Years ago, I met a probation officer while swiping on tinder. This probation officer is a few inches taller than I am and eight years younger than myself. We went on a couple of dates, but no relations came of our encounters. I actually dropped her home one night, because she had been drinking. We remained friends for a little bit, but we ended drifting apart afterward. However, it is neither here nor there. I discovered she enjoyed the writings of Kahlil Gibran when I was following her on social media. This intellectual bit aroused my curiosity, but it did not affect any feelings I had toward her.

Many years ago, I watched a movie titled “The Siege”. Prior to September 11, 2001, this movie did not trigger Arab-American as it does now. There was a character played by Tony Shalhoub (Adrian Monk) who happened to be of Lebanese descent. This character could be based on real life former FBI agent Ali Soufan. However, it could also be my interpretation of life as I see it. Ali Soufan is an admirer of Kahlil Gibran.

I am a big fan of Salma Hayek. She is also of Lebanese descent. I watched her reminisce about her grand father who immigrated to Mexico from Lebanon. She connected years later with her grand father via poems by Kahlil Gibran. She produced an animated drama based on the Prophet by Kahlil Gibran.

Kahlil Gibran has been cited multiple times. Who is or was Kahlil Gibran? He was according to Wikipedia a poet, a visual artist, and a philosopher. He also was the cousin of American sculptor Kahlil G. Gibran, and the cousin former Australian minister of the Army Bob Katter Sr. Wikipedia also implies that he was an alcoholic, because he died of liver cirrhosis. However, Wikipedia does not paint the full picture. Three years ago, I picked up the Prophet, and I breezed through it. However, I picked the prophet again, but I am more deliberate about the book, because I Have discovered life as a marathon rather than a sprint. People like to say life is short, so dot dot dot. It is not so actually. Life is neither short or long. Life is rather an unpredictable mess, and the best way to deal with life is for individual to strive for full agency of life no matter what happens. If the individual strives for full agency, then the individual can actually account for their actions throughout life.