Month: September 2017

Just a Rant

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“Terrible wars have been fought where millions have died for one idea – freedom. And it seems that something that means so much to so many people would be worth having.”

-Robin Williams, Bicentennial Man

This movie came out in December of 1999 and was not a big hit but the tone of the movie still speaks volumes even today. I encourage you to watch it and see it Robin Williams character Andrew is able to move you. Some of the lessons in the movie and some of the quotes/speeches could apply today.

So many times we are divided as a people in this world. One simple truth is that we are all the same species. You can argue race, religion, origin or creed but you can not argue the simplicity that is what we all are. One species divided among each other over the differences. The answer is simple for peace and true freedom it is called respect. I don’t necessarily just mean respect toward one another but self respect as well. We as a people can never fix any of our problems with out fixing ourselves first. I was talking to a friend today and he is a conspiracy theorist and sometimes can fall deep in the rabbit hole but something struck me today that made sense. We for the longest time as the free world have placed ourselves in the center of so many world conflicts that it should be no surprise that we have made enemies. While we sit at home and watch our sports, our real house wives, our Kardashians and try and keep up with what dumb shit our president is twitting about while over half of our nation is effected by natural disasters we fail pay attention to what is happening in the rest of the world. Sure we here between programming or see things pop on our Facebook news feed about North Korea, Japan, Iran and Russia. We faintly hear about the bombings in Europe and the mass destruction caused by natural disasters in Mexico but we still are focused on our America. Each of us live a different America but feel protected and sheltered from the outside noise. Do we ever stop and think maybe those countries are fighting for their freedom from us. No we may not occupy their lands but it’s hard pressed to say our influence has not changed so many countries world wide. Maybe its time to leave well enough alone and just close up shop and be self sustainable for awhile. Maybe we do not realize how much we rely on the other countries. Maybe we do no respect ourselves enough to respect others. I am not into politics and my opinion is just my own. I am not looking to cause an uproar or begin a movement. I am just concerned that we as a Human Species are just fighting a battle to see who survives at the end when in all reality if we had any respect for ourselves and each other we could probably all survive together for many more years to come. There is an end to this world as we know it and we have allowed too many personalities to be in charge of the potential end and how close it can come. Life is precious and we should all want to hold on to life as long as possible. Put aside the differences and respect other Human Beings. We are all the same species whether we like it or not…….

 

Goal over Expectations

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In my previous post I wrote about teaching goals over expectations to my son and I would like to elaborate….

A goal is a desired result or outcome that a person envisions, plans and commits to achieve.

An expectation, which is a belief that centered on the future, may or may not be realistic. A less advantageous result gives rise to the emotion of disappointment. If something happens that is not at all expected, it is a surprise.

I have set many goals in life and when I have applied myself through a plan and really committed I have accomplished my said goals. I have also set many goals in which I have not accomplished due to lack of commitment and resolve.

I have lived part of my life with expectations for myself and expectations I have had for others. Many times letting myself down as well as being felt as if others were letting me down.

I have also experienced the euphoria of having something unexpected happen.

So why goals over expectations? A goal can be changed and altered. A goal requires a thought  processes in which we plan out, commit too and work towards accomplishing. We are able to control our goals because they are ours to plan and alter as we see fit.

Expectations on the other  hand have too many variables. To expect anything is in itself a ridiculous thought of entitlement.  If all through life you expect that this, that and the other is done for you and that fails to happen the disappointment is sure to make even the sweetest person sour. Why live life through expectation just to be let down. However, when working to achieve something through setting goals and having something unexpected happen in your favor is an amazing feeling but I caution you to appreciate the moment a continue on trying to accomplish the goal you have set.

Do not go through life with expectations of yourself or others and you will not be disappointed. Set goals for yourself to accomplish and be happy when unexpected things happen. Take advantage of any opportunities that may come your way and seize them as you see fit but remember the goals you set. Think things through but never expect.

Thoughts

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While driving through the semiarid plains in Texas for work my mind drifted to an early time. Now it could have been because I was thinking of my young son and the challenges he faces going to a new school and being the “new kid” or as often as not it could have just been some unknown trigger that had me thinking about being a kid again. Either way I began drifting in and out of random memories.

My biggest challenge as a father is finding a way to teach my son from the many lessons that I have learned in life. I look at how I was brought up and the different things both my parents taught me. I am humbled when I think of how they at times struggled to provide for our family and somehow we as children never really saw this struggle. I also look back at growing up and realize the huge differences between how I was raised verses by brother and even verses my sister. I was the oldest sibling in the household so I experienced the struggle of having nothing all the way through to the struggle of having something. Either way it could be written it was a struggle. My mother taught me to love and be caring toward others. My dad taught me to stand up for myself cause nobody else would. They both taught me that if I wanted something I would have to work for it because things would not be handed to me. It was tough love from both sides and as sensitive as I was on the inside I learned quickly to internalize.

What could I teach my son from what I have learned over the years…

I will teach my son goals over expectations

I will teach my son love instead of hate

I will teach my  son that each decision we make has different challenges and consequences and to think it through before making choices

I will teach my son not to regret but to embrace the decisions that he makes and take responsibility for his actions

In the end I will teach my son as much as I can based on the knowledge that I have acquired over my years of living but what I can not teach is how to live life. We are given two things when we are born into this world the first is life and other is the certainty of death. We spend several years under our parent watch being molded to view life a certain way, to live a certain way and then we reach an age where we have to make a decision on what we want to do with our life. At a certain point it becomes our life, full of uncertainty with so many blank pages to to written on. I can not teach my son what to write for his story. I can only support him when he needs a friend and be there when he needs a father. I am excited to watch as he journeys through life.