the GIFT of LADY FATE

Once again I am in the hands of this temptress - this paragon of mystique. I am alone - trapped by my desires to subjugate her, to tame her and to succeed where very few before me had managed to do so and many after me will struggle still.
The very specter of her - her beguiling wiles and enticing smiles continue to lure me in repeatedly; like the call of the sirens - a dead man walking to his doom.

In spite of my open reluctance to fall prey... I am held captive - a willing surrender, a mindless desire to stay in her company and to fall victim. She has seen the demise of men greater than me and yet - here I still stand before her yet again. Why? Was it because of my fascination and perseverance? Was it because I chose to stand firmly in place in the face of her screaming wrath and the brutal fury of her veiled claws... She drew no quarters and expected none and yet there was something in her that promised me all I ever wanted - if only I could pass muster and stay the course.

Each endeavor was repeatedly squashed. It was one failure and setback after another and yet I chose to continue because there was no other way. I had committed too much to turn back. I would not bow to the demands to give up - my spirit was tired, my flesh was worn down and my mind was a chatter of angry voices begging me to relent and walk away BUT.... I was certain that If I kept at it; she would relent.

The cult of success is guarded by the few who have seen the infernos of hell and desolation and like the JOB of the bible been wiped with the aim of surrender BUT lived to tell the tale and yet their silence was all the answer you got because they still bore the scars to prove to the disbelieving - to show as proof that they had faced down their worst fears and survived. I would do the same and even though it would hurt me and leave me tattered and torn - I will never give up! Not to her and not on my dreams and aspirations for without them I am nothing - a rudderless ship set adrift in the tidal wave of life's buffeting currents. Subjected to the caprices of the storm's fury and scorn and tossed around as she sees fit.

She bore down on me with venomous intent and I bore the brunt of her castrations - look, see how she has ravaged my masculinity and robbed me of my identity. See the lacerations she has left on my psyche and the ravaging wounds that cover me. But not anymore - her time too shall pass and once more, I will tame her and make her fortunes mine.

There is no escape - only the reward that is due to me - to take that which is my right. I do not stand idly by to complain about the unfair hand that she deals - I simply go after what i want until i get it. Fate has given me the ultimate prize - her beauty and fortune, her tempestuous nature and her favour for I stood where most had failed with the prize in plain sight and within my grasp. She is a worthy goal - regardless of the outcome, she is a worthy prize indeed!

the WAR called LOVE

There is the sense that LOVE is some campaign with the intent of winner takes all - including a subdued and humbled carcass. Not sure why but that's the sense i get. That need to control the outcome from the very beginning as soon as the age of excitement and discovery is OVER - it become a trench fight.

Soon subtle and not so subtle plays on each other start to take place. Then comes the gentle guiding and controlling antics.

AS they say: All's fair in love and war.
But is Love a war? Or rather i should ask: what type of war does one wage when matters of the heart are on the table? Who ultimately wins? Is there meant to be a winner?

The hollywood movies seem to have hit on some kind of format. Even the happy ever after stories have the same idea - they get the part of great strife but they wrongly assume that a "Happy ever after" exists.

I think it does at some level but not without growing the muscle required to make it truly worth it. The happy ever after state is REALLY a state of contentment or fulfillment. Nothing is truly happy ever after unless you have fought for it or have come to truly understand the REAL value and meaning of what you have.

Its like keeping your eyes on the finish line and being distracted by those behind you. Those behind don't matter - what matters is that you touch the finish line first.

In a nutshell - FOCUS.
One must also be willing to let go of the fears and doubts that keep making a dramatic comeback like a bad movie script. Faith and fear cannot exist in the same place competing over the same thing. These are habits that are breed and cultivated. You let it in - you can also throw it out.

It matters that you love but it matters more that you know what you have. The notion of proving or pursuing is so outdated that it makes one wonder what the fuss is all about. Why must someone prove to you when you either know or don't know? Why must someone convince you as to the state of your emotions or feelings when you are in a FAR better state to tell them what you feel?

What after all are these pesky feelings? They are like entanglements that become substituted for the main thing. What then is the main thing? The main thing is the conviction that you truly know you have or need and that resides in you regardless of what time of the day it is.

That is something that we see less of. The reason is not so far fetched - we're spoon fed the very nuances of our thoughts. TV, CABLE, MAGAZINES tells us what to think and sometimes even how to think. We barely challenge anything that seems to come from an authority figure without realizing that this isn't a one size fits all scenario. There are always variations and there will always continue to be variations.

We have a tendency to see everything through the narrow filters of our perception.
As they say: If you have a hammer; everything that comes along tends to look like a nail to be hit.

This state of ours is far from over. It hounds us from time to time and tests us to the limit. We become poets of reason in our bid to understand a state of mind that has no true verbal expression.
Ask your self this: Have you had anyone able to correctly describe what love is? Answer: No.

We only describe what it looks like or feels like.
That's because we cannot use the verbal facility to describe a state of mind. There is simply no correlation.

And don't argue this: It is a state of mind. It serves a function in the broader sense of human evolution asides the sappy cinematics that hollywood would have us believe. A case of life imitating ART.

No battle is ever won without casualties. Fight wisely or at least with the long term in plain view.
Remember - emotions pass. Convictions on the other hand are more lasting until they are displaced by better convictions. At the end of the day, we are masters of our fate - the ability to stir the boat through the various strife in our lives is a testament to a deeper commitment.

The human stories

From one point to another denotes displacement of some kind. Perhaps it is time, distance, events, people, experiences - all sum up to mark the inevitable disclosure that something took place. Now this is an entirely relative exercise and varies from person to person. It boils down to a perspective of sorts that denotes what each takes away during the occurrence of the said displacement.

While this treatise does not focus on the displacement - it does highligh the stories that we encounter in the various displacements that take place all through our lives. From birth to death; our lives are one story after another. Some leading to others and some seemingly standalone but never completely isolated from the story of life in which we are all participants. 

Our life stories are personal histories and we have been tasked with playing the role of historian and narrator in this macabre scheme. In film footage and taking a nod to its "PORN" roots, it's called a POV footage or in lay man's terms; point of view.

Our points of view are like the mirrors of a car that give us a view of what's behind us in the context of angles, perspectives. With a little twist to the mirror we can even cut off certain footage and focus on what we term particularly important. At that level it is an individual matter as preference comes into play.

Our stories are about triumph and failure, victory and defeat, perseverance, persistence and hard toil, easy smiles, tears that could drown the titanic and pains that closely resemble the pangs of child birth.

Like the high points or low points of every story, plot or movie - it is merely part of the narrative and provides the shades and tides and ebbs, which marks the various transitions and waypoints that life provides.

Sometimes like the mirrors in our lives, we chose to look at the past with the intent of changing something that has already taken place, sometimes it becomes a means of escape from the present travails of today's troubles. Understand that the mirror is a tool and that it does not replace or supersede the person USING the tool. Thus our ability to analyze the past does not overshadow the present nor does it warrant us to dwell In a time that has long since passed.

Just like a budding videographer - we have good takes bad takes and eventually what we preserve.

The tapestry we call life is like a movie reel and due to our edits, cuts and scrapped segments - we might end up with a version that we like or dislike.

Tools all serve a purpose and will come to their true calling in their time of need. The absurdity of the human conditions is sometimes replacing the order of dependence such that the tool becomes the master and the user becomes the slave.

Tools like us humans, are part of this narrative. We create them, we empower them, they become a part of the story told through our views and perspectives. With the passage of time, comes the occasional clarity devoid of emotions - that shows us what we should have done or where we did go wrong.

Our triumphs are merely a part of the story, so also are our failures. They do not define us unless we chose for them to do so and therefore with our own guidance and involvement, the story can perhaps lead to our real and true purpose in life.

There is no other reason to be the storyteller and narrator of your own story if you cannot determine the type of end you truly seek.

Shalom.

Called to a life of service...

Occasionally when the fancy comes upon me; I find myself looking for conversations with others.

The reasons vary but it stems from a general curiosity about how others think, feel and act.

I am curious as to how and why they make certain choices and what their motivations are or were; depending entirely on if the discussion is centered around the moment or around events gone past.

Which brings me to today's topic of discussion. Service to one and all.

What is service and what does it mean or represent? And before you start groaning inwardly and proceed to consign this conversation to the waste bin of irrelevance... I would have my say.

Service is rendering an action with a desired purpose to someone who either requests it or is in need of it. While this is open to broad interpretation the summary is basically about doing something useful for someone ( could be self directed or outwardly directed)

Typically service makes us truly useful and in the long run determines if we have perceived value to ourselves and to others. This could be be a good thing or a bad thing depending on what your motives are and how others perceive you after the act. With service you can position yourself as a go to person and gradually build a competence and reputation defined by the history of services rendered in the past.

The other alternative is that you could be perceived as a person who never says no to any request and therefore will become everyone's go to source; a truly tiring dilemma.

Now while we should look at all sides of this dilemma; let us not forget that we each have agendas of our own. Typically most people preform an act of service with some sort of motive in mind.

It could be a long term benefit, a strategic or tactical action, a key requirement, a matter of life or death and so many other possible scenarios.

There is however a side to service that seems too noble or pure but that nonetheless exists. When we have learnt to look beyond ourselves and the benefits for just ourselves or those of interest to us; then we may enter into a better understanding of a new kind of service. That which treats everyone as a potential beneficiary of the service mechanism.

The human nature is a complex thing made more complicated by our dynamic environment, cultures and social mores. The law of self preservation as well as other succinct and embedded principles have turned us into a caricature of our true natures. Even nature has knowledge of these systems of service and enlists them to create the various cycles that govern the balance of life.

If nature understands and utilizes service in its truest form; devoid of sentiment then why can we not as superior and gifted creatures do much more?

Should there exist a motive that determines who and what we serve? The greater good? The greater benefit for self, the greater reward etc

Service to one and all should be the common ethos. One day we will require such selflessness of each other and when we can no longer give it then what have we become?

You cannot become what you did not perceive

The jury is still out on this topic title and time will tell if the assertions stated here will hold its weight in gold or will be discarded.
Here is a thought. How can you become something that you did not perceive?
It would be different if we allowed the random acts of fate or nature to occur and steer you in the required direction but then again; you would still need to be made aware of exactly where your journey would lead you to. If not the journey then at least the final destination.

Truth be told; how can you become something that your mind never pictures at some point? How can you become a teacher, scientist, doctor, lawyer without having first pondered on any of these career paths?

Even if the path was foisted on you there is a choice and point when you mind embraces the path and begins to perceive the possibility of the new path.

We cannot become something that we did not at some point perceive. It is not the nature of things.

Self Appreciation and the Journey to being a better person

Your are what you believe and yet even that is not true - people believe one thing and do another.
Maybe not in whole but in a large part - your thoughts, opinions, environment continue to sift and shape your individual identity.

Seemingly inconsequential actions continue to shape you to no small degree. By who and what you interact with, by the very choices you make or don't make, by the company you chose to keep or not keep, by your wants or needs.

In today's world where identity is a transient thing in constant flux - it is sometimes harder than ever to pin ourselves to an accountable standard. Have we really fallen so low that we cannot provide the compass of moral direction to our affairs.

Do we lack guiding principles?
In this quest for identity - our state of well-being - tied often to our earning power, our perception by society as being either successful or not continues to shape our lucid attempts at self portrayal.

Can we not maintain some sort of code of conduct - if we chose to run foul; then let us at least be steadfast in that regard. We will and wish for change but are scarcely ready for it when it comes.

It is so much surprising how we are caught unawares - in this battle of balance that is often skewed against us based on the very choices we make or don't make for that matter.

Often sacrificing our better judgement of moral necessity on the bed rocks of greed and materialism and to what purpose? A short lived life that is spent amassing wealth and nothing else?

I constantly admit my failings to myself not because it think it makes me a better person but to constantly remind myself that if i chose to deceive the whole world - let me not fall foul of myself. To thine self be true.

Shalom.

The greatest gift is: LOVE

breathe...
That's almost the first thing you forget when falling in love with something or someone.
You forget to breathe.

It doesn't mean that you have embraced a death wish nor does it mean that your respiratory functions have failed - its just means that you have surrendered the process of logic to take up the process of emotionally charged moments of turbulent Highs and Lows.

You remember the feeling don't you?

That need to constantly suck up this thing or person as if you could consume them into yourself. The sense of intensity that sets your wires abuzz. Beating heart that yields to excitement at the mere thought. The way you find your body reacting like a machine out of control.

However after the buzz, when the nerves settle down - the reality still holds true.
The reality indicates that there is hard work involved as in all things but the emotionally packed journey always produces the drama that makes love or falling in love a beautiful experience.

Love with every fibre of everything in your body, love with your entire heart- love until it feels like a raw open wound - love when you have nothing to gain - love with everything you have to give even when people call you foolish.

These dark and powerful emotions

Confess to me...
Tell me those dark emotions that typically besiege your thought horizons like dark clouds just before a storm. You know what i mean... Those thoughts that ramble in your head that you chose to give a voice to or not as the case dictates.

they hound you and crash against your shores like relentless waves and unless a means is devised to lessen their impact - they may just surge into your lands and lay waste to all you have achieved - if you let them.

And this is typically the choice we are often thrust into...
Do we give substance to our anger or do we ignore it at our peril?

Do we asasume that our passions and lusts and anger give us the right to act?
How can we tell when it is appropriate give substance to inner demons and when they should be banaished from thoughts into the nether regions that they came from?

How do we tackle and manage their impact on our thoughts and words and actions?

We are all composites of our most frequent thoughts and what we choose to think about gradually defines who we become over a period of time - we become our thoughts so to speak.

Thus if i give anger and drak passions a front burner in my thoughts they begin to define who and what i am - this is what makes humans so dynamic - this is the crux of our internal programming and wiring.

We can literally change these codes on the fly by what we permit within our minds.

To be in the grip of these emotions to be wrestled and pushed continiously from side to side as they buffer your cells in a rush of vast conflict.

Let us emerge into the sunligh and desimate the darkness with light.
Let us determine the thoughts we will permit and MAKE a conscious effort to school our minds - let us evolve into thoughts of health and success and objectives.

If I was GOD....

For those naysayers or others who will probably call me a heretic or loose cannon or a delusional delinquent without a belief in GOD - (you know the drill by now) and are entirely entitled to your own opinions.

I am NOT GOD - i make no claim to this nor will i EVER have the requirements to meet this esteemed position.
I am however human and in my many follies and failings - I have had these all too brief flights of fancy for those moments when anger, frustration and irritation have been the familiar stimulus for my often turbulent emotions.

You can't say that you haven't had these moments where you crave the power of GOD (albeit briefly or all too briefly - okay; for large moments of time) to smite your would be aggressors and make them pay the price for their transgressions and other failings and probably hold or call out to you for mercy and pardon, while you look upon them with disdain and righteous anger.

But wait a minute...
That just sounded like a resume for me and you!
That's right - we're those aggressors - the very ones that you're talking and thinking about - that makes your blood boil over.

This morning while I was on my way to work - I was looking at a display that is so rife in this time of ours - where antics of road rage and other illogical behaviours where blatantly displayed by a whole lot of people - I could probably argue that I was the victim but I realized that even the ride I hitched (a two wheel contraption referred to in our local parlance as an "okada") was guilty of contravening the same laws and I by extension had permitted it due to my silence - for silence IS consent.

If I was GOD - I would hit the evil doers with the consequence of their actions but I stopped and realized that even in today's world - there resides a purpose for all actions (Good as well as Evil) - all serves a purpose in the grand scheme of things - all is a means to an end. Also if I hit today - somebody out there would probably HIT me back when his/her turn came to assume the GOD like powers.

Fortunately GOD - has granted humanity the gift of choice and yet due to our short sightedness - we have consistently made decisions that have brought woe and dread to subsequent generations after "WE" the original decision makers are long gone from this world. It hasn't always been all bad choices but it could have been better.

If I was GOD - I would do something drastic but then suddenly i realized - if someone else where GOD - he/she would do some equally drastic things and I would be equally affected by that decision.

If I was GOD - I would probably give in to my caprices and short term feelings of anger, fear, frustration and power drunken self adulation.

Therefore and most humbly - I am thankful that I am NOT GOD or never will be.

What did santa get me?

We're on the eve of Christmas and so much yearning exists - so many questions requiring answers - answers we may not be ready to face up to. I am equally wondering...

What does this year mean me?
What would I have done differently?
What would I do again?
What can i improve for the coming year beginning with now?
How do I feel about me?
How did I fare towards those around me?

If the answers come out largely positive (if you are truthful) then I guess you're well on the path to becoming a better you - if not there is always room for improvement.

This is to the self examination that you should probably undergo - may the light shine inwards and expose the areas that require improvement...

God bless you

Ironic bits and maddening fits...

I've been awhile away from these pages - and now by mutual consent - as part of a very interesting turn of events and conversations - I'm back!

Your know who you are aimeeshore - THANK YOU!

Ironic that I'm here under these conditions.
To stare down a fear of words or their lack there of.
To awaken the beast of these ink filled corridors.
To wallow in this cess-pitt of emotions begging for expression.

that wasn't so hard - ironic that a lover of words like myself has run far way from the ink spewing ways of the writer. have you ever wanted something so bad that you ignored everything just to have that object of desire...

Ironic that it takes another in the dire straits like mine to awaken the burden to spew these words like vomit on the sidewalk.

Words and me are intertwined like the thorn and rose...
Inseparable as always.

To Perceive: To scatter the dark clouds of ignorance with knowledge

In the gloom of the dark cave without any form of light, the strange shapes of humanoids hurdled together to gather heat and provide warmth among themselves. Howling winds snaking their way into the gathering occasioned by the flickering flashes of lightening and followed by the claps of thunder that would cause wails and moans from the un-nerved among this gathering.

This of course provided an admirable image when seen from an omni-present vantage point - a GOD who watched his creations at work and saw how they interacted amongst themselves and their environment.

Without this early man was doomed to certain death from the harsh and uncharted elements of nature.

Alas - many eons have passed and we are far removed those days but some of those pre-historic instincts are still part of our all to human heritage. Although the group mentality is somewhat modified and alot of the uncharted has become known, we're all still hurdling together in one way or another. We have our social clans, our functional or hunting clans  - as you can probably deduce by now; there are many clans and each clan provides a support structure and pecking order to the individual members.

The role of perception in this equation is the availability of knowledge to explain or to find the logic behind the unknown phenomenons or mysteries surrounding us.

Perception is the key that unlocks the secrets of the unknown - allowing the light of inquiry to dissect and expose the general principles behind these "terrors" that defy explanations from times gone past.

Perception is the gentle blade that slices through the veil of the unknown - parting it gentle to slowly reveal what lies clouded or unclear.

The greater the level of perception the more awareness we gain of that which had formerly defied all explanation. To perceive is to gain understanding through the senses and to arrive at a conclusion that exposes what was formerly a mystery.

We grow our perception through constant use and meditation and by opening our senses to the very things around us, we can gently ponder on their significance and how they fit into the grand scheme of things.
Perception is an internal and external process. 

A mind that is emptied of worries and other insignificant processes will be best suited for the task of perception - an inner gleam that is both conscious and unconscious.

An art and a science - it straddles both in ways that defy explanation.

But its usefulness cannot be over stated.


It served us well then just as it still serves us now.

Motives for actions

What comes first? The Chicken or the egg?

What do you think? Yes, you - you know I'm referring to you. Don't look behind you. Ahh, I finally have you undivided attention.

Why would I pick motives for a discussion? That's another question for another day.

Motives are the objectives required for taking a particular line of action based on a set of conditions/criteria which have been evaluated internally. These conditions maybe personal reasons (in most cases they will indeed be personal) and thus they will undoubtedly influence the motive.

Humans are an undoubtedly selfish species like every other group on earth - our higher intelligence should actually come to our rescue but we seemingly have not learnt to harness this vast pool objectively. There in lies our quagmire.

The influence of emotions and other subjective factors have often swayed thinking in non-logical or subjective directions. It is one source of strength sometimes but in most cases it is a major hindrance and weakness.

In this light - the underlying motives required to justify action is based on these sometimes unspecified objectives of ours.

For instance in the pursuit of any female of interest, there are various considerations that make her fit a given criteria - these range from physical appearance, carriage, poise, confidence, character, integrity, intelligence, wisdom, objectivity, personality to more esoteric  characteristics etc

These listed traits might to a great degree affect who decides to initiate the chase and who decides to pass the chance. And yet these are all objectives that were considered when arriving at the motive.

The motive in some cases can be intangible but it summarises the internal value map for the respective individuals.

Motive creates the necessary drive for action - motive provides purpose and purpose is the engine room of action.

My motives may not always be laudable, they may not always meet a higher moral code and they may lack integrity but the motive once it has been defined from misplaced objectives will often be itself misplaced.

The motive thus then produces the action which is characterised either as appropriate or not appropriate.
Alas man has always leaned towards the less appropriate channels.

Man's motives are a question of his inner considerations - to each man, his own.

Duality or Enter the Shadow of the monkey

Something mildly amusing happened very recently.

I was having a discussion with a friend and came across a fact that is proven time and time again in our lives - we have dual purposes and reflect the nature of the monkey - we grasp one branch but never let go until we have another firmly in our grasp.

Not an odd philosophy, considering that we humans are advised and conditioned to avoid risk whenever we can - why leave the safety of the known for the uncertainty of the unknown?

Apart from the possibility of failure and the fear of the vastly unknown landscape that we find ourselves in, there is nothing that holds us back apart from our hesitation and fear to move forward.

If you doubt the logic of my thinking - here's an easy experiment:

Quit your job today. Right this minute. And do it with absolutely no fall back plan.

Don't hesitate or even think about it - rather just drop the paper and head out.

If any of you manage to do this - you will fall into that rare category that we refer to as practicing lunatics (the type that the average joe shies away from) often indicated by pointed fingers in your direction.

And yet these are the mavericks responsible for the great discoveries or achievements of our time. These are those few who have dared to go on, when they have no certainty other than their belief and curiosity.

Are we then mavericks or just benchers who have gotten used to the comfort of the back bench.

The seemingly, inconspicuousness of your existence is the opportunity presented to you  - we all awaiting the birth of a true leader to arise and take his place among his peers.

We must seize the day and make the very rules that will guide us beyond our comfort zone.

I bid you a welcome to the new you.

SELF INDEPENDENCE: THE NEW "YOU"

Welcome!

It has indeed been a tad long since we exchanged words, you and I.
Here I am to remedy the situation. I hope I may be pardoned for my impudence - I've always been an advocate for that in-your-face attitude that agitates people into action.
Why? Because what we have to share is more important to you than you realize.

It is the concept of independence and yours for that matter.
As the chief commanding officer of the nation of one; you stand on the threshold of great things. Great if you manage to get out of your own way and master those abilities that will propel you ahead of the pack of rats.

Your self independence is the agenda under discussion - it is the only truly worthy goal to aspire towards; in a society where the protection of numbers numbs our senses and thoughts and prevents us from risking to run against the pack.

The pack is after all a mindless body - programmed to do a bidding that has been passed down the chain of command.

This is the point where we all step up to the plate and take the decision to rally ourselves towards our personal glory and freedom. Towards our aim and aspirations.
This is not the El-dorado that the fables have spoken about: this is your chance to attain freedom.

Freedom from the constraints of a self imposed mediocre mentality.

I'm a worker - i work for the wages determined by an employer, who decides that I'm only worth so much and no more.
This same employer determines the cycles that govern my life: waking moments, eating moments, resting moments, family moments, no moments.

Suddenly after fifteen years of working you've lost touch with the reality of your situation: people, friends, family and acquaintances - you're lost in the numbers. One more knuckle head in a sea of dead drifters.

Allowing the more powerful tides to determine which direction you float towards. You no longer have an aim to aspire towards apart from a bigger employer or bigger paycheck - the bottom line has been lost because you've put your attention on the wrong things.

That said: you still have a chance (right until the day you die).
You can still savage the golden nuggets of your ambition from the smelting pot of dead dreams.

Don't take no for an answer.

Don't be your our greatest obstacle.
Don't allow anyone to determine your fate.
Don't allow excuses to hold you back.
Don't keep your dreams at bay because you're busy chasing shadows or afraid to see them through.
Don't fight your desires - people may not understand and they really don't have to (you just have to make sure you don't hurt anybody or yourself in the process)

Best of all: don't hold back in the pursuit of you.

In the new republic of self independence - you can still determine the acts that make you a notable success. in this nation of one - you are the one that truly counts.

happy self independence!

Aspire

A single word title: "ASPIRE"
The verb form would have you "ASPIRING" towards a goal or greater objective.

But before we launch off into our typical tirade and practiced rant - I want you to calmly look at this humble word and try to connect to it.

• What does this word mean to you?
• How do you see and treat this concept?
• What and where do you find yourself moving towards?

I aspire to be more than I am (that is almost a given for most of us except those who might have suicidal impulses). I aspire to be effective in what I do, I aspire for excellence in any field of endeavor that I find myself in...
I aspire for fame and fortune, for happiness and content.

However when the accolades in our heads have died down - where are we along the ladder of our aspirations? Are we really aspiring to move and propel ourselves towards a greater good?

What are those dreams that propel you? Do you even know?
The better question for me would be what my dreams and "Aspirations" (another use of aspire) are worth? Beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder and my eyes have beheld the grand place held for me should my aspirations be achieved.

We are all success stories waiting to be written and even if our "books" read like a testament of hardship (the human animal detests pain and suffering) the lessons learned are worth the investment in pain, sweat and blood...

I regret not believing in myself earlier - I regret the lost time spent wishing about better situations but I will not be held back because I arrived at the party "late".

If it comes to that I'll start a party for myself all alone.

When it looks the most like success seems impossible that's when I should stubbornly refuse to yield and focus - aspire and aim towards those goals that drive me...

Reality is after all the here and now and since I control that by my beliefs and what drives me - I control the direction of my fate and life.

We all aspire for success in our chosen endeavors - we all want the inner acknowledgment that comes from deep within particularly when we have attained all or part of our aspirations.

Success has a lot of bedfellows but before it got there it was often a lonely journey.
The deeper and inner conviction that we can is part of the chain of aspiration - that which binds our dreams and goals to our purpose to attain.

Remember that to aspire is to inch towards that which we truly seek - our dedication and commitment and perseverance is required for true success.

Aspire towards that dream.

TEN RULES OF "BEING A HUMAN BEING"

In my unending search for great articles on this thing we call life - I make a few discoveries along the way. A lot of these guides are basic common sense and some actually manage to knock some sense into my pattern of thinking that I might have originally been lacking. Regardless of which category I fall into there is always something to learn - some new perspective that I might not have considered or tried.

Before I go too deep into my rambling - I present to you the: Ten Rules for Being Human by Cherie Carter-Scott

Ten Rules for Being Human

by Cherie Carter-Scott

1. You will receive a body. You may like it or hate it, but it's yours to keep for the entire period.
2. You will learn lessons. You are enrolled in a full-time informal school called, "life."
3. There are no mistakes, only lessons. Growth is a process of trial, error, and experimentation. The "failed" experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that ultimately "work."
4. Lessons are repeated until they are learned. A lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. When you have learned it, you can go on to the next lesson.
5. Learning lessons does not end. There's no part of life that doesn't contain its lessons. If you're alive, that means there are still lessons to be learned.
6. "There" is no better a place than "here." When your "there" has become a "here", you will simply obtain another "there" that will again look better than "here."
7. Other people are merely mirrors of you. You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself.
8. What you make of your life is up to you. You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you. The choice is yours.
9. Your answers lie within you. The answers to life's questions lie within you. All you need to do is look, listen, and trust.
10. You will forget all this.

The gift of lady fate...

Once again I am in the hands of this temptress - this paragon of mystique.
I am alone - trapped by my desires to subjugate her, to tame her and to succeed where very few before me had managed to do so.

The very specter of her - her beguiling wiles and enticing smiles continue to lure me in repeatedly like the call of the sirens - a dead man walking.
In spite of my open reluctance to fall prey...

She has seen the demise of men greater than me and yet - I still stand.

Why?

Was it because of my fascination and perseverance? Was it because I chose to stand firm in the face of her screaming wrath and brutal fury of her veiled claws...

She drew no quarters and expected none and yet there was something in her that promised me all I ever wanted only if I could pass muster and stay the course.

Each endeavor was repeatedly squashed.

It was one failure after another and yet I chose to continue because there was no other way. I had committed too much to turn back. I would not bow to the demands to give up - my spirit was tired but certain that If I kept it up she would relent.

The cult of success is guarded by the few who have seen the eyes of satan and lived to tell the tale and yet their silence was all the answer you got because they still bore the scars to prove to the disbelieving - to show as proof that they had faced down their worst fears and survived.

I would do the same and even though it would hurt me and leave me tattered and torn - I will never give up! Not to her and not on my dreams and aspirations for without them I am nothing - a rudderless ship set adrift in the tidal wave of life's currents. Subjected to the caprices of the storm's fury and scorn.

She bore down on me with venomous intent and I bore the brunt of her castrations - look, see how she has ravaged my masculinity and robbed me of my identity.

But not anymore - her time too shall pass and once more, I will tame her and make her fortunes mine.

There is no escape - only the reward that is due to me - to take that which is my right.

Fate has given me the ultimate prize - her beauty, her tempestuous nature and her favour for I stood where most had failed with the prize in plain sight.

She was a worthy goal in the end - regardless of the outcome, she was a worthy prize indeed!

This thing called: LIFE!

When you slowly rise from the deep mists of sleep and slowly become aware of yourself and your environment - your thoughts are slowly pulled through the fine filters of coherence as you become aware of yourself - it is almost like a computer coming online.

In the mist of this boot up sequence you might be unfortunate to load those pesky files we refer to as the baggage of yesterday. You know what I'm referring to of course: those problems or challenges in your life that seem to stick to you like a leech on skin - they are obvious and painful and often unwanted (except of course you fall into that peculiar category that love "leeches")

Often times the greater challenge for us is the WILL to face the day and give it the "rude finger" - this is of course not to say that our problems magically disappear after this so brief moment but rather that we generate the attitude required to stay ahead of our problems and situation.

I love to read quotes of people who have defined their fates and destinies and have a few words to say on the subject - each has demonstrated a personal philosophy that seems to summarize the "ATTITUDE" required to hold life by the short and curlies regardless of how it seems to look to you right now.

By way of introduction, i give to you a few wise words from: Maya Angelou (pronounced /ˈmaɪ.ə ˈændʒəloʊ/;^[1] born Marguerite Ann Johnson on April 4, 1928)^[2] is an American autobiographer and poet. (quote from: Wikipedia)

(Once again these quotes are not mine and i make no claim to them except as a means to buttress my point of view)

Find below a few of her quotes - find in them something that resonates within you and maybe this will set you towards that which we all seek - freedom to be as we are destined to...

• We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.
• I can be changed by what happens to me. But I refuse to be reduced by it.
• There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you.
• There is a very fine line between loving life and being greedy for it.
• The ache for home lives in all of us, the safe place where we can go as we are and not be questioned.
• Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.
• I want all my senses engaged. Let me absorb the world's variety and uniqueness.
• If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude.
• Courage is fear that has said its prayers.
• Talent is like electricity. We don't understand electricity. We use it.
• One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.
• I know why the caged bird sings.
• "I've learned people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel".
• History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, however, if faced with courage, need not be lived again.
• When you learn, teach. When you get, give.
• The need for change bulldozed a road down the center of my mind.
• Life loves to be taken by the lapel and told, 'I'm with you kid. Let's go.'

The crime is not when we stumble and fall for without stumbling/falling where would we be on the ladder of life's experiences - the crime is rather when we stumble/fall and chose to stay down in defeat - take as much time as you need while on the ground but when you get up - PLEASE GET UP!

when you are not "YOU"

Funny title but one that rings true in alot of our lives.
When do we cease to really be ourselves?

Is it when the expectations made on us by circumstances and situations cause us to live outside our comfort zone - how do we even know "WHO we are"?

How can we tell what we really represent - what we really desire?
When is the you who you are currently not the real you?

Why do we wear so many faces? What are we really here for?
What do we really want in our quest to live life to the fullest?

In this regard I will introduce you to an note sent to me by a colleague (for the fear of legal action: I AM NOT the author of the attached piece and make no such claim) - the words of wisdom spoken in true context - to be taken in the dose required.

Written By Regina Brett, 90 years old, of The Plain Dealer, Cleveland , Ohio.
"To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me.
It is the most-requested column I've ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more:

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.
3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.
5. Pay off your credit cards every month.
6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.
8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.
9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay check.
10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.
11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.
12. It's OK to let your children see you cry.
13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.
15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.
16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.
18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.
19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.
20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.
21. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.
22. Over prepare, then go with the flow.
23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.
24. The most important sex organ is the brain.
25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.
26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this matter?'
27. Always choose life.
28. Forgive everyone everything.
29. What other people think of you is none of your business.
30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.
31. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
33. Believe in miracles.
34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.
35. Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.
36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.
37. Your children get only one childhood.
38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.
39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.
40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.
41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
42. The best is yet to come.
43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
44. Yield.
45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift."

I hope this means something to you - particularly as we live through this journey we call life.