I've learned.

Some of this I learned myself, some I learned by watching my surroundings. I hope you learn something today.


I've learned that you cannot make someone love you. All you can do is stalk them and hope they panic and give in. 
I've learned that one good turn gets most of the blankets. 
I've learned that no matter how much I care, some people are just jackasses. 
I've learned that it takes years to build up trust, and it only takes suspicion, not proof, to destroy it. 
I've learned that whatever hits the fan will not be evenly distributed. 
I've learned that you shouldn't compare yourself to others - they are more screwed up than you think. 
I've learned that depression is merely anger without enthusiasm. 
I've learned that it is not what you wear; it is how you take it off. 
I've learned that you can keep vomiting long after you think you're finished. 
I've learned to not sweat the petty things, and not pet the sweaty things. 
I've learned that ex's are like fungus, and keep coming back. 
I've learned age is a very high price to pay for maturity. 
I've learned that I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy it. 
I've learned that we are responsible for what we do, unless we are celebrities. 
I've learned that artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity. 
I've learned that 99% of the time when something isn't working in your house, one of your kids did it. 
I've learned that there is a fine line between genius and insanity. 
I've learned that the people you care most about in life are taken from you too soon and all the less important ones just never go away. And the real pains in the ass are permanent. 

conversation

Instead of small talk,

tell me one little thing,

why do you smile when others are serious and sitting with heavy glasses?

why does that one hymn in Church always make you giggle?

which voices do you imitate most often because

they are so damn funny?

tell me about your joy.

Instead of a casual conversation,

just let me know,

what do you crave when you're feeling anxious or curious?

flirting, peanut butter cookies, that one kind of music you promise your friends you hate,

cement on your feet and exhaustion in your lungs?

Tell me, I'm not interested in your job or even what you do,

unless you would do it every day of your life, as often,

with a quarter of the pay,

but tell me,

where do your wings take you

when you're soaring down the road off to anywhere?

Because I know you take out your wings every so often.

To what country or person or building do you fly

and ache to embrace, feel comfort, be fed?

Let's talk real talk,

get into the stuff that makes you laugh at yourself,

like the passing thoughts and scenarios

you've chosen to actually play out,

the sounds and faces you make only to your family,

the times youve blushed

when you really shouldnt have,

the people you've fancied yourself holding hands with,

shedding tears with,

loving, even.

Tell me,

are we going to get to know each other

through the weather and prepared anecdotes?

Let's take a risk,

I'll ask the questions.

Hints for a Happy Life

So, I'll start today's post with an apology. I'm sorry that I haven't posted anything in a long time. I've been really busy with Love's Labour's Lost, and after that, I just wanted some time to relax. But now I'm back, so let's celebrate with some "Hints for Life". (I know it's similar to one of my earlier posts, but just bear with me)


It hurts to love someone and not be loved in return. But what is more painful is to love someone and never find the courage to let that person know how you feel.

A sad thing in life is when you meet someone who means a lot to you, only to find out in the end that it was never meant to be and you just have to let go.

The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had.

It's true that we don't know we've got until we lose it, but it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives.

It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, and hour to like someone, and a day to love someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

Don't go for looks, they can deceive. Don't go for wealth, even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day bright.

Dream what you want to dream, go where you want to go, be what you want to be. Because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.

Always put yourself in the other's shoes. If you feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the other person too.

A careless word may kindle strife. A cruel word may wreck a life. A timely word may level stress. But a loving word may heal and bless.

The happiest of people don't have the best of everything, they just make the best of everything that comes along their way.

Love begins with a smile, grows with a kiss, and ends with a tear. Make the most of the first two, and don't let the tear stop you from loving again.


Sorry again about the impromptu hiatus, and thanks for reading!

Hearing

"You know that ringing sound that you will perceive when you are in a very quiet area? Some people say this is an auditory-illusion brought about the ear’s inability to detect frequencies below the threshold of the human senses. This is completely wrong. That ringing covers up something else altogether. If you are quick, patient, and maybe a little lucky, you will be able to hear past the ringing. What you will hear are voices whispering to each other. They will silence themselves quickly but with practice, you will become more adept at catching and interpreting what they are saying. You will hear things of the past, the present, and the future.

And when you start noticing them, they will start noticing you."

I found this little nugget of wisdom on the internet the other day, and I liked it so much the I wanted to discuss it with all of you. This is something that I've been thinking about a lot lately. The author of that piece was focusing on music and voices, but I want to apply it to listening.

Now a days, it seems like everyone is rushing through life, never really paying attention to anything. They say that they are observant, but in reality, they don't notice anything. For example, they never hear the Earth breathe. If you have ever heard it, you might not have known what to call it, but you know the feeling. It's when the breeze flows through the trees, and makes a simple, beautiful harmony with itself. It's when a falling leaf hypnotizes you through its random, erratic motion. It's the power and majesty of a mountain, stretching its grand heights to the sky.

You might say, "What does this have to do with hearing?" Well, if you stop listening, and start hearing, then you will notice that every natural thing has a distinct noise (a song, if you will). All of these songs combine to create the world's most perfect symphony, but most people are in too much of a hurry to actually hear this harmony. They listen, and they just notice the individual noises, they can't notice how they combine.

This also relates to our creation of traditional music. When we sing, our hearts connect with this natural symphony on an instinctual level. Unless we consciously think about it, we will never even notice this connection. When we create music, our hearts tap into the inspiration of the Earth's breath, and it brings forth what it heard there. When we breathe with the Earth, we breathe with the entire human race.

My challenge for you this week is simple, yet hard. I want you to stop listening, and start hearing. I want you to hear the Earth breathing, and I want you to learn the little secrets she wants to share with you.

Thanks for reading, and have an awesome day!

Pencils

I had this really interesting idea today, and I wanted to put it up here before I forgot it, so that's why I'm posting twice today.

It feels like a lot of people live life with a pencil in their hand. They write lightly and are always ready to erase their mistakes. Some people think that they are doing the best thing by doing that, however, I disagree. Everyone should live with a pen, or even a great, big marker in their hand. Pencils are built for failure, why else would they come with an eraser, something to remove failures. So these people with pencils expect to fail, and are ready to hide their mistakes with the handy erasers on the end of their pencils. I want everyone to live with a pen. If you mess up, own it. No one will ever mess it up quite like you did, and you might even get the same results as those who hid their mistakes and did it another way. Pens have no choice but to write darkly, so everyone else will be able to clearly see what you've done. Be proud of every moment of your life, it's the only one you get, why not live it gloriously? When you leave, blind everyone around you with your brilliance.

Thanks for reading!

“Questioning”

Why do we do these things?

Civilization is not civil.

We kill,

Hate,

Destroy,

Waste.

We shatter our own dreams

With litanies of

No,

Can’t,

Won’t,

Shouldn’t,

Impossible.

We no longer hear the music,

The magic is gone.

We have killed ourselves.

That about sums up my day. Hope your day was better than mine, and thanks for reading.

"The Watcher"

I sit and watch all these people run through here with their meaningless errands and tasks. They all want the same thing and are certain that they are the only ones who know how to get it. But none of them know what they actually desire: the older ones want their youth back, the younger ones want to be older, and the ones in the middle wish they knew where they fit in to the big picture. Those are the ones are the closest to finding out what they truly want… How do I know all this, you ask? Well, through observation, of course. Sit a while and I’ll tell you how I used this simple skill to learn about life and why it exists.

I sit on a bench in Central Park for at least an hour every day. When I do this, I don’t read a book or do a crossword or anything like that, I just see. Not in the way most people see, for I am not just looking, I am seeing everything as if I had never seen anything like it before. For instance, several months ago, I saw a man propose to a young woman. He did it very well, too. He brought her to a cherry blossom tree in full bloom, then, he reminded her that he had first asked her out under those fragrant, colorful blossoms exactly two years ago. I could tell she was expecting something, but couldn’t tell what he was about to do. He told her that he loved her and wanted to love her forever as he got down on one knee and brought up a little, black velvet box with a diamond ring in it. She gasped and was speechless for a moment, then she pulled him up and gave him the most passionate kiss I had ever seen. I know that, where ever they are now, they are happy just to be with one another. Now do you see what I mean? No, I can’t tell you, you need to come to your own conclusions.

Well, maybe this story will help you. There was a man who always walked through the park at the same time every day, always going the same direction, always on the verge of running and always, always frowning. One day, he was about ten minutes later than usual, and as he walked past me, he asked me for the time. I told him, and he almost cried in frustration. He sat down next to me, cursing and berating himself for being late. I asked him what was bothering him, and he told me that he was one of two with perfect on time record for his office. But now that he was late, there was no point in going to work today, as his co-worker was sure to mock him mercilessly all day long for being late. I had finally found out why he was in a rush every day. I asked him if he liked working there. He just stared at me as I was insane. When he answered me, he said, “Of course I like working at my office!” For some reason, I didn’t believe him, and I told him so. I told him to really think about what he loves to do, and to see if that is what he does at the office. He looked contemplative for a few minutes, then said, “No, I’m not happy with my work, but it’s all I know, how can I possibly do something different?” I asked him what he wanted to do, and replied that he would like to be a set designer for a small theater company. I told him, “If that’s what you really want to do, then, you will find that the world will conspire to help you achieve that dream. If you set your entire being on getting that dream, then nothing will stop you.” He thought about this for a few moments, then got up, saying, “Thanks for the advice; I do believe that I will go get my dream.” About a year later, I found him waiting for me on my regular bench, with a huge grin on his face. He stood up as I approached and shook my hand. I asked him how his venture into theater design had gone. He said that he was not only a set designer, but also the owner of a new theater downtown, and his first show opened last night. He then said that he would love to stay and chat, but he had family in town, and excused himself.

I hope these stories have enlightened you at least somewhat. I know that they helped me. If you ever want more advice for life, I will be here, don’t be afraid to call on me. My name? I don’t think you need to know that quite yet, maybe if you learn more about yourself, you will learn more about me.