A Cookie with a Fortune

A lot happens in one year.  We age physically, we develop emotionally, and we learn new things.  We become wiser than before, and more experienced to the world around us.  But, as we reach the end of one adventure, we simply are staging the platform to begin our next.  As school comes to a close for students across the country, we look back and see the valuable lessons we learned, that we may or may not have realized were useful before hand.  And, of course, we have developed unforgettable memories with our closest friends, loved ones, and lost ones.  After a quick lunch at a Chinese restaurant, a Fortune Cookie summed up these in a very efficient way.

"I hear and I forget.  I see and I remember.  I do and I understand." ~ Anonymous

The quote we are covering today is not the one that is in the picture, just as a heads up.  Only the one that is labeled "Anonymous" above.  This quote seems simply like a collection of 3 short sentences.  But they are much more than that.  They act more as levels.  Every single day, you hear things.  Even with your eyes shut, you cannot stop hearing.  There is no way to actively shut it off, without using ear muffs or something of the like.  It is something we can't control.  But, of all the things that you hear, how much of that do you actually remember?  Probably less than one percent of everything you have heard in one day?  Naturally, most of that is forgotten unless it pertained specifically to you.  

The next thing is seeing.  You can partially control seeing.  You can close your eyes to that which is in front of you.  But, no one forces their eyes to be closed forever, unless they are closed and can't see for a reason that isn't something that they have no choice but to live with.  There are things that I have seen in the past that have haunted me to this day.  And other things that I have seen, that the beauty of that person just does not disappear.  It remains, reminding of the good in this world.  But these are all things that I remember when something in a conversation triggers the thought or memory to reoccur.

And the last section is all about doing and not just doing it blindly but doing it with understanding.  When you do something, your not only seeing it, your not only hearing it, but you using your physical ability to do it.  And, in order to do it well, you have to understand what does what.  I know that description is slightly vague, but is a hard concept to put into words.  You can listen to baseball on the radio.  Then, you can watch on TV.  But, it will never be as good as actually playing it yourself, on the field, with the rest of the team.

With the memories that we have forged over the past year, we can count on the future being even greater.  But those memories that you were a part of, will be with you for a life time.

Avoidance

This week we have a quote from a fairly famous person.  You might recognize from his involvement in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies as the main character, Captain Jack Sparrow.  Yes, he is the comical Johnny Depp.  I never thought he would be one to be quoted after seeing his films, since he is always sarcastic.  But, new information to my ears, he is also a musician.  Read the quote below, as I always ask you to do, and think, as usual.

This one struck me deeply when I first saw it.  I have no idea why, but when I saw it, just seemed to fit.  What he says is definitely true, perhaps that is why it sounds so right.  There is the term "turning a blind eye" for a reason.  It usually is so that we avoid doing something we should do or letting something happen that shouldn't.  We have that choice to make that action. 

If there is something we don't want to see, we just simply close our eyes.  Then we can't see.  What we see is the darkness of our inner eyelids.  Perhaps you can see some of the light through them, dancing as you or others around you move.  But what you had seen before is gone, seperated by a veil of skin.  



The heart, however, is different.  You can't hide that giddish feeling when you see someone you care about.  You can't do anything to stop that leap in your chest when its your turn to speak in front of a large audience.  You can't remove the feeling you get when you are embarassed.  You can't hide the joy when something great happens. These feelings just happen.  You cannot close your heart off to them. When you turn a blind eye, its easy to do physically.  But, after that, how do you feel?  In most cases, you might feel regretful or shameful.  You knew what the right thing was, yet chose otherwise.

One might thing that this quote is very straightforward and they would be right.  Yet, this quote is such an interesting realization that most would never think about.  Johnny Depp has a keen way of looking at things.  It is so easy to relate this into your own life, and I hope you found this just as enjoyable and meaningful as I did.

~Lazarus, May your Journies be Daring

Loving Another

This week, we will delve into a topic that people have debated for centuries.  That topic is love.  We have always wondered what it is, always tried to describe it in other words, but there is no better word to describe love than the word "love".  Everyone seems to have a different opinion on the topic and a different idea of what it is, how to attain it, and its purpose in one's own life.  It is one of the few topics that are tangible but theoretical. It also describes something that is very real, but also not materially existing.  The following quote came from a man named Lao Tzu, a Chinese philosopher.  He also founded Taoism, which is based off of his writings.  Read the quote below and think about it for a few minutes.  Let it bounce around, and see if it sparks any ideas.

Were you able to make sense of it at all?  Does it almost seem pointless?  Or does it make no sense whatsoever?  Is there any way you can apply this to your own life?  I will start with this; I understand that this subject can be touchy for some.  However, it may be worth discussing, perhaps learning something new in the process.

I can quickly associate this quote in my own life, but I myself, am not entirely sure why or how it exactly fits.  We all have parents, and we are told that they love us unconditionally.  It has always been a part of human nature to have a sense of belonging and to have this desire to be cared for by someone and to care for others.  When you do have that sense of belonging, it gives you the strength to go new highs and new distances.  You stop worrying about belonging, and finding a home, and worry more about living your life.  You always know that there is someone who has your back when something goes wrong, and that there will always be someone that will catch you when you fall.  It gives you the strength to make that leap, even though you may not be sure if you can make it to the other side, because you know that there are those that are holding the rope to bring you back to try again. 

That is what it feels like to be on the receiving end.  So what happens to us when we are the delivering end?  According to this quote, it gives us courage.  Courage is another one of those ideas that there are so many different interpretations of.  It's difficult to label exactly what courage is.  It gives you courage to move on in life.  To get through those bad days and to look forward to the next day.  It allows you to know that there is something good in this world, that all is not just full of bad things.  It takes courage to push on in this world.  

Don't forget, that Lao Tzu specifies loving DEEPLY.  I don't believe he means just the everyday talk of loving someone, as we know it, or just liking someone.  He means unconditional and love that is lasts until death.  The care and love you have for someone that you know will never, ever go away.  And not only do you know that it won't go away, but you then experience over the course of the life time that it still remains.