That All Too Familiar Feeling

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, and perhaps I travel with rose colored glasses, because I see it everywhere. It is so under appreciated, the value of observation, though we use it constantly. We notice so much without even thinking, body language and the like. It surprises me sometimes when I realize how far it goes. Even the location of your thumb when you have your hands in your pockets can indicate different things. It is incredible the minute details we find and interpret automatically.

My point is this: It doesn't matter. What matters is that you behave according to who you are, not what they want you to be. Life isn't about proving you are someone, it's about showing the world who you are. It's too short to go around pretending to be something you aren't. I see it a lot, and I've been guilty of it. However, I've come to realize it's pointless, you can't avoid who you are, it's always there, in your shadow, following you wherever you go.

Sounds creepy, and it is, always will be until you take off the mask and reveal the real you. Because in all honesty, the real you is the best. If I only ever did the things that made me comfortable, I probably wouldn't do much, because it's when I'm out of the comfort zone I can have more fun, and experience the new. I would never have been able to say I've slept in a hotel tub if I had stayed in my comfort zone, or said I'd carried a passed out drunk into housing so we wouldn't get into trouble.

Life experiences are important, not just for the stories they tell, but for the knowledge that they bring. It is an honor and a privilege to know the people I have known, for the experience they have given me so far. My life goes on, and I hope many more stories and experiences will come out of it. I'm tired of "What if's" in my path, because it makes things so complicated. Sometimes it's good to question the logic of things, but not everything. All too often I have stopped myself because I wonder about the end result, but where is the fun in that? 

Easter

Having just recently watched The King's Speech and The Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader I feel there are a few things there needs to be said about perseverance. It is an outstanding quality of character, and often leads to grand results. In addition to that, perseverance is the after affect of courage. It takes courage to jump out of an airplane skydiving, but it takes perseverance to do it more than once. We face challenges every day, each one fitted to our experiences.  The important thing is rising to that challenge, people notice when you handle challenges and challenge yourself.

I have difficulty with challenging myself sometimes, especially if it seems to me like it's an impossible task. Of my many flaws, it is part of the more serious ones. As us men like to quantify things, I have categorized my flaws in terms of severity. That, however, is not interesting enough to list  here on this post. In fact, these posts have mostly been about how crappy I feel about myself, which is silly, because I have to accept who I am. It seems so much better to be accepted for who I am rather than who they want me to be. Sometimes I forget that, "An open mind is like a fortress, with it's gates unbarred and unguarded."  Too many bad things get in without resistance.

The strength of character is measured by the individual in the performance of every day, because that is the best test of character, how we perform daily, not just when it counts. I get so carried away with monotony of work, video games, information, and various other factors that I forget what is important in life. God, family, friends, country, then everything else. I am a man of faith, but my faith is not always focused in the right directions. It has been too long since I sat in a house of God, and it makes me sad that I have not maintained a solid relationship with my Lord and Savior.

So this coming Easter Sunday I have in mind to do what I can with what  I have, because I need to.I call on you, dear reader, to help me in this endeavor. Sunday morning, send an Easter message to your friends and family, via Facebook(tm) or whatever communication device you can, nothing fancy, just a "Happy Easter" if you like. Without further adieu, I bid you goodnight, Happy Easter, and God bless us, everyone.