Monday, January 21, 2013

The begining to a good story

What can be perceived as a perfect life isn't always so perfect.

I say this because it is quite true. Before you say I'm insane first ask what is perfect? Maybe you admit that there is no such thing as perfect maybe you can think of a list of things, that's alright. Say you, like a lot of people, don't believe in perfect. Well then is there good and bad or does everything just happen because someone did something really stupid or really smart? Can you say what defines good and bad? Perhaps you say good things help people make happy, joyful feelings, and bad things hurt people they make people feel damaged. I would say that is an OK way to describe it. Now back to the word "perfect" have you ever said or heard someone say "that's perfect" or "there life is perfect"? I have. We use this broad open term that doesn't even really exist. And as far as perfect lives go you will never find a single one.

~
 Her blonde hair spread out in the soft grass of which she laid, thinking. Her eyes blue like the sky gazed at the passing clouds, she wished more than anything for something, anything to happen. But the land was peaceful and lonely. This world was not cold nor warm there was no fear and no excitement and she was alone. She wanted life, to know that she was at least living but no one was there and no one was coming. She had always been alone and alone she always will be. Her day went on as normal the sun rose and set, the stars came out to great the moon in the sky and sunk down again for the sun to take light of the next day. The world was always like this it always had been and always will be. So why did she care if it were any different? This girl, this lonely teenage girl had such a simple life, there was no hunger, no pain, or sorrow, not a day out of place, the sun always shone, there where no storms, the grass always grew, and there was no drought or death. There was nothing that should cause her to be unhappy, but she was. Because in all of this world’s abundance there, it seemed, was no life. Sure trees grew and the grass and plants all grew and birds flew in the sky and crickets chirped in the night. But she was alone; she had no one to share her great wealth of the world with, and no one to talk to and to answer back. And where was the adventure? Where was the fun in every day? There being no pain, every day was the same, every day was safe and easy. She didn’t want that. She wanted the adventure the difference the change that never came. She wanted the proof of life, to know that she was alive. She knew if she were cut she would bleed, she knew that a heart beat in her chest, she knew that she grew older, and that one day her life would come to an end. But never did she see blood flow from her skin, never did her heart race with excitement or fear, never did she look in a mirror to see her age, and never did she come near to death. “What do you want from me?” She would shout. “What should I do? I crave life, I crave adventure.” She would cry to the heavens in search of an answer, an answer that never came. She would lift her head and yell and scream for hours and days “What should I do?”, “Anything, anything at all, please.” She would say again and again falling to her knees. While she had, what seemed, no true reason to be so sad she was, and every day she would beg and plead but there was never an answer never a sign never any hint of anything that may come, nothing. 
~

So can you at least have a good life? Well of course but often our understanding of what a good life is gets mixed up. Many people strive for money, people, and possessions. That's not a bad thing. In fact it is quite helpful to have a good amount of money and lots of people around you. However you can have all those things and still feel like your missing something. Most people do, and most people are. If I were a pastor, hence I'm a Christan, I would say that thing you are missing is Christ. Which I believe but because not all of you readers are quite sure of your beliefs or you are and you do not have these beliefs (which is fine) I will give you a slightly more open opinion on what you just might be missing. First the questions. How do you feel about yourself? Do you like yourself, or are you uncomfortable with being you, do you feel judged? How do you feel about other people? Do you enjoy being around people? Maybe, I'm not sure? And the biggest question, how do you feel about how everything works? Just in the world as one. I know that last one is a big question and it's alright if you can't answer and it's great if you can (as long as your completely honest).

OK so how do you feel about yourself? It is possible that you completely and totally love yourself, it is also possible that you just aren't so sure about who you are. For me, well I struggle with this one. I personally have a very low self esteem. I don't always hold myself at a high regard because I feel that I don't deserve it. And I know for experience that feelings like that can make you feel very alone. Feeling good about yourself is the number one thing that you have to be able to do because if you don't love yourself you aren't allowing others to love you either. So simply love yourself and that is the first step to having a "perfect life".

Before I go on I think this would be a good place to quote a wonderful movie that I saw once. Yes a movie. Here's what it says, ""That's not simple." "Yes it is, it's just hard."" These words, no matter where they came from, are one of those things that just stay with you. It's something I will remember forever.

OK! Now that you've thought about that, lets move on to the next question. How do you feel about other people? Once you feel good about yourself you can move on to the next biggest problem, and that is other people. I knew this one person who literally looked at everything negatively. She actually said that she hated people. She didn't have a lot of friends. So it is very important that you next love other people. Yes I did say love them. I've met many different people in my short lifetime and I know that some people can't live without other people, some people feel abandoned, and others yet just feel out of place and avoid others. You could be any number of those people, or somewhere in between. Humans are one of the most complex things you will ever encounter. Most people hold a mask in front of their face that can be hard to see through. This is normally the cause of "evil people". That one (or more) person you just can't stand simply holds a very thick and dark mask. Others hold a bright colorful mask. Nonetheless it's a mask. A very important skill to learn if you want to love people, is to be able to see through someones mask. People don't always want you to see through their masks, but if you can you will be able to better understand why someone feels or does what they do. It's a special coping mechanism, a mask is, that's why all people where one.

~
They walked with mumbling words by one another. One not really seeing the other. Their faces where of thin wood held to there eyes which were not visible. All of the masks looked different, so everyone know who everyone was. Or did they? They did not. When they looked at one another they saw the mask and nothing more. No one saw anyone, yet they all thought that they did. Not one of the mumbling masks fell because they didn't feel like masks. They tricked everyone, including themselves. As one mask peered out of it's large black eyes, it watched the colors. One was completely black, another was of all bright colors, and yet another was half black and half white. The small mask saw that non were the same and it saw that they all explained the person behind it. But as the mask studied the others more closely it saw the small slits in the blank eyes of the masks. And when the mask looked even closer it saw color behind the mask. That was not something the little mask knew. It worried the mask so the mask looked away and saw a mirror when it did. The mask turned to the mirror and saw a mask it did not know. The mask it saw was colored in green and blue swirls with small stars decorating the edge. But the mask didn't know the mask it saw so it looked closer and saw the eyes. In the masks eyes the little mask saw something it knew. And as the mask finally lowered the little girl saw herself. And when she looked around again all the other masks became clear to her eyes, and she could see the people beneath.  
~
   

1 comment:

  1. I believe that "perfect" is when you find the life that God has planned for you. Only God knows what is "perfect" for each of the beings He created. The difficult part is, we, as humans, don't know this and are usually looking for what fits our own definition of what we think perfect is; a perfect family, a perfect job, a perfect house, a perfect mate, a perfect life. It is only when we give up our own definitions and accept the unknown of God's plan, that we find "perfect"---which, by the way, is usually nothing like the perfect the world has taught us it is. This perfect might be a blended family of people completely different than ourselves. Perfect might be a job that is so challenging that we can only get through each day if we begin in prayer for strength to do so, a strength that comes from heaven, not within ourselves, but at the end of that very tiring day, someone else is better for our struggles. The perfect house might be so small that instead of people going into their own private spaces, they are forced to be together and learn to love each other despite their differences. Perfect might be a mate one who might be old, wrinkled, and pudgy, but has the heart of an angel. And the perfect life might be one that has struggles beyond belief; struggles you never thought you could overcome, struggles that made you want to die, until you found that with Christ's help, you could overcome more than you ever thought you could, you could love more than you ever thought possible, and you could find "perfect" in places you never would have dared enter, with people you never would have bothered to talk to.


    As for masks, This is one reason I love working with young children. They have not formed their masks yet, and they can usually see through the masks of adults. Look at the face of a newborn, it is the closest thing to God--I know some people think babies aren't cute, but they are real. They have been near God literally hours or days before they are born. Wow. Masks takes years to develop and they do become thicker and thicker as people experience and feel they have to cover up their soul for protection. But protection can work like a suite of armor. It keeps out the arrows, swords and dangers of life, but it equally stands between us and the warmth of a hug, the gentleness of a kiss, and the love of those around us.

    ReplyDelete