Zaid Ismail Livres

An Incomplete Love Story is a tale, seldom told, of a man struggling to find his humanness in a community where he doesn't belong. Zayd is a fourth-generation Muslim Indian growing up in apartheid South Africa who fatefully discovers why life matters. A childhood premonition of hopelessness, a father with an unexplainable rage, and a community steeped in double-standards all make for a perfectly dysfunctional adulthood. Despite his roots, and his struggle for an identity, Zayd navigates his way through a deeply traditional and culturally aloof community.The prejudices borne out of the caste system, his racial profile, his social standing, and the sectarianism within his community all make inclusion seem impossible. Yet, it's not enough to dull his spirit. Will the emotional isolation of his childhood set him on a collision course with destiny, or will his anomalous nature finally rid him of the inheritance of an emotionally unavailable father, so that he may find peace before it's too late?

“Just be happy.”“It could be worse.”“Don’t take life so seriously.”Are you tired of hearing this?No one wakes up in the morning choosing to be unhappy.If happiness was a choice, no one would be sad.Understanding why we find it difficult to connect with joy or hope, will allow us to become aware of how we may be working against achieving the very life that we want for ourselves, or for those around us.Before you go trying to forgive and forget, or convincing yourself that it’s just chemical imbalances or genetic inheritance that leaves you feeling depressed, anxious, or overwhelmed, reconnect with the humanness that resides within you.You reconnect with your humanness when you see yourself through your own eyes, rather than through the eyes of society.