As a Saudi born Lebanese woman who’s living in Dubai, dual and sometimes triple realities have been normalized as a standard of living in my perception of the world.

Commencing life as the most wanted baby to my parents’ 10-year marriage, I was spoiled and princessized only to be thrust into pauperism around my sweet 16.

Working 14 hours and juggling two sometimes three jobs to support the family, at 16, my once romantic socialist ideas, toughened!

Ambivalent with my sense of belonging, I found solace in books. The pages were now the prince to my pauper state. They gave me the elegance, eloquence, and the shoes to travel the worlds of Dostoevsky, Hugo, Marquise, and Mahfooz. I borrowed lines from Ayn Rand to demand more rights for my work, I argued life in 8 minutes like Coelho, and loved and died like Tolstoy. I thought if I read enough books, I can become a writer. Surely talent can be taught!

My education spanned across four countries, both academically and practically. War, corruption, prejudice, racism, and gender bias were tough teachers in the schools I attended. I finally graduated with degrees in Marriage, Motherhood, Tolerance, Feminism, Friendship, and a master’s degree in Human Resources. Currently, I’m pursuing degrees in compassion, patience, and stoicism alongside a doctorate degree in stakeholder management.

I’m an observer of human behaviour, my specialty and field of study is power and politics in the dynamic of social interaction between people. I’m passionate about middle-class rights and a preserver of feminism against false accusations. I approach subjects with practical realism that is often seen as nostalgic with a pinch of wishful thinking.