Inspiration: "Go Forth"

Happy Friday, good people.  So is it just me, or are TV ads becoming deeper than they were before?  Perfect example, this Levi's commercial which features the poem "The Laughing Heart" by Charles Bukowski.  Check it out:

See also the actual poem below:

your life is your life
don’t let it be clubbed into dank submission.
be on the watch.
there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.
be on the watch.
the gods will offer you chances.
know them.
take them.
you can’t beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.
your life is your life.
know it while you have it.
you are marvelous
the gods wait to delight
in you.

-- by Charles Bukowski

I've found some other good ones that I've found out there, but this is a good one that gives us something to think about as we head into the weekend.  I hope you enjoy it...the poem and the weekend...both are good times.

Cheers,

JIP

Monday Morning Inspiration: The True Meaning of Life

"We are visitors on this planet. We are here for ninety or one hundred years at the very most. During that period, we must try to do something good, something useful, with our lives. If you contribute to other people's happiness, you will find the true goal, the true meaning of life." -H. H. The 14th Dalai Lama

JIP's Ramblings: I Can't Complain

Happy Wednesday, good people.

Oftentimes when I speak to someone and they ask how I am, I respond with, "I can't complain". The beauty of this phrase is how true it is...I really can't complain. Are there things in life that I wish were different? Sure. Am I perfectly content with my life? Not exactly. But you have to put life into perspective: when I look around and see how things actually are compared to how much worse they could be, it's extremely humbling.

It's so easy to get wrapped up in our struggles and lose sight of the larger picture: life can always be worse. If we spend our time worried about how much is wrong with our current situations, we miss out on the blessings that we currently have. How's that saying go? If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's we'd grab ours back. Yeah we would.

Speaking of everyone else, the success of others is no reason for us to complain. We often only see the good things that happen to/for other people and either don't know or ignore the struggle and hard work that it took for them to get their reward. My favorite part of the Desiderata (which everybody should read) states, "If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself". The goal here is to improve your own life, not be concerned with someone else's good fortune. Like Diddy said, "Don't be mad...be motivated"*.

*I swear to you that this will be the only time that Diddy will ever be quoted on this blog.

The reality of life is that everything will never be perfect; that's not a realistic situation. But the goal here is to have the good in life outweigh the bad, and that's largely within our control. So despite life's imperfections, you'd be hard-pressed to hear any complaining from this guy.

Cheers,

JIP

Monday Morning Inspiration: "See It Through"

Happy Monday, good people.  You know, as much as I like to ramble on here, sometimes the words of others far exceed anything that I'm capable of coming up with.  Case and point, see below:


See it Through

When you're up against a trouble,
Meet it squarely, face to face;
Lift your chin and set your shoulders,
Plant your feet and take a brace.
When it's vain to try to dodge it,
Do the best that you can do;
You may fail, but you may conquer,
See it through!
Black may be the clouds about you
And your future may seem grim,
But don't let your nerve desert you;
Keep yourself in fighting trim.
If the worst is bound to happen,
Spite of all that you can do,
Running from it will not save you,
See it through!

Even hope may seem but futile,
When with troubles you're beset,
But remember you are facing
Just what other men have met.
You may fail, but fall still fighting;
Don't give up, whate'er you do;
Eyes front, head high to the finish.
See it through!

Edgar Albert Guest

See what I mean?  Thank you, Mr. Guest.

Cheers,

JIP

Inspiration: Find Your Greatness

Mr. Cool Man

Good people, let's be originals in a world of clones.  Why?  Because we don't want to be like Mr. Cool Man here.

Fighting for relevancy,
I know you all see the kid.
I’m still the man,
I’m what the business is.
I feed off your affection,
Your attention keeps me going.
As long as the people need me,
My heart beats, my blood keeps flowing.
Nothing lasts forever,
So I’ll one day die,
If the people love me for long enough, however,
When death comes, I won’t question why.
I just want to stick around, keep my name in your mouths,
I love my artificial coolness.
Yeah, that’s what I’m about.

Enjoy Life's Ride

Happy 4th of July, all.  Before I start eating a ridiculous amount of food today, I had a random thought: the beauty in life lies in the ride that it takes you on.  The fact that things are ever changing and you never know what will be thrown at you, that’s what we should be enjoying.

It happens to all of us from time to time that we harp on the few things in life that are not working out as we planned, while we completely overlook and take for granted the things that are going amazingly well.  Is your relationship heading south?  That’s (possibly) unfortunate.  But are you in good health?  Do you have friends and family that love you?  These are things that we can’t and shouldn’t take for granted.

The fact of the matter is that life will never be perfect.  I’ve never known anyone who no longer has wants and desires in life.  Instead of looking at that as a negative thing, how about we use that as motivation?  Because it is not perfect, we always have something to work towards...as long as we appreciate the good things that we have going on.

It all comes down to the fact that there is a larger plan that is at work for all of us.  For those who know the Desiderata, my favorite line is: “And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should”.  As a glass half full type of person, I believe that the issues that we are faced with today set us up for greatness in the future, as long as we let them.

Hopefully this means something to somebody on this beautiful Independence Day.

Cheers,

JIP