Sakinah Abdul Aziz

A close friend posed a question over WhatsApp, "What are your core values?". I can't remember a time when friends ask each other such a deep and fundamental question. I tend to think more intentionally about my values when I'm prompted to do so such as in work training settings, seminars etc. This question set me to immediately pen down some notes on Microsoft Word, a great opportunity to write a reflection piece where I can reevaluate and reassess my values intentionally. I decide to publish this today as a reminder to myself. What a great time now during the holy month of Ramadan to pen these down. Here are my answers to this question.  My core values:   1) Authenticity – Being true to myself entails aligning my actions with my worldviews, beliefs and thoughts, saying what I mean and meaning what I say, as well as recognising and respecting my boundaries. This relates to the values of integrity and vulnerability as well. I aspire to remain authentic in my interact...

I've had far too many unpublished drafts on this blog about my experiences living in London. Perhaps when I've managed to muster the energy to properly structure and finish those writings, you would be able to see them in my earlier posts. Most of them would include my observations from sociological lenses - how living in inner city London affects my expressions of identity and my sense of belonging in this new world. From time to time, I struggle with not having the social capital and routine I was so used to having back in Singapore. This easily includes close friends I get to meet occasionally and the interest groups and communities I can fall back on. A few of my close friends would know this struggle I face. I suppose to a large extent, I have gotten used to living a very much quiet life in London. It is not exactly always the same like the life I had in Birmingham because now I have my husband by my side. Having a job here in London and sharing my struggles with a colleag...