjectively. Coffee would mean a book for someone, a person, a T-swift song, your favorite chocolate bar or a goal. It doesn’t matter. What matters here is that, we all need something or someone to keep us alive and inspired to do more and be more. We are not a robot which only does its work as operated nor a doll getting prepped each day out for nothing but for display after.

We are fragile peas with sheer dependence on emotions and physical strengths. We get tired, unmotivated, stressed and pressured. All these because we are just humans. But never take it as an excuse to surrender, drink your cup of coffee and keep moving!

I took all these by heart as I write these little reflections. Going back to the first few paragraphs of this short story, one question remains unanswered: What is really life in between two choices? For me, it’s the process, being twisted, stretched, and tied. It may not know why it is being rolled, burnt, sliced or mixed for now but rest assured, the hands that has been molding it has greater plans for it.

Trust the process.

Trust in Him.