By Fatima Abbas Ismail | Staff Writer

With the heavy toll society puts on us every single day, the generalized societal conclusions and assumptions, the designation and segmentation of each other based on materialistic aspects, the measurement of each other’s worth based on productivity, I find myself rebelling against it all. Not strange coming from me, though; I’ve always been rebellious when someone tries to confine me to materialistic definitions.

I’m not a fan of the hustle culture, but rather the mindful one, though not often appraised or called for but believe me, it’s worth the try.

I’ve always looked for ways to avoid the “burnout” stage, from giving myself at least a ten-minute break every day to do something I enjoy doing, being mindful (living in the moment), or engaging in activities and projects that are not so related to my degree of pursuit because again, I’m not limited to one thing, there are various things I can do and enjoy that are not necessarily related to my major or to the environment I was born into.

My friend, a year ago, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, came up with a small business that has to do with scrapbooking.

Fatima, my friend, an English literature graduate, is now pursuing a master’s degree in the field. I see her as the epitome of creativity and inventiveness. She made sure she followed her passion and what she really enjoys doing in the midst of a global quarantine, an example of how some people thrive in the face of difficult circumstances and are challenged rather than threatened. Not undermining those who don’t, though, don’t get me wrong, each at their own pace. 

Fatima, the owner of @scrapit.lb on Instagram, designs and creates scrapbooking kits; she tries to promote these kits as therapeutic means of self-relief. It’s a way for people to express themselves freely on blank pieces of paper. The scrapbook doesn’t have to be about memories, it can be about self-expression and using words and visualizing them through imagery, whether concrete or abstract. 

What is really nice about scrapbooking is that there is no specific way to do it; each according to their own taste and style, you cut, paste, and put colors together the way you would like to. 

The whole process of cutting pieces of paper from magazines and newspapers, pasting everything all together, and making meaning out of a blank piece of paper comes along with complete immersion and creative thinking in what is between your hands, making you reach a state of mindfulness. It’s a form of muting what is happening in your surroundings and focusing on one thing, which is creatively expressing yourself through a notebook and some stationery. 

I find it really exhilarating to be focused solely on one thing and I’m sure many can relate. With all the events occurring in my surroundings and around the world, I often catch myself having various patterns of thinking; I try to avoid this by searching for ways I can be present at the moment for the sake of my mental and physical health. I found scrapbooking to be one of the activities I can immerse myself in from time to time, to take a break and live in my present sacred moment.