Article and Interview by:  Hala Judy Subaiti

When I first met George, it was an early September afternoon in Caribou Café in Sassine. I was almost struck by how tall he was, with the words “gentle giant” coming to mind almost immediately as we shook hands. At only nineteen, he is a tall and broad-shouldered young man with an almost shy demeanor. However, that quickly faded as the interview began, revealing a soft-voiced but confident youth, ready to share his life, wisdom, accomplishments and inspirations.

A bright and ambitious kid, George is currently in his second year of college, majoring in interior design. His true passion, however, is for the stage. In fact, his most ardent dream is to make it to the New York School of Arts and establish a career in the design or music industry. Speaking of music, George’s enthusiasm for song is a river that cannot be tamed. He is already training to be a singer under the tutelage of George Martinos. I was given the pleasure of listening to a snippet of Christina Aguilera’s “Hurt” he recorded in the studio, and I was honestly touched by the raw emotion and vocal control he portrayed. According to Wardini, he had improved immensely as he described himself as “sounding like a chicken” at first. This made me laugh, but if that were true, then there is no doubt in my mind George would make a splash in the music scene, and any other place he decides to go, if how far he’s come in his short life is anything to go by:

George was born in 1993—a time that seems almost recent to someone in their mid-twenties. As a child, he loved to draw buildings and, by the age of nine, was already drawing them in 3D. During our talk, he mentioned that, if he went to people’s houses, he liked to go to their bathrooms and examine the different designs and layouts. Because of his artistic talent and keen observation skills, he was told repeatedly by his family that he was going to be an architect—and he grew up believing that this was exactly the path he would take.

However, this would prove to be far from true. George’s life was hardly easy; his parents were divorced, and he had been living with his mother since the age of six. His increasingly difficult life with her pushed him to make a decision: He left his home at the age of sixteen and rented a dorm in Dekweneh, while working in a stationary bookshop and studying Architecture at the Dekwaneh School of Arts and Crafts. It was during this two-year time period that the smiling young man who was sitting across the table from me hit the lowest point of his life: “When I was living alone, it was really hard. I didn’t have money for water sometimes and so I had to boil tap water in order to drink it…I was only 16 and had no contact with my family and was surrounded by a bad crowd at school.”

In spite of this, what George said next would give any listener no doubt that there is nothing if not a sharp head on his teenage shoulders that goes beyond his years, “There was nothing good about my life, but I told myself that everyone who made something of themselves went through a difficult period. Through the hardships, I discovered who I was and what I wanted to do. I had believed I wanted to be an architect because that’s what everyone told me since I was a child. But I knew then that what I really wanted was to become a performer.” He paused, and then said with surprising eloquence, “Pain is the fuel you burn to make art.”

With that in mind, he enrolled in interior design, a major that held the art he craved, and began to train in music. His life improved immensely when a family reached out and took him in after he could not stay in the run-down dorm anymore. A few months later, at the start of 2012, he was able to afford a far better dorm on campus where he was studying. Moreover, a positive turn in his life occurred when he reconciled with his father, whom he had a turbulent relationship with, in Christmas 2011. George’s headstrong dedication and his firm hold on hope was as essential as water, but so was the presence of those who lent a helping hand so that he was now well on his way to pursuing his lifelong potential.

In fact, one of those people was far more than just a helping hand. Her name is Cheryl Nolan, and she’s a tattoo artist and photographer living in Newcastle, in the UK. “She is like my mother; she means more to me than my family.” George said with conviction. They had met on a social network, and they just “clicked”. She became his mentor and one of his very best friends. “We are extremely close, and always in contact with each other. She made me who I am by giving me vital support. She encouraged me to write, to sing, to take pictures. She knows everything that I’ve been through and has been an amazing support—she’s the most important person in my life.”

This alone taught me once again that no matter the distance, you can make a difference in someone’s life by simply being there for them. George had the talent and willingness to work very hard, and Cheryl was there to give him the kind of support many would only dream to have—something George will never forget.

Other Interesting Tidbits:

George’s Motto: “Everyone has potential, and you have to find out your purpose in life. If you can’t figure it out, follow your passion and it will lead you to your purpose. If you have what it takes to do it, don’t let anything hold you back, no matter how hard things may seem.” This 19-year-old definitely lives by his words, as he is not just an aspiring singer and interior design student, but a hard-working event planner, photographer (check out his photography page here), and even a writer. His book, a work in progress entitled The Lost and Found, is about “passion, pain and how to channel what happened to you during your life into something positive.”  Is there anything he cannot do?

Favorite music genres:  Soul, Classic Soul, Hip-Hop and R&B. “I’m into dance and I also like Adele, Christina Aguilera, Eminem and Lil Jon.”

Inspirations:

Donald Trump: He’s a well-known public figure and very well-versed in the show-business industry as well as a successful business man.

Adele: Her voice and commitment to music, and she made it just because of her talent.

When are you happiest?

“It’s when I’m being myself, when I feel like I’m fulfilling my full potential.” He said with a smile.

How do you live your life now?

“I don’t want to have to come to a point where I have to compromise. I want to be able to do what I want, and I work hard, but it’s where all my resources go to. I want to excel in music so that when I work on my voice, I have something that I can present.”

…

I have to say, this writer was only too happy to get to know George for the couple of hours we had that conversation. I wish him the best in his future endeavors—and I have no doubt in my mind he’ll be blazing roads for years to come.

~ Written by Hala Judy Subaiti

Jim Carrey, known as “the man of a thousand faces” (a well-deserved title), is one of the world’s most famous comedians. He is known for his many and hilarious impressions, his rubber-like face, his propensity to ad-lib his way through his lines and—most of all—making people laugh. It’s impossible to forget the whirlwind antics of his green-faced character in The Mask, or the hysterically desperate lawyer in Liar Liar. On top of that, Carrey has proven that he isn’t just a funny guy: He moved millions of people through his heart-rending portrayal of the kind but shamelessly exploited Truman Burbank in The Truman Show, or the heartbroken Joel Barish from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Carrey is a versatile actor with a quick wit and a larger-than-life sense of humor, which makes him one of the most highly-paid comedians.

So how did he get to where he is today?

Perhaps surprisingly, it was no easy road for the guy you almost always see smiling and acting out, whether on set or during interviews. However, one could thank his grade-school teacher for his early love of the stage and making people laugh. Since Carrey had a tendency to constantly disturb the class with his clowning around, the teacher promised him that if he behaved himself the entire day, she would give him fifteen minutes to get up and perform his own stand-up routine for his classmates. Carrey thanks his teacher for this chance to show his talents and express himself the way he felt he needed to, and was far from shy at taking advantage of the time she gave him to be himself. If she were the type of person who had tried to punish or repress his behavior, instead of encouraging it in a productive way, Jim probably would have never become who he is now.

His early life was far from perfect. In fact, the difficulties he faced during his childhood and teen years were what helped him keep his humor alive and well. His mother was a hypochondriac who suffered from severe depression. When Jim was still a little boy, he would go to her room while she was in bed and perform outlandish impressions of insects and even go so far as to “bounce off the walls and throw [himself] down the stairs to make her feel better”.  When he was only twelve, his father lost his job and the family was forced to relocate from the familiar town he grew up in to a suburb in Toronto, where they lived in poverty. Their home was a VW camper van and they all worked as custodians or security guards to make a living. Carrey worked for eight-hour shifts after school every day, which caused his schoolwork and morale to suffer deeply. Once a straight-A student, he transformed into a teen who no longer cared about anything. To this day, Carrey can’t stand custodial work because of that experience. He told James Lipton during his interview on Inside the Actor’s Studio that he would keep a baseball bat in the cart with his mops and brooms because of his intense desire to “bash someone’s head in”.

Fortunately however, soon things began to turn around for Carrey. When his family was able to move back home, and was more financially stable, he decided to try his hand at the comedy clubs at the encouragement of his father. Carrey dropped out of school at sixteen and made his debut as a stand-up comedian at a comedy club called Yuk Yuk’s…and it was a reportedly terrible performance. He worked on his material, honing and editing it until he impressed the people at Yuk Yuk’s so much that he became one of their headlining acts. At nineteen, he headed to Los Angeles and tried out at The Comedy Store, and ended up performing miserably. However, he still kept working on his act so that two years later, he became a Comedy Store regular. While he was there, the famous Rodney Dangerfield discovered him performing and was so impressed that he appointed him as his opening act for a whole season.

From there, more acting opportunities began to open up for the young Carrey. He had a couple of supporting roles in movies such as Peggy Sue Got Married and Earth Girls are Easy. Unfortunately, his first two starring roles were both flops: his comedy series “The Duck Factory” got cancelled during its first season and his movie, Once Bitten, did not do well at the box office. Luckily enough, he hit the jackpot when he was asked by his Earth Girls are Easy co-star, Damon Wayans, to join the very popular comedy sketch series “In Living Color”. That show lasted for four years and showcased Carrey’s more memorable characters, like the psychotic Fire Marshall Bill and the freaky female body-builder, Vera De Milo.

Merely a year later he starred in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective and it became his first multi-million dollar hit. And the rest, as they say, is history!

One should keep in mind that Jim Carrey is an almost shy man with incredible talent. If it weren’t for those around him who supported him along with his own hard work and ambition, we wouldn’t have the laughs that he brings which we enjoy so much today.

The video below is the first fifteen minutes of James Lipton’s interview with Jim Carrey, where the actor talks about his early life and how he got his start. Notable parts are at 4:30, where he mentions his teacher, and—immediately afterward—where he talks about his life when his father lost his job. You can see the whole interview on YouTube. The links are in the information section.

Sources:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000120/bio

http://www.aceshowbiz.com/celebrity/jim_carrey/biography.html

~ Written by Nadine Makarem

“Let your dreams make you stronger, and not weaker” – Raymonda Chamoun Adib

Apart from dreams, Raymonda has a high regard for reality and the importance of being a realist, “so that reality doesn’t come as a shock.”  The dream was to become an artist. The reality was difficult circumstances hindering any plan she sought after. In an interview with The Nawaya Network, Raymonda humbly and sincerely told her captivating story with a warm smile and an enthusiastic attitude.

Beginning at a school of low standards due to financial difficulties, basic education alone seemed hard to achieve. Within a classroom of thirty-something students and one teacher, individual potential was not only unappreciated, but completely unnoticed. “When I reached high school it seemed that everyone wanted to have fun. And I was stuck with a serious attitude that’s always been with me,” Raymonda claims.

By the time she reached the 10^th grade, the financial difficulties had become too dire, and Raymonda quit school to find work. “I’ve worked with almost anything you can think of…shoes, bags, internet, food — just to make ends meet.” All the while, Raymonda displayed signs of artistic talent. Even her parents noticed this and her father framed one of her paintings, though they didn’t see this talent having any sort of future. “I loved art but I couldn’t experiment with it because I couldn’t afford supplies. I would paint on old clothes boxes using cheap Gauche paint that dries up in a second.”

Later on that same year, Raymonda decided to approach a public school in Jdeideh to continue her education. After telling them her story and displaying signs of dedication and strong will, she resumed studying, maintaining a job at the same time. “I would finish school at 3:00pm and then work till 9:00pm then return home and study. I taught myself English watching movies with subtitles.”  Struggling to pass the government exams, Raymonda graduated from school, and at this point embraced a notion of self-determination and the hope to succeed.

Raymonda then met and married the person she claims to be her inspiration and the backbone of her success. Marrying outside her religion posed as yet another impediment since her family didn’t seem to approve, alongside their disregard of her intention to pursue art. “What kind of major is this?” they’d say. But Raymonda set her eye on a Visual Arts degree at the Lebanese University. After thorough studying while struggling with discouragement, judgment, depression, financial instability, and two jobs, Raymonda passed the LU entrance exams and achieved excellent scores, ranking within the top five. “It was perhaps the first time I felt such happiness,” she claims. Raymonda entered the LU Fine Arts Branch 2 in Furn el Shebeik. “My husband’s words ‘You’re going to be someone’ are what kept me going.”

“The greatest struggle was maintaining a good attitude. I used to sit with people and feel like I don’t belong. People discouraged me and the art I was dedicated to.” When we asked Raymonda what she has achieved so far, she had much to say. Her greatest accomplishment was making her parents proud and watching them show off her university degree. She has learned an unlimited number of styles and techniques that help beautify her mostly abstract artwork. Her art is currently being sold online and she is constantly searching for various media for publicity. Raymonda gave a lecture on “Power of the Image” to students at a journalism workshop after the main lecturer noticed her spunk and unique ability to contribute. She plans to continue her masters in Visual Arts but not without a consistent job. She also plans to apply to universities abroad “just for the sake of knowing I can.”

“The Nawaya Network touches my heart. Every child represents me because no one ever helped me.” Raymonda particularly mentioned the young girl in the The Nawaya Network documentary who was taught to draw: “This is a blessing for her. I used to wish I had someone to teach me!” When asked what advice she has for talented youth she answered with: “Hard work, patience, always be realistic, believe, surround yourself with supportive people who push you to do better, do what you have to do and if it doesn’t work, accept it then try again.” With this, Raymonda inspires the The Nawaya Network cause further, allowing dreams to be solely a source of strength and guidance, and never weakness…

Additional artwork by Raymonda Adib

To purchase or to see more of Raymonda’s work, please visit: http://www.behance.net/RaymondaAdib

You can reach Raymonda at:  raymonda.adib@gmail.com or on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/raymonda.adib.1