Thursday, December 30, 2010

With and Without

Do you know what life is like to be with? How do you even know if you're living with? Before those questions are answered you must first understand the concept of living with and living without. The definition of living with is defined as one's ability to maintain the most essential of needs for true human existence, these essentials are broken down into five (5) fundamentals:


1) Compassion - is defined as an ability to not only understand the situation of another individual by metaphorically placing yourself in the same situation.


2) Confidence - is well known to many people but very misunderstood as well. Confidence is the drive that allows a person to perform a task or assignment under varying conditions,


3) Knowledge - is more than having information, but the ability to correctly interpret and utilize said information


4) Kindness - more than an extension of compassion, kindness is what allows us to be charitable and go beyond the call of duty. Compassion without kindness is possible as you can correctly place yourself in someone else's shoes but not feel anything for them.


5) Determination - is the overall driving force behind anything that we do, without it nothing is accomplished as we will not want to even make a basic attempt to commence a task.





So now that you know what living with is supposed to be, ask yourself, how many of these five (5) items do you honestly possess? I'll make life a little easier for you since you're still unsure and break them down even further. People with real compassion are those who allow themselves to suffer in the same situation as another for the purpose of lending assistance to alleviate the person's suffering. To have true compassion for someone, you must be able to utilize emotions to cause healing. Compassionate people are those who are able to see the troubles of the heart and act to ease those troubles willingly and without needing rewards in return. So if you want to know if you are compassionate, ask yourself, when was the last time you did something for someone without asking for reward or favour in return? At this point in time you should consider that people who live with this trait are some of the happiest people on earth and some of the more fulfilled. They are the ones who seem contented with what's before them and ask only that they can help more. Charity is no strange word for these people and even if it means that they must suffer a little for someone else to gain then so be it! So ask yourself seriously are you living WITH compassion?

So you're now sure about the first step, but what about your confidence level? Don't be fooled by the simplicity of the word, real confidence is always subject to interpretation. While the general meaning of the word is agreed upon, behavioural scientist have made a more focused definition and it is from this perspective where we shall look. A person's confidence is their ability to perform a given task with the understanding that their capabilities and talent is able to accomplish the said task without fear or failure. Confidence allows you to commence a project or initiate a conversation comfortably and sensibly. So how much confidence do you possess? Do you believe that you can accomplish all that you seek to do? Do you believe that you're able to even live up to your basic expectations? Are you even remotely sure that you can live with yourself and accept the talents that you were blessed with, or do you spend too much time wishing that you had the talents and abilities of someone else? Answering these questions honestly will go a long way in knowing whethere you truly live with or without, but just in case you're confused think of it this way, bandits who steal for a living are not confident in their ability to live an honest life nor their own ability to put their minds to work.



Knowledge is by far one of the most coveted of all human desires. In every aspect of our lives we try to learn as much of what we need to for various reasons so that we can in turn apply what we learned to accomplish a task, this transition from learning to practical is what knowledge is all about. Given that definition, ask yourself, how much knowledge do you possess in your life? Do you believe that the knowledge you have now is of any benefit whatsoever? Most of all are you confident that you even have the knowledge to succeed in life? Then there's kindness, a trait that I know for a fact many people lack because of the evil that we see in this world today. People who live with kindness are those who see no fault in assissting another human being in a time of need without expecting a reward in return. Compassion and kindness are very much connected but it is kindness that leads to compassion and compassion that drives kindness. One without the other is only half of a story so it is almost grammatically incorrect to say you are compassionate but unkind. Think about the last time you did something kind for someone other than yourself, whether it be family, friends or even a random stranger. A world with more selfless kindness is a world blessed by the almighty indeed, it's too bad that most people can't answer this question honestly.

Finally there's determination, to which if we lack it then we have no motivation whatsoever to accomplish our goals. Determination is our drive, it's the backbone to all of our motivation and comes only from within our beings. Living without determination is more than living in fear of the world, it's being trapped within a prison within ourselves that we built and threw away the key. Determination in even the smallest amount can mean the difference between happiness and a life of despair. Think you have determination, well ask yourself this, if you were on the street with no where to live would you still seek to make something of yourself in life?

If you've even made it to 2 out of 5 of these must haves in life then consider yourself to be living with, although barely. Strive hard to be better people and empower yourself by living with and not without.

Vive sin timore

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Sammy The Bull

So some of you don't know or have never heard of Sammy The Bull, can't say I'm surprised but it's still a shame that such an important name in history is missing from your knowledge collection. Well to give you a brief introduction Sammy The Bull Gravano; he was the second in command of the legendary Gambino crime family back in the 80's working for the likes of John Gotti. Their rise to power came from shameless murder and unbridled greed when Sammy aided his boss/ friend to slaughter the reigning mafia boss Paul Castellano. In time to come Sammy would be the downfall of his boss John Gotti by providing the key testimony that sent him to jail for life and giving the police victory over the mafia itself. The truth of the matter is that Sammy and John were practically inseparable for many years, before his ultimate betrayal he aided John in many great escapes from the long arm of the law doing everything from rigging cases to murdering rivals and bribing government officials and law enforcement.

You would think that someone that close and that loyal would be near impossible to turn but it was done. Sammy's motivation was that he heard a tape from the F.B.I. where John was planning to incriminate him in multiple crimes in an attempt to save his own life from jail. The purpose of this blog is to remind us that we shouldn't treat those who are close to us like John and Sammy treated each other even though we do it everyday! Think about how many people you were once good with and would give the world for and now you don't even speak to or can stand to look at because of some unforgivable act that occurred between you. Even worse, think of how many people have done that to you over the years and why such behaviour is now warranted! At the end of the day, it's pointless to say we have never or would never commit such treason against our loved ones because the truth of the matter is that we not only do it daily, we do it subconsciously and without hesitation! Even I'm guilty of such actions and looking back on it, it really is a violation of how we're supposed to live! Recently I thought of how many people have passed through my life and their level of importance to me at the time, some were as valuable as oxygen and some not so much. The thing is though that even though they may have served their purpose in my life at that time, most of them I barely speak to or worse dodn't even acknowledge due to a lack of forgiveness on my part because of some evil they committed against me and that's wrong. We were born to forgive and forget but somehow we've managed to forget to do both and yet we ask the creator to forgive us! It's sad to think that after all the trouble we go through to meet and greet people, we dismiss them so easily and sometimes for the most frivilous of reasons. Don't try to exclude yourself from this because I'm very sure you had a very good friend who once slept with your lover or tried to and didn't succee, what about the friend who was such a bad friend that they forgot to call you on your birthday and you were so upset that you couldn't be seen in public with them. Some of us have even worse reasons such as those who were disrespected by a friend and vowed to take their blood, and those of us who abhor friends who talk to your other friends and for this they are out of place and should be put out to graze. No matter the reason, the bottom line is that you haven't forgiven them and as such this makes you as bad as Sammy The Bull, for it was such actions that cost him his life and his family a comfortable living.

Sammy The Bull is a notorious snitch who brought down a trusted friend for his own distrust and unforgiveness. It's shocking to think what his life would have been like had he not listened to the fake tapes the feds made him listen to. Makes you wonder how many fake stories made you disown someone who could have been a life changer in the future, or what about the loads of gossip you listened to that not only destroyed your respect for a friend but where you yourself snitched on that person and caused them many a great distress? Yes we're all guilty but at least if we can look back and see where we went wrong we can become better people and live peacefully by not behaving like Sammy The Bull Gravano.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Strength and Courage

Sometimes the road is hard, things seem as if they'll never go your way! Questions circle your head asking if you've made the right decision creating doubt no matter which direction you go,but deep inside you know you're strong, if you follow your heart you can't be wrong. Stand up for what is right, be brave and get ready to fight, hold on to your true friends throughout your life, these are phrases that have been repeated in many forms and fashions, from religious interpretations to philosophical understanding, all will agree that it is via these phrases the average human grows and evolves.

In order to know that you're strong enough to make it begins with a little thing called faith. Faith is what allows the best of us to be who we are really, if you doubt me then let me take you on a journey through time to some of the greatest minds that ever graced the earth. King Solomon and his father the legendary King David, both men are beyond immortal in their accomplishments on this earth, these feats were only bested by their faith in god. From slaying giants to building impossible palaces and sharing widespread wisdom that is relevant even to this day, these men have done it all. The thing is that even they had their moments of doubt where they had to turn to their faith in god in order to accomplish all that they needed to do. So there's your first and foremost answer to life's questions, faith in god! Admittedly even I didn't understand what that fully meant until recently when I was reminded that to not have faith in god's ability to deliver is to question his very existence and you wouldn't want to do that now would you? Of course not, that's blaspheme so make sure you understand that faith in Jesus and all that his great power is capable of is mandatory to overcoming any situation. After that it's important to have a plan of action, feel free to pray about this as sometimes we must ask before we know where we have to go, no point in going on a road trip without a map! You are as blessed as anyone who has ever existed and carry the power of the almighty within you to control and manipulate all that is before you, so how come with all that power you're doubting that you can raise a child dear friend? Yes liz this is specifically for you as I honestly believe that for someone as powerful and blessed as yourself, you carry that pharisee spirit of doubt and despair! It's called a pharisee spirit because these were what the pharisees of old time used to turn support away from Jesus himself! Please understand that you've not only received a blessing dear, you've been given an opportunity, you're now charged with raising a new warrior in the fight against evil and it is your job to lead by example as to how it should be done.

Circumstances exist so that we can be moulded to be the people that Christ purposed us to be serving his will! To highlight this, pay attention to the following parable I once read about; a father weary of his daughter's complaints about how tough life was put three (3) pots of water to boil and placed the following items in each pot, a carrot, an egg and some coffee beans. The daughter now curious questioned the purpose of the father's exercise but he told her to be patient, 20 minutes later, he turned off the fire for all 3 pots and asked the daughter to taste the carrot, she loved them, they were soft and tasty, next he asked her to crack the egg, this she also did and loved the newly hard boiled egg below the shell, lastly she tasted the coffee at her father's request, she fell in love with the aroma alone and readily drank a cup. Once more she questioned the purpose of the exercise to which the father responded, life is like a pot of boiling water which we all must be placed in to be prepared properly, some people are like carrots which start out hard and solid but after being boiled become tender and soft, wilting under the heat, some people are like eggs, initially seen as having a soft inside and overly fragile, they become hard and lacking substance, but some are like coffee beans who when boiled turn the water into something so tasty that the whole world loves them and enjoys the fruits of their labour.

The question is my dear, which one are you sugar?
Beware the Earthbound Immortal Timidus

Monday, December 6, 2010

Fearing Success

We all face it at some point in time, on the verge of making a huge breakthrough in life and then we choke. After all the hard work we put into achieving our dreams, when the day comes to actually reach out and grab it, we hold back, fear grips us for some inexplicable reason, all of a sudden we have millions of excuses why we suddenly can't reach out and take what's ours. If you think that this will never in a million years be you, I'm sorry to say but you're in denial. Think I'm lying then here's the proof; how many situations have you been in where you had an ideal opportunity to acquire something valuable and didn't take it? It doesn't have to be anything major all the time, even something as simple as someone gave you a skip in line, offered to pay your taxi fare, even if a family member attempted to assist you and you had every excuse written and spoken as to why you "was good and go make?" Well that my friend is having a fear of success at the most basic levels of life.

The fear of success is quite simply the fear of attaining anything better for ourselves. No matter how many twists you put on it, withholding yourself from achieving the rewards of hard work, a good deed, or even a random legal opportunity to acquire something to your benefit are all signs of fearing success. Now don't lie to yourself here, be honest, you're guilty of it in more than one aspect of your life. If you still need convincing after all of that then let's get personal, so you're in a relationship with what you would term a "great" person, they've got all the signs of your version of a perfect relationship and you're ready to take things to the next level, with one exception, for some inexplicable reason, you can't convince yourself that it's the right thing to do. All of a sudden, you find faults with your "perfect" match, next thing you know you're suddenly unsure if you even want to commit, why you're with the person or where you want to go with the relationship. It becomes inconceivable that you are even considering settling with this person who was once so perfect and unmatchable. Think that can't be you? Well consider how many relationships have failed in your life because of some petty reason that even you can't explain. It could be something as simple as a disagreement with tastes in life, style of clothes, or even their status in life wasn't where you expect it to be at that point in time. Think about what was so bad about the person then that you just couldn't commit despite all that you thought was so glorious about them before, because chances are it was your own fear that made you run. That feeling in your stomach that you just can't go forward because things are too good to be true is also known as a fear of success. Another good example would be those of you who are absolutely fed up of your job and curse daily about how you would leave at the first opportunity you get, when that opportunity does come along now, you back track because the conditions and terms are not the same as your previous job! What about those of you who save money to move and own your own home, find the home of your dreams and just because you have to wake up an hour earlier to get to work you don't take the house and lose out? Yes you are also victims of this very unfortunate but prevalent disease, you're no better than those who quit school and never start again because they're afraid they'll quit again or those amongst us who never even try because we're convinced that if we do we'll fail.

This fear is self sabotaging and quite frankly destructive to wider society as people who suffer from this disease spread it to others as panic and despair. Such is the contagious nature of this disease that even a shred of it is enough to shake the foundation of the best of us. So now that we've established that you're a definite fellow sufferer, let's see what we can do to fix this mess. You've already gotten past step one which is acceptance that yes you really do have a problem, the next step is to address the source of the fear, i.e. what is it that you're afraid of and why it scares you. To find this answer you must be completely honest with yourself, so if the situation is one where you're about to embark on a career changing job and you're wondering why you're reluctant to move then the following reasons maybe holding you back, 1) a fear of job security, 2) meeting new people, 3) adjusting to a new lifestyle that you may be unfamiliar with or dislike, 4) adjusting to the job itself and 5) leaving your established routine. All these are genuine reasons for being afraid and it only becomes harmful when you do not acknowledge that you have a situation to address. It gets worse when you not only deny that you have a problem but you spend time actually trying to suppress the fear and replace your will to fight with excuses and stories about why you just can't make it, after that you self implode into a pile of unrecognizable rubble known as depression and doubt. Whether you're of christian faith or not given a spirit of fear but of courage and valour in god, but if you don't recognize that you're actually afraid then you won't know that you should fight now would you?

The worst part about fearing success has to be the implications on wider society, people fail to realize how powerful a contagious disease can be, it begins with one person and then as they come into contact with others, those who don't have the strength of faith and character to fight the fear find themselves agreeing with it and falling into the same circle. Just the other day I ran into a gentleman who has the world of financial worries, he has a house to fix, car to maintain, child to see about, a girlfriend to maintain and a job that doesn't even pay for gas, I offered this guy a similar job at a much higher rate paying more than double what he making and he didn't accept it because he was afraid that if he did basic exercise he would faint and never recover from the embarrassment! He managed to infect at least three (3) other people with that disease and demotivated an entire team of soldiers because of his actions. His situation is a blatant example of a fear of success untreated, he's spent years underachieving and never doing anything to better himself. He always had an excuse as to why he can't go further and when he is provided with a blatant way out he runs away because he never learned to have the courage to succeed. Think in your own life how many times this has happened to you and how you reacted and then ask yourself if you acted with courage

People we need to realize that there's no shame in being afraid, there's no harm in admitting that you need help to go forward. We build walls to keep others out and to hide ourselves from the pains that scare us, but think about it, what are we really hiding from? I once built a fortress around myself because I was afraid that everytime someone gets close I'll be hurt. Well I have news for you, no matter how you try you're always going to get hurt because even if you hide yourself behind a wall of titanium, the time will come when you'll be banging your own head against it to escape, makes you wonder who's really been hurting who all along doesn't it? Beware the Earthbound Immortal Timidus