Politicians in hindsight

Politicians are the masters of false tongue.
They continue to talk, it's their job to talk, and suddenly when you listen to what's being said, it's nothing new, nothing different, just an endless torrent of white noise and cloister bells echoing it's repetitive droll, and when you can finally read between the lines, and see the false prophets, the tainted, anointed words that millions upon millions are subjected to this drek, their minds poisoned and their beliefs twisted. now today, in this world, in my own personal lexicon, politician is just a dressed up, tie wearing, overpowered synonym for a liar that continues to produce false promises into the river of deceit leaving the victims of the flood crying out in anguish.

Life is a constant struggle between being an individual and being a member of the community

Sometimes you fit in. Other times you stand out. Sometimes you're outstanding. And other times you are outside standing like the pizza man. Its hard to maintain a uniform while trying to conform, and its hard to stand in uniform and feel free in your own form. There is a constant game of tug of war, from inside and out. Yourself wanting to be yourself and yourself wanting to be their self. But who better to be than me? Not Joe, Mary or Dave from the community. All human beings are weird. So to be weird like someone else is not normal and just...weird. Who is to say wearing your underpants outside your jeans is not normal and immoral. Yet, we immortalize heroes like Superman that are brave enough to wear it.  

This is what it means to say you're from Brooklyn

This is what it means to say you're from Brooklyn. Home of the late great Biggie Smalls. Birthplace of Michael Jordan. A nanny to the rapper and businessman Jay-Z. Home of the Schenck v. United States case. A place where once, the doctor smacks your bottom, you're expected to do great things. Either drop 67 points in a basketball game, be a great rapper, hustler, dope boy or whatever. No one ever tells you that they expect you for creating a phenomenon like a cure for cancer or the next Facebook. You are born to be great but within limitations. Born in a city where your parents don't have time to raise you and you're stuck inside the house until all your days are sad and gray. Then you try to brighten your life with the luscious and explicit colors of Crayola. Fighting wars for colors like kindergartners for cor crayons. Welcome to Brooklyn where 90% of our kids are Trayvon. We are expected to be great, but the only history our names are marked on is our tombstones.

"Use well by freedom."

 

     Freedom is a privilege. As citizens of the United States, we are lucky to be free. It has become such a norm of our society that a lot of the time freedom is taken for granted. Imagine a life where your actions and even thoughts were controlled. No voting, no career choice, no personal values, or even no choice in who you love. Have any American think about this and they will deem it outrageous. Yet there are people on this earth today who live in such a way. They do not have the privilege we are accustomed to. Therefore we need to be grateful.

 

 

    People have died in order to earn the freedom we enjoy. Their sacrifice for a better tomorrow is the present we are living. So in order to honor all they gave up in their lives, every person needs to "use well by freedom". What does this mean? It means to lead a meaningful life. Cultivate sounds morals because you can. Speak your mind, but respect others' opinions. Follow the laws set in place and appreciate that they are fair for the common good. Register to vote and mark your place in this free country. Utilize every single opportunity that comes your way because people sacrificed their lives for you to have them and there are people living today who would give anything to be in your free shoes.

Journal Entry

"For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness."

 By Ralph Waldo Emerson      

       Are you always happy? Cause I'm not.

     I think for every minute you are angry, you will feel more happy when happiness comes to you. I wouldn't even know how happiness would feel like if I never feel sad, angry, depressed, and etc. It is not someone's loss to be angry. People get angry for reasons, and this happens so we can relieve our angry and find peace in our mind. Of course, it is not a good thing to be always angry, but I don't believe being angry time to time is "losing happiness." I can use this quote to keep in mind to be less angry and calm myself when I am too angry, because I tend to think about the most horrible ideas when I am not in a right state of mind. So I believe being angry does not take your happiness away, rather, brings happiness the double, when it comes to you after. 

Who To Be

        The world is an ironic place. On the one hand, we are taught the importance of meeting new people and exposing ourselves to situations that are completely outside of our comfort zones. On the other, more dominant hand, we are supposed to focus on improving ourselves and working hard to get ahead in life. Our society is founded on individualism and the idea that if we word hard enough to beat out the competition, we will triumph and prosper. Thus, we are lift with two opposing principles to which we should adhere to:

        Number 1: Form strong bonds with the people around us.

        Number 2: Beat out others to earn for yourself wealth, power, and prestige.

        These commands make it difficult for most people to find a proper balance in life. Many find themselves driven towards one side of the spectrum or the other. There are the hard-working, determined businesspeople on Wall Street and then there are those who are completely dedicated to raising a happy, healthy, and connected family. But who is really the better person?

Happiness

"For every minute you are angry you lose sixty seconds of happiness." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

"People are just as happy as they make up their minds to be." - Abraham Lincoln

I smile a lot. That doesn't necessarily mean I am happy all the time but I think it's the best way to express any emotions of mine. Indeed, I smile even when I'm angry at something. It's as if I mentally tell myself every time that it's not worth being angry, so just smile it out. It's not as if I would immediately feel peaceful or anything. But, it's better than yelling at someone and hurting their feelings.
The second quote reminded me of the reading we did on "The Futile Pursuit of Happiness". It seems like we are all searching for something until we are satisfied with our minds and hearts. This kind of reminds me of the time my dad told me to give up on horseback riding, one of my most favorite sports. At first, I was sad. I cried a few times. But after a week, I started convincing myself of the positive side of not doing what used to make me happy. So it is possible to talk yourself into being happy but that level of happiness cannot beat with something you have a passion for, something you cherish so much that you would fight for. Those are things that bring you REAL happiness. And so you shouldn't stop and convince your minds otherwise. 

The Same but Different?

"Everybody is identical in their secret unspoken belief that way down they are different from everyone else." -DFW

Today's culture is all about diversity and individuality. We are encouraged to stand up for what we believe in and required to attend seminars on the negative effects of bullying on a person's unique identity. But are we really different? Statistically, surely we have run out of combinations that could create a truly new identity. And it is our nature to band together and form connections. How would that be possible if we were each different beings?

During the course of this fall semester, I have met numerous strangers and proceeded to immediately strike up conversations with them. Initially it is just the basics but those facts quickly run out and we're left scrambling for commonalities in which to continue our conversation. In my haste to connect, I found myself making bizarre links to people's lives and my own. Things that they probably didn't care about and I wasn't even sure why I was sharing kept coming out of my mouth. I had to mentally force myself to calm down, shut up, and listen. Each new person was exactly that, new. I needed to open my ears and find out why.