Day 239 Question 239:

What is one goal that motivates you?

I am motivated by so many things.  Lately I have felt stressed because of so many changes that are happening but I deal with the stress….I would like to think I deal with it quite well.  One particular thing that has been motivating me a great deal lately is the upcoming 5k I am going to participate in on October 20^th.  This is my first 5k ever and I am officially registered so there is no backing out.  I am not a great runner.  I may have to walk some of it but I am trying my hardest to improve every single week.  I have an app on my iPhone called Couch to 5k and I have made it to week 5 (it is a 9 week program).  There are days I struggle more than others but my inner determination amazes me.  Even through the sweat pouring down my face and the urge to throw up I tell myself over and over again that I CAN do it.  The belief that I can’t is untrue.

There are times I feel like throwing in the towel because my body aches or it just feels like I don’t have the talents or skills that other people have.  It isn’t about comparing myself to others though….it is knowing that even if it takes a little bit longer than some other people, I can do it!  The belief that I am capable of doing anything I want is what motivates me.

Day 237 Question 237:

 What message do you want to share with your friends, your family and to all of those willing to listen?

 I have a very hectic weekend ahead so I wanted to leave you with something that I found so very fascinating.  If you are anywhere in my age range (33 years old) or slightly younger or older you will remember the image on the left.  This haunting image was on the front of National Geographic in 1985 and has floated around in various media sources ever since.  Theimage on the right is the same girl all grown up.  I have inserted the piece I found regarding these photos and I found it to be so very interesting.  I speak of these different places in the world in which people live under horrific circumstances.  I speak of them but I am unable to imagine ever being a part of a world like that.  People question why I expose myself to readings and images that depict such horrific poverty and violence and I tell people that I have to.  I have to in order to remember all that I am thankful for and because I was not born to be happily ignorant.  Awareness is necessary in order to help make situations any better (if only a little bit).  I am unable to turn my head and act as if these things do not exist because they are not happening to me personally.  People will always say that we have plenty of violence and wrongdoings and the need for assistance in this country, why would you focus on other countries.  I am happy to be an American and I feel lucky that we do not have the violence and war on our soil that other countries do but as long as I have air in my lungs I do not belong to anyone….I am not owned by the United States just because I live here.  I belong to the world.  It may sound silly to some but I view all people as equals regardless of differences.  I cannot just focus in only one area when there are millions of opportunities to learn from people and places far outside of my reach.

I leave you hear with stories in images in hopes that you will seek more knowledge yourself.  Even the most violent of images can be beautiful when they are acknowledged.

A LIFE REVEALED

She remembers the moment. The photographer took her picture. She remembers her anger. The man was a stranger. She had never been photographed before. Until they met again 17 years later, she had not been photographed since.

The photographer remembers the moment too. The light was soft. The refugee camp in Pakistan was a sea of tents. Inside the school tent he noticed her first. Sensing her shyness, he approached her last. She told him he could take her picture. “I didn’t think the photograph of the girl would be different from anything else I shot that day,” he recalls of that morning in 1984 spent documenting the ordeal of Afghanistan’s refugees.

The portrait by Steve McCurry turned out to be one of those images that sears the heart, and in June 1985 it ran on the cover of this magazine. Her eyes are sea green. They are haunted and haunting, and in them you can read the tragedy of a land drained by war. She became known around National Geographic as the “Afghan girl,” and for 17 years no one knew her name.

In January a team from National Geographic Television & Film’s EXPLORER brought McCurry to Pakistan to search for the girl with green eyes. They showed her picture around Nasir Bagh, the still standing refugee camp near Peshawar where the photograph had been made. A teacher from the school claimed to know her name. A young woman named Alam Bibi was located in a village nearby, but McCurry decided it wasn’t her.

No, said a man who got wind of the search. He knew the girl in the picture. They had lived at the camp together as children. She had returned to Afghanistan years ago, he said, and now lived in the mountains near Tora Bora. He would go get her.

It took three days for her to arrive. Her village is a six-hour drive and three-hour hike across a border that swallows lives. When McCurry saw her walk into the room, he thought to himself: This is her.

Names have power, so let us speak of hers. Her name is Sharbat Gula, and she is Pashtun, that most warlike of Afghan tribes. It is said of the Pashtun that they are only at peace when they are at war, and her eyes—then and now—burn with ferocity. She is 28, perhaps 29, or even 30. No one, not even she, knows for sure. Stories shift like sand in a place where no records exist.

Europe’s a soft touch for the world’s most dangerous terrorist

Now that Osama bin Laden is at the bottom of the ocean, a new man has emerged as the world’s most dangerous terrorist: Qassem Suleimani. Although unfamiliar to most in the West, he is responsible for killing many thousands in cold blood – and masterminding the murder of more Americans than any other person on earth.

Suleimani heads the Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard – the nerve centre of its global terrorist network. Working with Hizbollah in Lebanon, he has plotted, attempted and executed mass murder in dozens of countries.

The centrifuges spinning in Iran are dangerously close to providing these ruthless global terrorists with a nuclear arsenal and protective umbrella. Yet instead of pulling out all the stops to prevent this, Europe is opening its own backyard as a playground. In particular, the European Union continues to define Hizbollah as a charitable and political group, not a terrorist organisation. This is no less ridiculous than describing the Mafia as a chamber of commerce or the Ku Klux Klan as a gentleman’s social club.

While Hizbollah continues to promote extremism and strike targets in the heart of Europe, it has free rein to raise millions from supporters as if it were the Red Cross. Its European rallies attract thousands. Its operatives have ample space to inspire, recruit and train future terrorists. Last month, Hizbollah and Iran carried out the deadliest terrorist act in Europe since 2005, blowing up a bus of Israeli families on holiday in Bulgaria. When asked if this might prompt a change in policy, one EU foreign minister said: “Should there be tangible evidence of Hizbollah engaging in acts of terrorism, the EU would consider listing the organisation [as a terrorist group].”

Tangible evidence? Iran and Hizbollah have slaughtered scores of men, women and children in bombings from Argentina to Saudi Arabia to Bulgaria. They have ruthlessly targeted US servicemen, killing hundreds in direct attacks – such as the bombing of a marine barracks in Lebanon in 1983 – and many more through proxies in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Suleimani and Hizbollah’s head, Hassan Nasrallah, continue to take extended vacations to Syria, where they serve on Bashar al-Assad’s Advisory Board, telling him how to butcher his people more effectively – and directing their own forces in the murder of Syrian civilians. The plots extend all the way to Washington, where their operatives recently planned to murder the Saudi ambassador at a restaurant frequented by members of Congress.

While the EU does somersaults trying to explain its position, Hizbollah’s leaders have no illusions about the importance of maintaining this fertile ground. By using and abusing European democratic processes, courts and civil society, they have a base to launder their drug profits from around the world – and a perch to win over vulnerable Europeans to poisonous extremism.

Nasrallah recently admitted that being on the European terrorist list would “destroy Hizbollah”, drying up sources of financial, political and moral support. You only have to look across the Atlantic to see how such a policy could yield dramatic results. Recently, US prosecutors announced that they had seized $150 million of Hizbollah’s cash – nearly half of its estimated annual budget. Imagine the impact the EU could have if it struck at the organisation’s financial base on this continent.

During the battle against the Nazis, Churchill said: “We must be united, we must be undaunted, we must be inflexible.” As it confronts a global, state-backed terrorist network within reach of nuclear weapons, the world must heed that advice. The greatest single danger to global peace and security cannot be confronted with loopholes and half-measures. It is time for the EU – and all responsible nations – to respond meaningfully to the magnitude of the threat. The lives of many innocents hang in the balance.

Pakistani Christian girl accused of blasphemy to be freed from jail

Rimsha Masih to be released after bail hearing is told Islamic cleric tried to frame her on charges of burning Qur’an pages

The Pakistani Christian girl who has been in police custody for more than three weeks after being accused of desecrating the Qur’an is to be released from prison after a judge granted her bail.

Rimsha Masih, who is thought to be 14, has been at the centre of an international furore over Pakistan’s blasphemy laws.

But in a bail hearing in an Islamabad courtroom on Friday her lawyers argued that she should be released, in large part because a mullah from her neighbourhood had been accused by colleagues of attempting to frame her on charges of burning sacred texts.

They claim the cleric Hafiz Mohammed Khalid Chishti planted pages of the Qur’an in a bag of burned refuse that Masih had been seen carrying through her neighbourhood on 16 August. She lives in an impoverished near-slum on the outskirts of Islamabad where a minority community of Christians live.

Lawyers representing the man who originally claimed to have caught Rimsha carrying what he thought were burned verses from Islam’s most holy book tried to block the bail.

Rimsha’s legal team responded by saying they were using “hyper technical arguments” to try to challenge the paperwork of the bail hearing.

The prosecution also attempted to undermine a medical board’s assessment that Rimsha was legally a minor and that she was “mentally slow”. Rimsha’s supporters have long claimed she has Down’s syndrome.

A decision on whether she will have to stand trial will be made after officials have finished their investigation into an affair that has cast unprecedented light on Pakistan‘s notorious blasphemy laws, which have been widely abused over the years and can carry the death penalty or long jail terms.

Ali Dayan Hasan, the Pakistan director of Human Rights Watch, said the organisation welcomed the court decision and urged the government to guarantee her security.

“The fact is that this child should not have been behind bars at all,” he said. “All charges against her should be dropped and Pakistan’s criminal justice system should instead concentrate on holding her accuser accountable for inciting violence against the child and members of the local Christian community.”

He said the organisation hoped the case would “lead to a considered re-examination of the law”.

However, most analysts say reform, let alone repeal, of the decades-old law is highly unlikely as the country gears up for national elections.

Day 236 Question 236:

How much (if at all) should schools and the government be involved in children’s/youth eating habits/nutrition content?

If you know me and have read my random thoughts throughout this blog then you already know that I think government has far too much involvement in people’s lives.  We have built this system that is supposed to “protect” the people but it has grown so large that it now determines people’s every little move and decision.  Maybe that is extreme to say but sometimes I feel that to be true.  Yes, childhood obesity is becoming a HUGE problem in this country but I question how much involvement the government should have in determining what people are putting in their bodies.  It does not take a rocket scientist to know that eating any fast food (supersized) is not the healthiest choice but shouldn’t it be the choice of the consumer to decide what they want to do to their bodies…even if that means potentially having high blood pressure or diabetes?

I support school involvement when it comes to teaching health and nutrition.  There are many households where parents don’t or are unable to teach kids about healthy eating and the importance of staying active.  Yes, I believe it is part of their job but sometimes even adults haven’t been thoroughly educated on the subject so how can we expect them to educate their children?  I guess I look at society as a little warped sometimes.  To be healthy does not equate to being skinny or having the “perfect” rock hard body.  To be healthy means to be free of diseases and to have your body function in a normal, healthy manner.  Society does not depict health this way though.  We are constantly having images of super models and athletes in our faces that promote diet pills and intense workout programs to get that flat, six-pack stomach.  Unfortunately, this is not a reality for a huge part of the population.  The perception of what beauty is has been warped and skewed by the media.  Our bodies are our temple and yes we should treat this temple with great respect but life does get crazy sometimes and we sometimes abuse this temple.  I always say life is this great balancing act and our individual health is part of that balancing act.  There are opportunities EVERYWHERE to educate ourselves.  I do not believe it is the responsibility of the government or schools to force us/teach us everything that there is to be known about eating healthy and practicing a healthy lifestyle.  We do not need things handed to us and done for us when we have the ability to seek out knowledge.  If I could afford it I would be a student for life….I would seek out every differing opinion that I could to see what fit best for my life.  I have come to truly learn that life is about finding what comes naturally to each and every one of us….what our internal system is telling us is right NOT what everyone else is telling us is right.

I guess the way that I see how government has grown and how much it has been invasive in people’s lives, I have been left with a sour taste in my mouth.  It saddens me to see young girls (and young boys too) hold their heads down in misery because they loathe their bodies.  They are seeing images on TV and they long to duplicate those images…when in truth a great deal of those images have been altered.  What goes on on television and what goes on in real life very rarely go hand in hand.  As with most things, I don’t have the answers because this world is so much bigger than me.  I do wish that we had a government that was not so money and power hungry and instead focused on the happiness of the individual and the family units.  I wish that if the government were to be involved in national health that they would offer programs to educate as oppose to just making decisions for the whole….if someone wants to eat fast food every single day that should be their decision.  I came into this world all alone and I will leave all alone, I do not believe that the government should tell me that I cannot have a supersized meal if I want it.  This however is easier said than done though because with this raises so many more questions of what the government should be involved in.  I see government as this entity that has so much potential for good but seems to only be using their “power” for evil.  I guess with an election right around the corner I tend to go on my political rants…hahaha.  I believe that the human being is the most sacred thing in the world.  I believe people should try their hardest to practice the healthiest lifestyles they can but I do not believe they should HAVE to.  When people are forced to do things I believe that humanity becomes a lot more lost….we lose individuality.  I know there is also much debate about health care when it comes to people’s weight and medical issues.  Again, I do not have all of the answers.  We are a money driven world (not just country).  Money is a necessary evil for survival.  I understand taxpayers not wanting to pay for uninsured person’s that have chosen not to practice a healthy lifestyle.  It is a double-edged sword.  Where are the limits…what rules and regulations should be implemented that protect and help the people but do not take away their rights and their individuality?  I truly believe that education is the key but delivery is so very important.  We cannot make people feel guilty for their weight, their size or their body shape and expect them to want to hear a lecture about the importance of healthy eating.  We have already damaged far too many people in this world by making them believe that skinny=successful.  We need to motivate with words of encouragement and allow people to truly see and believe their own potential.  We need to teach people that skinny and healthy are not always the same thing.  We need to teach people that differing body sizes, shapes, types are what makes the world diverse and beautiful and it is only ignorant to see it any other way.  Again, this is me looking at the world through rose colored glasses.  I just believe that if the government MUST be involved in the health of individuals (i.e. what they eat) that they really need to choose their words and their methods wisely.

Day 235 Question 235:

Are envy and admiration bad or good things?

With almost any concept we can put a negative spin on things.  Many people see envy as being such a sin and in some cases it can have some very negative affects but if viewed in a healthy manner, both envy and admiration can be very positive for a person.  I envy and admire people with large families that have so much love and have close bonds…the families that spend a lot of time together and come together for Holidays and special occasions.  I do not have a family like this.  I have a couple of people I am close with but not the extended family I sometimes think about.  I envy this but I do not resent those that have that…instead I choose to build my own family.  Family does not necessarily mean that we have to be related by blood….family is those that come together and love each other without question.  Family are the people in your life that you would do anything for and hope for their happiness more than anything.  Yes, I wish my family that was related by blood was like this but we are not so instead I choose to change the whole concept of family to meet my needs.  That may sound selfish but I do believe everyone needs family in some form or another.

We hear the term green with envy and the concept seems to take this greedy turn.  Envy is viewed as a sin because people that are envious want what others have.  I can understand if people do not have their own identity that this may become an issue but I also don’t see envy as such a horrific thing either.  There are many qualities that people have that I am envious of….people with artistic talent that seems to come so naturally, people with musical abilities that they had since childhood….I envy those that have a gift that they were born with.  We were all born with gifts…it just takes more time for some than others to discover our gift.  Maybe I am crossing more into the territory of admiration more than envy.  Either way, I do not believe either concept should always get such a negative reputation….through both of these “emotions” we are finding ourselves.  Through envy we discover what we want in life and through admiration we strive to be better (well hopefully for most people this is true).

I realize that the world is so much bigger than me and sometimes I try to see everything through rose colored glasses.  I realize that some people can take envy to an extreme and lose complete sense of self.  They no longer live for themselves but only strive to be just like someone else…they want things thinking it will make them happy.  I have said it time and time again…life is this great balancing act.  You never want to fall too far outside of yourself…to an unnatural place.  What could make someone else happy may not have the same effect on you.  With envy, I believe when we feel this we are meant to learn…we are meant to see what is important to us and to decide how to handle these things.  Being envious does not mean making a snap decision.

I chose this topic today because while surfing the great world wide web I stumbled upon a youtube video of two young boys doing a cover of Jason Mraz’s new song.  I was absolutely blown away.  I felt immediate admiration because these young boys are developing their natural talents and sharing them with the world.  At their age it could be very easy to not take anything seriously, but they have a gift and they are sharing in…and I am sure they are sharing in hopes of obtaining success.  I felt envious of their (obvious) natural talent but I also admired them for it all at the same time.  My envy did not make me feel like I was less talented or special….it made me feel proud for these boys.  They have a gift…a natural talent and that is such a beautiful thing.  There is nothing that bothers me more than seeing people waste great talent (but that is easy to say without knowing people’s circumstances).  I guess the more I write the more I see how envy can lead to destructive ways….when envy leads to other things such as jealousy that may potentially just end in a downward spiral.  With envy there needs to be awareness in order to keep it on a healthy level…but that is strictly my opinion and something that may not be easy for everyone.

I wanted to share the video of the young boys below so others could see their talent.  I admire children and youth that have natural talent and also those that do for others before they do for themselves.  I believe some people are born with natural abilities and as strange as it may sound some of those abilities include seeing the world outside of themselves….seeing the importance of empathy and compassion.  My envy and admiration toward these qualities drive me to try to continue on my quest to do better for myself and for others.

Day 234 Question 234:

What do you find to be unprofessional? How have you experienced it?  Have you ever been unprofessional yourself?

So my current roommate, myself and a girl friend of mine have decided that we are going to rent a house together.  We are all single so it is much easier on our wallets to do it this way.  I currently live in a nice condo but we are looking for something bigger so the search has been underway now for a couple of days.  We found this beautiful condo online that was posted to a realtor’s website.  We wanted to schedule an appointment to see it right away.  So, yesterday I called the office of the realtor and left a voicemail.  I saw that he had his cell phone number listed too so I thought I would be aggressive and call his cell phone too.  His phone rang but it went to voicemail so of course I left a voicemail.  Not even 2 minutes later I get a text message from him saying that he passed my number onto the owners and someone should be calling me soon.  Well there was no phone call from the owners.  So this morning I sent him a text telling him that the owners never called and should I call them directly.  He responded saying that they ended up renting it to the first person to call.  Ok, first off, what professional person responds through text and secondly, he was not even going to contact me to let me know the place was rented out.  Now I love me some texting I will admit but when it comes to professional business or anything dealing with my condo, my car or anything business-oriented, I always pick up the phone.  Does this sort of thing happen a lot and I am still living in the dinosaur age?

The current property manager that I have (which some of you may know is the daughter of the devil…she actually may be the devil herself) absolutely refuses to call and will only do her “job” via email.  If I were to call her she would not answer but instead shortly after I would receive an email from her.  She and I have gone head to head a few times because this woman is as unprofessional as they come.  In her last email (before I refused to have any more contact with her) the subject line read: Next time fix it yourself.  Every email she has sent has been filled with misspellings and she has insulted both me and the OWNERS of the condo.  I have no idea who raised this woman but if they are still living they should hang their head in shame.

I have a huge pet peeve with people working in the customer service field (or any field in which they deal with the public) and they blatantly act like you are inconveniencing them.  A couple of years back my mother and I were going to have a garage sale so I went to the bank to get change.  I went up to the counter and asked the girl for quarters…..I was asking her to do HER JOB!  This girl literally rolled her eyes right in front of me and said “hold on” in a very annoyed voice.  She brought me some quarters and turned and walked away.  I assumed that she was finished the transaction and just didn’t want to deal with me anymore (for whatever reason I do not know) so I turned and headed out of the bank.  In a complete bitchy voice the girl yells, “Un excuse maam, I am not finished here.”  I’m sorry but your lack of any communication with me and blatant ignoring me indicated that you were.  When the transaction was FINALLY finished I left the bank and in moments I was on the phone to her manager.  I NEVER call places to complain.  I do understand people get stressed and some may have bad days but this girl’s behavior was so beyond over the top.  This was hands down the most unprofessional experience I have ever witnessed or been a part of.

I will admit that I am not always perfect in work situations but treating someone like they are lesser of a person or that they were a complete inconvenience would NEVER be an option.  I am sure that my attire was not always suitable or that I may have said something I probably shouldn’t but I am absolutely amazed at how some people hand business or professional settings.  How do these people keep their jobs or get jobs in the first place?  I have met people in different settings that have absolutely no filter or no couth and I always wonder how they even made it through the interview process and who is the doorknob that hired them???

This entry wasn’t meant to be a big bitchfest, I guess sometimes I still get shocked over how unprofessional some people can be.  This morning I called 2 realtors about 2 properties that were just listed online for rent and left voicemails.  I am curious whether or not I will receive calls back.  If not, I question why they are even trying to rent the place in the first place????  Even if it has already been rented (just like a job), I believe a courtesy call to tell me that is the right thing to do.  Am I being too picky about this???

Day 233 Question 233:

What is your stance on politics/politicians?

I sometimes question whether or not I am living life all wrong.  I sometimes wonder why I am constantly plagued with nervousness.  I question myself and sometimes I doubt the things I do and I say.  I have never been a person with extremely strong convictions or the type of person to say what is on my mind whether or not it hurts someone’s feelings.  Life is not simple by any means.  There are so many things to figure out and I have figured out that for many years I was trying to fit a mold…I was trying to be what other people wanted me to be.  It dawned on me how unnatural that was and how I could no longer do that.  It sounds like it should be an easy transition but it is not.  Accepting oneself fully is not always an easy task.  I get angry sometimes and sometimes my words hurt me and other’s words hurt me.  I sometimes have no idea how to react or to respond to situations.  I am the outsider in my family in that I do not think or act like anyone in it.  That does not mean that I do not love the people in my family and that does not mean that they don’t love me….there is just difficulty in being part of a family where it feels like no one is able to relate.  What feels so very natural to me is striving for people to come together as opposed to being driven apart.  I absolutely detest what our government has become and I feel that family values have been sinking at a rapid pace.  I tend to be very liberal while the rest of my family is very conservative.  I don’t think they are wrong for being conservative just as much as I don’t think I am right for being more liberal.  This is so hard to explain.  I am a dreamer.  I am a person to question everything because I am unable to see set answers and certainty in anything.  I just want to dig deeper and I want to see as many sides to every single story and issue that I possibly can.  Yesterday I was talking to my dad about war and how I can’t wrap my brain around how we have become such a violent world in which killing is so acceptable and even expected.  I don’t understand how people can take other’s lives with such ease.  I told him I don’t think that war and battle is the solution…it is just instigating bigger problems.  I even said that as naïve as this might sound, that I am unsure if there is a God or a higher power but a part of me believes that if there is that he has given us all of these different issues and challenges to see how we respond and we have failed as a population.  Instead of working together and learning from each other and loving each other for our differences we have become divided.  We have chose to fight each other because of our differences instead of looking for solutions that could benefit all parties.  My dad told me (and I know he wasn’t trying to be mean), that sometimes you just have to use common sense.  He was basically implying that my thoughts were just a pipe dream and we are already in this state of war and have been for so long that I need to just accept it.  That breaks my heart.  I have a hard time accepting that I live in a world that is continuing to become more violent…a world where people only look out for themselves.

The last couple of days have been challenging because I have been hormonal.  When I am hormonal (oh the joys of womanhood) my emotions go into overdrive, my sensitive level is peaked to the extreme and my thoughts come nonstop.  My mom had me watch the clip of Clint Eastwood at the Republican National Convention yesterday and by the time the loooong 12 minutes were over I wanted to slam my head against the table.  She wanted me to watch the clip of Mitt Romney’s son next.  I told her no thank you.  She looked at me and said, “You don’t care.  Your generation just doesn’t care about any of this stuff.”  My mom is my everything but those words were like a stab to the heart.  I care about everything….I feel like sometimes I care far too much.  Of course this triggered an argument because somehow my mom knows exactly when to pull the trigger when I am hormonal.  I didn’t want to watch the video because I find politicians at this time to be absolutely disgraceful.  The way that they can point fingers at everyone else for their wrongdoing and throw slander all through the media makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.  Politics has become (well I am sure it has always been) so corrupt.  I didn’t want to watch another clip of someone just saying what a shitbag Obama is…just the same way I wouldn’t want to hear Obama talking about Romney being a useless pile of shit.  I have a hard time believing anything that politicians say anymore because politics has become such a competition and a game.  There is so much he said she said and no taking ownership of mistakes.  Mitt Romney can say that this country belongs to the people but does it really?  Does every person in this country have equal rights?  I think we know the answer to that.

Call me naïve if you wish but my feelings are what they are.  I do not know every aspect of politics that there is.  I am not well versed on all of the issues.  What I do know is that it is sickening to see grown men bash each other in the media in front of millions of viewers and these are the people that are supposed to be our leaders, our mentors our role models.  Political parties don’t even try to work together to come up with some solutions….they instead just try harder to point out what the other party is doing wrong.  I don’t have the solution to anything I have talked about.  I wish I did but we have evolved into this and I am not sure if there will be a change….at least not a change in which people come together instead of further apart.  What I choose is to do my part wherever I can.  I choose to show love and teach love.  I choose to ask questions as to why people think and do as they do….not out of judgment but out of pure, genuine interest.  I choose to help whenever and however I can.  I am not the perfect person by any means of the word.  I go back and forth with my thoughts and feelings all of the time but I try my hardest to see life outside of just myself and honestly (as unbelievable as it may be to some) there is nothing I want more than to do for others.  If I could do for others over myself each and every single day I would….I would because there is nothing more rewarding.

I wish I could explain myself better but what I feel is sometimes impossible to put into words.  Having the passion that I do is sometimes unexplainable….it is my true self.  The person I sought out for so long.

Day 232 Question 232:

What do we ALL need to be reminded of sometimes?

This morning I viewed a video on youtube that I had to share with my readers.  This video is a reminder that we all need in life sometimes.  The reminder that life is so much more than us as individuals….life is beautiful and sad and torturous.  These photos allow us to see more clearly what is taking part outside of our own little worlds.  These are photos that remind me how lucky I am for the love that I have from my family and friends and the opportunities I have been given.  They remind me that my mission in life is to help others…whether it be by doing something big or something small (a simple smile or a large humanitarian deed).  Every once in a while we need to be faced with what is going on in the world outside of us….so we can learn and love just a little bit more.  I believe it is these images that help people truly learn what compassion and empathy really are.