It is safe to say that I have met some unkind people. It is safe to say that we see this all the time too. We definitely see this on the 5 o’clock news. We see this at work too. We see people who lead through intimidation or people who speak with sarcasm.
We see people who laugh at someone else’s expense and, yes, everyone knows a bully or two – or maybe even three or four. If we’re being honest, it’s safe to say that we see mean people do mean things all the time. Better yet, we’ve somewhat become numb to the fact that mean things happen all the time.
It’s just part of life, right?
Believing Without Seeing
Daylight switches to dusk and night becomes the morning.
I’ve written this before yet it’s as though I’ve never said this out loud.
Before we know it, days have gone by (sometimes weeks or even months and then it’s years) and there we are, standing there with our questions and wondering about the things we missed. We find ourselves at an understanding time that’s slipped through our fingers like the finest sand from some distant beach.
Don’t Quit –
I know that we’ve all grown. And hell, it’s been years since we’ve been young or on the prowl. Though we are not so young anymore, there is still a piece of us who has yet to grow. There is a part of our spirit which has yet to fully transition into the person we’re supposed to be. It’s never over – until it’s over.
And me?
Well, this is me now. I am often at an impasse of sorts, still working and still hoping like I did when I was young. I’m still maneuvering and looking to find my position beneath the sun. I am still youthful yet there is a part of me who is begging to get out. There’s a piece of me that wants to jump from this cocoon or so it seems. Then I can be free and clear to walk and think or to enjoy the rest of the world without a blemish or mark; as in stigma, or as in the trained assumptions and the biases that we so freely distribute to each other –
Go Time
Just wondering . . .
How old were you when you realized how important it is to enjoy your life?
It’s a simple question really. So, when was it?
When was it that you came to the understanding that your happiness is important? Or even better, has this happened yet?
Has it happened that you realized how often we fight about wasteful ideas? Or, should I ask when was it that your eyes opened up long enough to see your reality, to know that this is life and since this is life or whether we understand this or not, at what point have you come to know that this is you? This is your life.
When was it?
Or wait, has this happened yet?
Get up. Get out of bed. Get dressed. And go.
I make no mistake when I say there will always be some kind of adversity.
There will always be someone who comes along or someone to tell you about what you’ve done wrong or how and where you can improve.
There will always be someone resting in the comforts of an armchair or behind a computer screen with a critique and an opinion. And there will always be the one who criticizes your progress. They’ll do this as if this was their job. They will pluck the feathers from the wings of your dreams and they’ll do this so you’ll never take off before them or without them.
Find What Fits You Best
The truth is that at the end of the day, there is only one face looking at you in your reflection. This is you; all day, every day. You are the start and finish and as I’ve always said, you are always the square root to your own equation.
No one else is and to be clear, I have been on one side or the other of this table.
To be or not to be is certainly the question. To be happy or to be free of “self” or to be rid of the nonsense that swirls in our head is certainly the aim. Or better yet and in the simplest most basic terms, to feel better or to find a sense of inner peace and be balanced is definitely the goal. But how?
Just a Ramble
I can say that I have known a lot of people in my life. I’ve met different people in all kinds of crazy places from institutions, to corporations, to lock-ups, to homeless shelters, treatment facilities and from random coincidences to a more universally intended purpose. It’s safe to say that I have met the best of the best, even if they came from the worst of the worst. I can say that I have met people who endured unthinkable backgrounds yet somehow they were able to overcome themselves. They were able to overcome their circumstances. They overcame their life and their limitations. I have met those who came from “nothing” and grew into “something” incredible. If I’m being honest, they are incredible to me.
Continue readingDown to the Last Bite: A Note Before We Go
More . . .
I like that word. Maybe I like this word because I want more too. I want to see more. I want to do more. I want to feel more and I want to learn more. I would certainly appreciate more meat on my sandwich and, of course, more ways to enjoy life on life’s terms.
I want to understand more about my life and your life. I certainly want to understand more about the world around me and, if at all possible, I want to learn how to get along more and fight less. I want to define more ways that we can overcome instead of overwhelm.
Continue readingDown to the Last Bite: Note From a Foodie
This one comes with a comedic twist. At least it is intended to be funny and with hopes that this clears something up which is important to me. I offer this note to all foodies and friends who love a good meal. To those who can relate,
I offer the fact that there are meals which have turned wrong. There are trusted meals too – the “go-to” ones or the special favorites which come from historic moments in our lives, like when you go out to grab some wings with friends.
Even these meals can go wrong.
It happens . . .
I used to hear about food poisoning or about someone eating something that had gone wrong. I’ve heard about the terrible bouts after eating something and the vomit or the awful visits to the bathroom.
Down to the Last Bite: Pizza From the Heart
Before I go forward, I would like to explain that this comes from a special place where little pictures of crayon drawings exist in a father’s heart. This is where art-class productions on construction paper where little kids trace the outline of their hand and somehow make this drawing into a turkey for Thanksgiving. Through this, little kids bring home these finger-painting ideas to be pinned up on refrigerators around the globe. Or in my case, this is where I keep my memories of a time that can never be retrieved.
In this entry you will find a bit of wholesomeness, a bit of laughter, a dose of honesty – which may seem brutal at times- but either way, honesty is the necessity of truth and the truth is the basis of humility.
Therefore and without any further delay, I am asking you to shift gears for a bit and allow this entry to act as a porthole into my life; in which case, I would like to share with you a few precious moments – or as I see them, I want to share a few magic trinkets of memory –
The Written Addiction 