Posts tagged inspirational
For many of us,
this year was like a shotgun blast to the chest.
Young lives came to an abrupt end. Relationships we’d fought long and hard for had reached their boiling points. Jobs we’d broken our backs for showed little gratitude for our efforts. While others were posting Instagram photos of their perfect relationships, delicious food, and posh lifestyle, our income trudged miserably towards debt.
I like ending blogs with a quote. Something that neatly ties together all the sporadic musings I’ve pedantically scribbled across my digital notepad.
But sometimes I’ll find a passage—a cluster of calculated paragraphs that simply cannot be condensed into a cute, bite-sized “Tumblr quote.” Its words so precise, so potent, so packed with meaning, that to add any additional commentary would only pollute its author’s intent.
Five years ago, I stumbled upon one such passage. Its words marked the first day of the rest of my life…
The Social Network is an intentional fable. An exaggerated tale of Facebook’s origins that is meant to reveal something very important about our own lives.
The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart.”
— Elisabeth Foley
Seth Godin - Facebook & Fake Networking
Ten Commandments
Last week was my fat-faced goddaughter’s christening. But instead of buying her buckets of baby clothes I thought I’d take the “cheesy” route and write her something heartfelt and meaningful — a list of Ten Commandments she’d be forced to read and follow all the days of her life.
01: Don’t ask questions, SEEK answers. It’s easy to “question everything.” Any idiot can do that. So be different. be patient. Wrestle with difficult questions and don’t be afraid to face the answers (even if they are sometimes just as difficult as the questions themselves).
02: Don’t “use up” your free time. USE your free time. Because time isn’t there for you to “kill,” but for you to LIVE.
03: Don’t confuse love with respect. Love is free, respect is earned. This means you can always “be there” for a person without feeling the need to “trust” or praise them immediately.
04: Don’t be too open-minded. Be selectively close-minded. History’s greatest minds are composed of individuals who knew the importance of drawing the line SOMEWHERE.
05: No dating till you’re forty! Or at least make sure your dad approves first. Believe it or not, he’s not picky because he’s protective. He’s picky because real men can spot a douchebag from a mile away.
06: Don’t always do what is safe or easy. Rather, do what is RIGHT. Because sometimes, what is right, is neither safe or easy.
07: Don’t be afraid of pain, sadness, or discomfort. Be friends with them. Because living a life full of meaningful stories will require that you experience those very things OVER and OVER again.
08: Don’t always eat out. Take time to learn how to cook healthy crap. Otherwise, you’ll end up fat (like your uncles).
09: Don’t be “nice” just so people will like you. Kindness is a GIFT. So give it willingly, without expecting anything in return. What you’ll learn is that authentic kindness is not only life-changing for those you share it with, it’s also contagious.
10: Don’t take yourself too seriously. But DO take God seriously. People who confuse these two things, usually end up self-centered with some false sense of “entitlement.” So learn to laugh at yourself and be grateful to the One who fills your lungs with life and MIRTH.
The funny thing is, regardless if you love or hate these “Commandments,” it won’t make a damn bit of difference if WE — as parents and godparents — don’t set the example. So my REAL gift for you, my beautiful goddaughter, is that I am choosing to keep these Commandments myself (except for the “no dating” part). I promise to live a life WORTH your respect and emulation. Because as the old saying goes,
“While children have never been very good at listening, they’ve always been great at imitating.”
Everything Happens
- P: It's like what they say, "Everything happens for a reason."
- B: Oh boy.
- P: What?
- B: I've always hated that quote.
- P: Wait, why?
- B: The quote implies that every bad thing is supposed to happen. That every bad thing serves a greater purpose. That it's all part of "God's wonderful plan."
- P: And you disagree?
- B: Well, if that quote is true, it suggests that some men are supposed to rape. That some women are supposed to cheat on their husbands. That some kids are supposed to be abandoned by their fathers. Hell, I once drove my car into a giant mound of dirt because I was singin' Backstreet Boys out loud and lost sight of the road. Do you think that was part of God's plan?
- P: Haha. No.
- B: The truth is, I don't disagree with the quote. Everything really does happen for a reason. And sometimes the reason is...
- P: We're stupid?
- B: E X A C T L Y. Don't get me wrong. I do believe that God can take our stupid mistakes and use 'em for good. But the truth of the matter is, you don't have to murder to know murdering is wrong. And I don't need to leave my wife to realize her value. Those are decisions we make because we stop listening. Because we stop learning.
- P: Hmm. I'm glad we had this conversation.
- B: Well, it's like what they say, "Everything happens for a reason."
- P: Lame.
