About زينة كمورا السناطي | Zina Kamoura

زينة كمورا ماجستير / الإرشاد النفسي - جامعة سينسناتي الخاصة / ولاية أوهايو - أمريكا نبذة عن حياتي – ما لا تعرفونه عني! اسمي زينة من مدينة زاخو في شمال العراق وبالتحديد من قرية سناط الحبيبة. ولدت لعائلة غنية بالحب والعطاء. لطالما راودتني أحلام كثيرة منذ الصغر لذلك وببراءة كنت أجمع الأطفال حولي من جيراني وأقاربي لأروي لهم فكرة مسرحية ومن ثم كنت أوزع الأدوار و”آكشن” فليبدأ التصوير. في بلدي العراق لم نعرف الاستقرار والأمان فلجأت إلى القلم صديقاً أطرح عنده كل ألمي وحزني وأيضاً لأخرج للنور أحلامي من شعرا ونثرت وقصة قصيرة. أشكر الله على الدفء والحب الذي تلقيته من عائلتي وأخوتي الذين استوعبوا غروري وأحلامي الكثيرة، ببساطة هم لم يلقوني في البئر كما فعل أخوة يوسف. I am Zina, an Chaldean Christian from Iraq, the land of Mesopotamia, the land of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. My native language is Chaldean and I also speak Arabic. My family roots go back thousands of years, where our father Abraham was called by God to leave his home to go to the Promised Land. Since my childhood, my country was involved in one war after another. During that many years of being under war, I lost all hope of a stable life. To read more, please click here. http://www.zinakamoura.com/english/eng-vision// Zina Kamoura - MA in Counseling, LPC-OH, NCC
http://www.ma33a.com/team/zina/

الإرشاد النفسي بين المعروف والمجهول

جميعنا في وقت من الأوقات نشعر بأن مشاكل الحياة ومصاعبها أحياناً أكثر مما نحتمل، بالرغم من أن طبيعة المجتمع العربي الذي نعيش فيه يوفر في الكثير من الأوقات الدعم والتشجيع الذي نحتاجه. فمن منا لا يتكلم عن ضغوطات حياته والمواقف الصعبة التي يواجهها في العمل مع الأهل والأصدقاء، فمن خلال تعاملنا مع الآخرين وامتزاجنا في المجتمع بالإضافة إلى وجود أشخاص نثق بهم نشعر بأنه قد لا تحل مشاكلنا ولكن على الأقل نجد آذاناً صاغية من صديق أو شخص ما في العائلة. ترابطنا الأسري وأهمية العلاقات في حياتنا جانب إيجابي مهم في توفير الطمأنينة والشعور بأنك لست وحدك في مجابهة التحديات. ولكن الكثير من الناس حولك يشتكون من أمور تقلق نومهم وتسبب لهم التوتر، وأحياناً كثيرة نحاول تخفيف آلامنا في مجابهة تحدياتنا بأن نقول لبعضنا "اللي يسمع مصبية غيره تهون عليه مصيبتهُ "وهذا الكلام فيه الكثير من الصحة؛ فمن خلال هذه النظرة وتبنّي هذا المبدأ نساهم في تشجيع أنفسنا ولكن هل حُلت العقدة؟ وهل وجدتَ ضالتك عندما تكتفي بذلك؟ أم تعود للتفكير مراراً وتكراراً وتحاول تغيير حياتك أو حتى الظرف الذي تمر به ولكن دون جدوى. وهنا تأتي أهمية وجود شخص مختص ذي خبرة عالية يعمل معك لتحقيق أهدافك في الحياة والتخلص من عبء وثقل المشاكل التي تمر بِها. علاقة المرشد بطالب المساعدة هي علاقة مبنية بالدرجة الأولى على السرية التامة التي تجعل إمكانية انفِتاح طالب المساعدة فيما يخص بأموره الشخصية والتي يصعب عليه مشاركتها مع الآخرين أسهل وأكثر فاعلية. يلجأ الفرد عادة إلى طلب الإرشاد عندما يواجه أموراً صعبة لا يستطيع كتمانها ومواجهتها وحيداً، هذه [...]

By |2020-03-28T17:18:48-05:00December 1st, 2019|كتابات بالعربية, مقالات|Comments Off on الإرشاد النفسي بين المعروف والمجهول

ما الذي نحاول إخفاءه ؟

الآثار السلبية للتظاهر بالكمال والتخلص منها لماذا نخاف من ظهور عيوبنا للآخرين نجتهد كل الجهد ونضيع أوقات وفرص عديدة ونحن نركز على إخفاء عيوبنا وعدم كمالنا وفي النهاية فهي معركة خاسرة واستثمار غير مربح. لماذا نخاف من ظهور عيوبنا للآخرين؟ وهل الحل أن نخفيها أم نعالجها؟ نحاول أن نظهر للناس أننا بخير وصحتنا جيدة فنضع المكياج ونلبس ملابس فضفاضة حتى لا تظهر عيوبنا. نحاول أن نخفي عدم قدرتنا على التواصل مع أولادنا وخيبتنا من عدم طاعتهم وسلوكهم غير القويم، فماذا نفعل نقمعهم ونخيفهم ونطلب منهم أن يتصرفوا تصرفاً أفضل أمام الناس فيتعلموا النفاق والكذب وارتداء الأقنعة، ومن ثم التمرد على سلطتنا كأهالي. أحيانا نقلق بالطريقة التي يتعامل بها شركاؤنا وأفراد عائلاتنا أمام الناس وننسى ان التعامل الحسن يجب أن يبدأ في البيت. أهمية التخلي عن الروتين السلبي   كمالنا أبعد جداً بمعنى الكلمة عن الكمال الحقيقي، وننسى أننا نعيش في عالم ساقط. فنطلب الكمال الظاهري ونسعى له ولا نجده. نركض ونركض ونخطط ونتعب وأحيانا كثيرة نعمل لساعات طويلة لمجرد الهروب من الواقع، فعندما نرهق أنفسنا وأجسادنا في العمل دون أن نتوقف لنستمتع بالذي خلقه الله حولنا. هذا معناه أننا نريد أن نعمل عملنا وعمل غيرنا، أو قد يعني أننا لا نثق أن الآخرين يستخدمهم الله مثلنا بدرجات مختلفة حسب قدراتهم ونعتقد بأننا سنغير العالم وأن العمل لن يتقدم خطوة واحدة من دون تدخلنا. لنتوقف لبعض الدقائق ولننسحب من المارثون الذي أنهك قوانا، فنحن بحاجة إلى إعادة برمجة أنفسنا وإعادة الحسابات من داخل ذواتنا، لنسال أنفسنا لماذا نعمل ما تعودنا عمله كل يوم، وهل هناك طرق [...]

By |2020-03-28T19:36:29-05:00November 15th, 2019|كتابات بالعربية, مقالات|Comments Off on ما الذي نحاول إخفاءه ؟

My cousin, Salam

My Cousin My cousin, Salam, was born in 1994, the third son in my uncle’s family. The family's oldest son was born in 1989, and his name is Samer. The second son was born in 1991 and his name is Maher. In keeping with custom, my uncle was supposed to name his third son a name which complements the names of his other sons, Samer and Maher. For no particular reason, my uncle named his third boy Salam, which means peace in the Arabic language. I don’t know why my uncle decided to name his child that instead of following the custom; perhaps he was hoping to have peace in the family, but their life and Salam’s did not follow that path. My uncle’s life took a drastic turn when he was 18; with the beginning of the war with Iran in 1980. He served in the army for most of his adult life. The 1980s were very hard on all Iraqi people; many families lost their sons during that time. Sadness and fear were unavoidably prominent on people's faces and in their conversations. Women were especially affected by this great sadness. For this reason they mainly wore black colors, representing the grief that they felt. I remember, as an eight-year-old girl, seeing the pictures of martyrs hung upon walls in the homes of our friends and relatives. Some families had lost a son in that war, others lost two sons, and some had lost [...]

By |2020-03-25T07:50:44-05:00June 14th, 2018|English Posts, Short Story|Comments Off on My cousin, Salam

Our Twentieth Anniversary

We are celebrating our twentieth anniversary and reflecting on how good God has been to us through all these years. Our journey has not been the easiest, however it has been and still is more vibrant and adventure-filled than what we could imagine or even plan. Together we experienced what it means to be truly committed to each other. Our marriage is far from perfect, but we both believe that we would not be what God wanted us to be without each other’s love and encouragement. Together we learned to practice grace toward one another when we faced judgment from the outside. We learned how to see the God-given potential in each other and not to be discouraged by life’s barriers. We have learned to be a shoulder to lean on and cry when we encounter devastating situations. We stand by each other's side and believe we have the ability to accomplish our objectives even while facing life's discouragement. Together we traveled the globe, lived in many countries, and have been exposed to people from a wide variety of cultures and backgrounds that enriched our way of thinking. Some of them have changed our perspective on what we used to consider normal or the expected thing to do. Through the last twenty years of our marriage, we have moved to so many houses to the point that we stopped counting them. For example, in one year we counted how many times we changed the place [...]

By |2017-11-05T03:23:02-05:00October 30th, 2017|Articles, English Posts|Comments Off on Our Twentieth Anniversary

who is without sin cast the first stone

مَنْ منكم بلا خطية ؟ عادة ما نبرر خطايانا ونبسطها. ولكننا نلقي الضوء الأكبر على خطايا الآخرين .. ما أسهل أن نختبىء وراء عدم نشر غسيلنا أمام الناس. هذه النفسية أصبحت ثقافة وحضارة معظم مجتمعاتنا. كثيراً ما نهتم بصورتنا الخارجية فيم تقول الناس عنّا أكثر من اهتمامنا بالحقيقة وعمق ذواتنا. من تقول الناس أني أنا هذا ما سأله يسوع لتلاميذه ومن تقولون انتم يا تلاميذي أني أنا. فإن المسيح من خلال هذا السؤال لا يبحث عن مجد ومدح أو تمييز واعتبار من الناس وكم الجمهور والمعجبين والشاكرين له ... هو كان يريد أن يوضح حقيقة لاهوتية... هو كان يعرف من هو في نظر نفسه. لم يسأل ذلك السؤال شكاً منه في هويته، وقدرته ووجوده بل كان يريد أن يفهّم تلاميذه وينبههم إلى فهم طبيعته وذاته الإلهية. لأن معرفة من هو المسيح كان أساسي جداً. من تقول الناس أني أنا وليس ماذا تقول الناس عني وعن المشاريع الخيرية التي عملتها وعدد المرضى الذين شفيهم وكم من الفريسيين أخزيتهم وفضحت نفاقهم. كان المسيح يريد من تلاميذه التركيز على من تراه الناس وليس ماذا ترى عنه الناس . من هو وليس ماذا يعمل، كان هناك الكثيرين ممن كانوا يعملون قوات وعجائب ... كان هناك الأنبياء والمعلمين . ولكن المسيح طرح ذلك السؤال ( من تقول الناس أني انا ) فأذا لم تعرف الناس أنه الابن وأنه كذلك الله المتجسد وأنه الفادي فهو لم يضيف شيء على حياتهم الأبدية لربما فقط الجسدية الأرضية ولكن دون إدراك حقيقته. المسيح الذي بدونه لا يستطيعون أن يَخلِصوا .كثيرا ما ننشغل وننبهر بـأعمال [...]

By |2017-08-28T01:29:04-05:00August 28th, 2017|تأملات, كتابات بالعربية|Comments Off on who is without sin cast the first stone

Greetings from the land of Pharaohs

I left Cincinnati with all types of mixed emotions. My heart was very heavy after having lived there for eight years. This was the longest time that George and I had lived in one particular city since we got married. When we first arrived in 2009, we came on a student visa knowing that would only allow us to stay there temporarily. That was not a big deal for us because we lived previously as missionaries in five different countries with the mentality that our stay in each country would be relatively short, to the point that I felt that I was destined to live this way throughout my life, even though that was not my desire. In Cincinnati, God blessed us beyond what we could ask or even imagine. He opened many doors for us and enriched our lives in all respects. He gave us favor in people’s eyes, with those who have become lifelong friends, mentors, supporters and even people who treated us like their own children whom we literally call mom and dad. In Cincinnati our dreams were not just fulfilled, but also gave birth to new dreams. We first came with specific hopes and desires. However, God called us to be more courageous to ask, seek and knock in order to receive and enjoy His promises, because His promises are real for those who believe in Him. He opened our eyes and hearts to understand His grace. Through grace, we learned [...]

By |2017-09-19T02:24:05-05:00June 12th, 2017|English Posts, Short Story|Comments Off on Greetings from the land of Pharaohs

High school years – Part 2

In the summer of 1988, on August eight, the Iraqi government declared the end of the war between Iraq and Iran. That date is firmly entrenched in the minds of all who lived through the war. Iraqi citizens were happy to once again live in peace and could begin to hope for a better future for their children. People everywhere celebrated that day, and in fact the celebrations lasted for weeks. Musical bands were performing on the streets in every corner, and people were dancing in groups and singing national songs. Everyone was happy over the end of the war, including families who lost their loved ones. While those families celebrated victory along with everyone else, their grief would not end in a day. These families had gone through a lot, their grieving would not end in a day or months or even years. I believe that the war between the two nations was over only at the geographical borders. The ramifications of that war for both nations would remain ghostlike, chasing both the oppressed and the oppressor. Both sides felt that their actions were meant to protect their own people. Nevertheless, what they did only resulted in destroying everything good in their people’s lives. Saddam Hussein’s policy toward the families of martyrs was very generous. He gave them many material privileges including a residential plot, monthly salaries and great opportunities in departments and institutions. Sadam controlled everything and everyone in Iraq. As minorities, we [...]

By |2017-04-12T09:36:13-05:00April 12th, 2017|English Posts, Short Story|Comments Off on High school years – Part 2

Singing and Writing Plays – Part 2

After settling into our new life, new neighborhood and house, my parents began searching for good schools for me and for my siblings. The good thing about living in the old section of the city was the ability to find a variety of schools within walking distance, especially for the elementary schools. This gave my parents them one less thing to worry about while they were trying to adjust to our new adventure. Attending church was and still is a big part of my people’s way of life. Church for most Christians was more than a place to worship; it was almost the only way to be connected socially and to be part of the community. Growing up in a Muslim country caused the minorities to hold on tightly to their beliefs. The Christian population used to be numbered at ten percent under Saddam Hussein and the Baath Party regime. Nowadays the Christian population has shrunk to less than one percent. People who were not involved in politics used to have a comfortable life and felt a sense of security. The life of individuals would only be threatened when they decided to rebel against the government. People would be arrested immediately whenever they expressed their feelings of dissatisfaction with the government or if they dared to share their political opinion about things they did not like. The Baath party had a stronghold under Saddam’s regime. The former president was expert at training the most intelligent [...]

By |2017-03-06T10:38:50-05:00March 6th, 2017|English Posts, Short Story|Comments Off on Singing and Writing Plays – Part 2

Singing and Writing Plays – Part I

Despite all of the hardships we experienced and the confusion during the war years, there still laid a very thin line of hope in a fresh beginning. As a child, I was thrilled with the idea of writing and directing a play or a movie. In my small world as a child, I believed in my ability to influence my friends and some of my cousins to become part of the crew. They were excited about being on the team even though I only needed a few performers while I took on the role of the director. Whenever my parents would take us to visit our neighbors or our relatives, I would start pulling them aside to explain my idea. Then I would assign roles to my “Beginner actors.” Then as a team, we would look for a location where our movie or play would take place. Usually we would go to find an empty room but sometimes we would go to the roof of the house and then start to arrange the area. We gathered what was possible as far as furniture or clothes to use as part of the show. Once the stage was set, I called “Action” to begin filming. I created my own safe haven where I could let my imagination take me to a better place, where I could enjoy a peaceful life and have fun. I believed that was my way to cope with the stress during wartime. Three [...]

By |2017-03-06T10:38:56-05:00February 27th, 2017|English Posts, Short Story|Comments Off on Singing and Writing Plays – Part I