Shining Thru

I went to get the mail today and realized I hadn’t gotten it in almost a week when I saw everything crammed into the little box.  Who knew so much stuff could fit in there???  Tons of envelopes, mostly junk mail and several packages from my last splurge on ebay.  I get all of the mail back to my apartment and begin the process of sorting and opening and shredding the junk for the things that need attention.  To my delight after several invitations to switch insurance companies, not one but two reimbursement checks I had completely forgotten were suppose to be coming were in the mail.  I was pretty happy thinking that I made money by simply checking the mail.  I was getting ready to text my friend just that, that I made money by checking the mail….when I decided to open the rest first.  And there it was, a crazy, random happenstance, a few more pieces of junk mail and then an unexpected doctor’s bill that is about ten dollars more than the amount of the checks I received today……I had to laugh after my post yesterday “Knocked Down”.  It was only fitting that I had a few minutes of joy and then….back to square one.  Life is a constant turn of events, you never know what is beyond the next hill or bend in the road.  You simply have to keep moving.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to have the money to pay the bill with; but it would have been nice to buy something fun with the money instead

Something’s gotta give…eventually, maybe we’ll see the perfect moment to dive out of this circle.  But for now, I’m pretty sure I have resigned myself to the fact that it’s just the way that life is….You gotta have some bad with the good.  A trap that you can’t spin your way out of…..it’s just life.

Why does it seem like every time you get a step ahead, you get knocked back one, if you’re lucky it’ll only be one and not three.  Every time a glimmer of hope appears on the horizon it is shot down by a lunar eclipse.  It doesn’t seem to matter how well things are going, you have to put yourself on alert for the blunt force trauma to hit.  Money comes your way and something breaks, Savings add up and there is an emergency; complications hit knocking us down.  All you can do is sigh and chalk it up to life.  One point life….when will the next one come?  You’re hoping it’s not one of those things that comes in threes.

You don’t have many choices when you get knocked down, you can stay down and accept that’s the way things are, or you can get up and begin the climb again and hope that you don’t step on the slippery slope before you make it to the top.  Or worse, reach the top of the mountain just to trip and tumble down the other side.

The wind blows gently along the tops of the trees

Like a whisper in the ear, it gently passes not leaving a trace

Simply an impression

You wonder if it’s real, if it really happened

Did you just imagine or is it revealed?

Thinking too hard about what you can’t prove

What you can’t be sure of…

The hidden untruths

Lie deep within the unread rules

The gaps between the lines that you can’t write on

Something that is there but unseen

So many things in life

So many unseen futures

No where to turn where there isn’t a reckoning

It doesn’t matter if the glass is half full if it never comes off the shelf

Leave the things you know to yourself

Or fight through all of the unrecoverable facts

Thinking, breathing, living

Does God exist or simply created in the minds of those who do exist?  Like a dream that feels so real when you wake up you need to check the facts of the day before to make sure that it didn’t really happen?  Is God created out of habit, need for something to be in control, need for something bigger, need for someone to blame???  Or does God exist rather people want to admit it or not?

There are many interesting short stories about if God exists or not….Some proving that God does exist, some trying to encourage faith, and some trying to prove just the opposite and leave people without any confidence in their faith….

None of these stories can actually answer the question of if God exists or not….Can anyone or anything prove the existence of God?  On the other hand, can anyone or anything prove that there is no existence of something higher than what we can see?

What creates faith?  What creates God?  Does the existence of God really matter if people have faith in something, isn’t it the faith that gives that thing the power?  Or does that thing reign with power even when there is no faith?  Does faith give God power, or does God strengthen faith?  Is there a God or not?  Does it matter as long as people believe in a God?

I think there are moments in all of our lives when we wish we had a freeze ray like Dr. Horrible.  If we could just stop time for a little while and get all of those nagging chores done and still have time to relax, or simply to stop things in order to get our time together.  I can completely understand why someone would want to invent something like that.  Sometimes time goes by so fast that you don’t know where it went.  Other times change is so scary that you want to just freeze things so that you can keep them the same…just a little longer, put off the inevitable change a little bit longer.  Or maybe you’re experiencing such a great moment that you want it to last for awhile.  Who wouldn’t want to be able to stop time?

If you were able to stop time for a little while, what would you do with it?  Take some time to relax?  Get a massage?  Get things done?  Go on a vacation?  Would stopping time actually solve anything?  Would all of the problems and the fear of change still be there when you eventually unfroze everything?  Would you need or want to unfreeze things?  It’s an interesting thought….Like time travel, I wonder if it would be as great as it is in theory.  Theories are great because they never go wrong…everything works in theory.  I still think I would like the option of stopping time….Making sure there is time for all aspects of life.  Not caught up with work and ignoring the social life at all….What moment would you freeze, or who would you freeze if you had the time?

For those of you who have seen Dr. Horrible in action, you know that the freeze ray freezes a person, so who would you choose to freeze in time?  That one person who wont stop talking or who is always knocking on your door or calling your phone?  Is that the person you would like to just sort of take a time out for and stop time for them?  Would you pick the person who annoys you the most?  Or maybe the person you want to look at the most, but just don’t have time for at the moment?…..So many possibilities.

It’s strange how some things are a comfort or give you a feeling that goes way beyond their practical use…like a cozy blanket.  There are many times I find myself covering up with a blanket while I watch a movie or tv not because I’m cold but because there is a good feeling that comes with being wrapped up in a blanket and relaxing.  Sometimes curling up by a fire or covering up with a blanket can give you a great feeling…

Sometimes buying yourself something small or going and getting something done that you’ve wanted for awhile can make you feel great about yourself, a real pick me up…even if the actual thing or action wasn’t really needed.

There are a lot of things that can have a mental affect that goes way beyond anything else.  Sometimes your whole day can be made better by seeing a smile or having a perfect stranger be nice to you…maybe something small but it means something.  It’s just like when you make a long road trip and you’re completely exhausted afterward.  Driving isn’t physical labor but mentally it can be exhausting, depending on where you’re driving and it what kind of conditions.

It amazes me and how powerful the mind can be.  If we only controlled all of the stress and worry and things of similar nature and used our mind to strengthen the good thoughts and happiness in our lives, I wonder how different life would be.  How powerful is the mind if a simple blanket or cup of hot chocolate can make us feel better….

What can be labeled as a major life change?  Having a baby, getting married….I think most people would agree that those are major life changes, but is it possible to have a major life change by simply having one thought or being exposed to one new idea?  I have to think that one thought affected anyone who had been in a major revolution and that the idea of  revolution changed their lives.  Can a small idea change your life?  Something small that you cling to and hang on to years later…maybe you don’t even remember where the idea came from, it just becomes part of you…or maybe you remember exactly where it came from…  Either way, I think that people gather small ideas and latch on all the time.  Reading a book, talking to new people, watching a movie…all of these things help shape us….even if we’re exposed to something that we don’t agree with, not agree shapes us in the same way that agree would.  I think that all new ideas have the potential to change our lives….

Ideas and words are extremely powerful and have the potential to change lives, start wars, maybe even change a culture…even if that change is spread through a widely read magazine or a movie that is passed from one group of friends to the next.  One word from a loved one can mean the world to someone or bring it crashing down around them.  One idea from a movie or a book or a comic can spin the mind into a whirlwind of thoughts and creativity.  Maybe changing the way a person lives and thinks forever….

What constitutes a major change?  Does it have to be a new life or can it be something that is planted into your life and grows to consume it?

Why is it that some people can live in some delusion where they think that they are so much better than everyone around them and can decide what should and shouldn’t be in other people’s lives….We have no idea what goes on behind closed doors, further more, we have no idea what is liked behind closed doors.  Everyone has their secrets.  Looking at some sites today, I was reading a lot of comments about certain videos.  Some people were really nasty with their comments about other people simply because they didn’t approve of whatever behavior was going on in the video.  Talking about how she should go after the guy or whatever the case may be….it’s like some of these people can’t even fathom that other people may actually enjoy things that they don’t.  Someone once told me with a shrug, “some people eat bugs.”  I think that this is a great phrase to go by, some people do eat bugs, some people think that raw heart is a delicious treat for special occasions to eat.  Who are we to say that they are wrong in any regard.  What right do we have to disregard the likes or preferences of some people simply because they do not line up with our concept of “normality”.  I don’t think that such a thing as “normal” really exists.  I think that some people think what they are use to is normal but they have no idea what goes on in the next house down the road…not really.  They know what they have seen and what people have told them, but how many people reveal every intimate aspect of their life???  I’m not saying that the actions of a serial killer should be condoned and chalked up to them simply being unique and expressing themselves…but I am saying that people should really have more of an open mind and realize that everyone has their secrets, everyone has something going on behind closed doors, and maybe that should be considered before condemning another person for their beliefs, actions, kinks, preferences, or lack there of….

“Look at these people amazing how sheeple show up for the slaughter.”  What a great line from a musical I was recently introduced to, Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog.  I think that this line is a great representation of what happens often in our society.  People following the media or their favorite politician…sometimes more likely is that they are following their parents’ favorite politician.  People that have a set time every day set aside to watch the screen of “big brother” and they simply believe everything that is said on their favorite show on Fox News or CNN.

I have to wonder how some people can have so much information stored inside of them and yet seem to almost refuse to use their common sense to actually puzzle out their own original thoughts.  There are a few people who strive for the truth, think through everything…but the majority of people that I see around me most days makes me really wonder if  people even remember how to think for themselves any more?  I know that the younger generation expects answers to simply be handed to them…I have to wonder if they get that because their elders have simply resigned themselves to simply following whatever message is spread the loudest in the gossip lines of neighbors or on the most news channels.

Some people are intimidating with all of their knowledge and their great use of common sense, debate skills, etc….why are these people so hard to find sometimes…???  I’m glad that I have been able to surround myself in my personal life with intelligent people…but when I go to work I see what is outside of my own little circle…..Sometimes you wonder if some people are ever involved in an intelligent conversation about anything…..And if they do get involved if can they give any reasons for the opinions that they so strongly defend because that is what they heard on the latest news report….I love having good conversations and debates with people, but sometimes I am amazed at how people enter into such conversations without any actual facts to back up their opinions…or even solid logic to back themselves up.

Sheeple is a great term for how the majority of our society seems to be acting these days.  People question their best friends but believe what some “specialist” on the evening news says without hesitation….what kind of sense does that make?  I’m afraid for where our society is going if we (as a whole) continue to blindly follow and line up for the slaughter… sooner or later, we wont be able to avoid what we are asking for.  Put the axe in the hand of the executioner…don’t act surprised when your head is rolling on the ground.

The knowledge of people that make up society is always interesting to me…depending on who you are talking to you can learn a plethora of things.  It can sometimes be a big surprise what some people know…sometimes I even surprise myself at the connections I can make with what someone is saying.  It’s almost like playing a game of units of separation…how does my knowledge compare to their knowledge?  How can I make what they are saying make sense in my own head, or even if it is understood, what connection can I make so that I can remember this information and store it for further conversations?

Sometimes it’s surprising how one topic can begin a conversation that ends in a completely different place.  Sometimes I try to retrace the conversation to see how we ended on a certain topic, but most of the time I can’t remember all of the steps that we took…occasionally I can puzzle it out.

Using the knowledge of others is a good thing…I think that it is good to learn from what other people already know.  I personally learn well from having conversations about things and will learn more that way than any amount of reading about something.  I wonder what it would be like if we could access the information of all others around us…

Is there such a thing as a common knowledge base…I remember something vaguely from psychology class in college.  I do wonder how certain knowledge spreads like wildfire across our society and sometimes from one culture into another while other information is buried deep within a culture or stays in the books….What does it take to make knowledge spread?