Investing Talents

Do the despondent get what they want in life? No. People typically have to get to a better place in their lives before things start going their way. You don’t just go from 40mph in reverse to going 120mph in a forward trajectory — otherwise you’d grind the gears and slam into your seat with your neck all twisted. You gotta slow down, stop going backwards and get to neutral, then look forward, put it in drive and proceed at a reasonable rate.

But how can you get to a better place in your life if you’re feeling dejected? Well, stop going in reverse for one. Stop criticizing. Stop doing what losers do. Do negative people win? No. Jesus even had a parable about this:

A guy gave his underlings some money to manage while he was away. One underling received 5 talents, another received 2, and the last received 1. When the guy returned, he checked in with the underlings.

The first and second underlings doubled the money they received whereas the third underling simply hid the money away and gave it back. To the first and second underlings, the guy gave even more because of the good job they did with what they were given. But the guy took the 1 talent from the third underling and gave it to the underling that already had 10.

Then the guy said: He that already has, more will be given — but from him that lacks, what he has will be taken! In fact, throw that loser out!

What this means to me, is that no matter what you receive, you have to invest it in the world and get some sort of return from it. If at the end of your life you simply hand yourself back after hiding the entire time — you’re gonna be in deep doo-doo. Even the underling with 2 talents did what he could with what he had, making the guy proud.

By the way, the guy already suspected what the outcome was going to be, that’s why he handed out different amounts at the start. And that 1-talent underling was so negative that he even insulted the guy as he’s handing him back his money, calling him a hard-ass. The 1-talent underling then received the poor treatment he expected and was tossed out.

In other words: if you expect a hard life, you’ll get it. Wishes do come true, so be careful what you wish for. Whereas those that trust in life, completely investing themselves in it, will receive the abundance they believe in.

And if you do find yourself despondent, the trick is to stop focusing on all that you don’t have, creating a mindset of negativity and lack. To go from loser to winner, you’ve got to appreciate what you have right now. And from that appreciative mindset, you’ll be in a position to welcome-in the good things of life instead of rejecting them whenever they’re presented to you.

If you keep running away scared every time life tries to give you something, how can you ever get anything!? The first rule of “Life Club” is to trust life. If life was truly a hard-ass you wouldn’t be gettin’ away with that everything-sucks attitude you’ve been sportin’. In actuality, life keeps on giving — you just keep on rejecting.

So now what are you gonna do? Step 1: Trust in the goodness of life. Step 2: Appreciate all the awesome things you’ve already received. Step 3: Graciously and gratefully welcome all the stuff life continues giving you.

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Origins of Reality

From where does reality originate? From outside-in or inside-out? Are we but ignorant creatures exploring a mysterious world that gradually reveals its truths as we laboriously decipher them? Or are we literally creating our reality as we live it, a dreamlike experience that manifests for our ever-observing consciousness?

If an external reality existed, we’d expect our observations to align with those of every other observer — yet they don’t — interpretations of life often vary. Are our senses so flawed that they allow for analyses that are so different? Therefore, even if an external reality exists, we clearly lack the mechanism to accurately analyze it.

We can reason then, that even if an external reality exists, we’re incapable of obtaining a factual picture of it. Instead, everything we experience is an interpretation based on limited and likely-flawed data. So even from a physical-world standpoint, the reality we know essentially originates from the inside-out.

But is it more than that? Could it be that reality actually begins within the consciousness and projects outward onto a canvas we call the world? The concept isn’t so far fetched of course, as we regularly experience something similar in the form of sleep-based dreams. Yet who’s to say that what we perceive while awake isn’t also a dreamlike experience?

The point being, how much does our attitude and what we project affect the world we see? Does a turbulent mind cause us to experience turbulent circumstances? Do we always find exactly what we seek? And if we tame the turbulence, do the stormy seas subside, allowing us to smoothly walk upon the still water?

Tis Better

An excerpt from the fictional tales: Defender of the Christmas Faith

It’s often touted that it’s better to give than receive. Yet to become a giver there must be a receiver — therefore we should not place judgement upon either party lest we involve ourself in a game of spiritual hot-potato, always trying to give away what lands in our lap. We must graciously and appreciatively receive, lest we insult the giver.

In fact, Christmas is very much about receiving. For God so loveth the world, that he hath given his only begotten Son. Who are we, mere mortals, to give anything? We have nothing but what the Creator provides, we’re simply swapping the things we don’t own amongst ourselves. Truly, the only thing we can give is our thanks.

Believe not the naysayers proclaiming that some must lose for others to win. We’ve all already won. Don’t listen to lackers that believe in the finite, peddling their nonsense of limitless limitation. Doomsayers have plagued every era, yet the good times have kept on rolling. Why should we presume the fun will stop in our generation?

Christmas is a time for miracles, a time for receiving gifts we don’t deserve. When I fill out my Christmas Wish List, it’s full of items that stir delight. When I think of Christmas, I imagine thrilled hearts rapaciously tearing apart wrapping paper — I hear squeals of glee as long sought toys are finally in hand. What we’re experiencing through receiving, is joy.

Therefore, let us not shun this merriment, but embrace it. Let us lift our cups high in celebration of the season, a celebration of life itself, displaying our wholehearted appreciation for the gifts we receive. Let us wish the best for others and hope they receive their heart’s desire, but let us not forget our own enjoyment as we are part of the all.

As it is said, “Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!”

Wind and Waves

Believing that I’m a single perspective of an infinite being means that arguing has become pointless — I’m really only bickering with myself — what’s the point. Now when argumentative opponents present themselves in my head, I don’t engage. It’s nonsense that I don’t need. I’ve stopped wrestling with paper tigers of my own design.

Minds don’t need to be changed, people are just players in a grand narrative. But it’s dreamlike in that my mind will see what it wants, forming patterns to fit my interpretation. If I want a fight, I’ll find it. If I foretell a bad-day, I’ll have it. If I truly seek the calm seas then my mind must be stilled first.

Childlike Delight

The disciples came unto Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, and said, “Verily I say unto you, except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”

What’s the difference between a child and an adult? An adult believes himself in control, tasked with full responsibility for his own well-being, believing himself knowledgeable and experienced in the ways of the world. Whereas a child believes he’s not in charge, has no responsibility but to play, and is always looking to extend the fun-times. A child knows he doesn’t know everything.

The difference between a child and an adult is the seriousness in which each plays. An adult simply loses the variety and levity in his playtime, selecting narrowly focused games while wearing the same costume daily. The adult imposes severe limits on his abilities and the available outcomes. The adult attempts to maintain a strictly logical course of events. The adult thinks getting to the end is the point and rushes accordingly.

To be as a child, is to be playful, unrestrained by self-imposed boundaries, freely imagining the best to come. It’s to know there’s no actual end-goal but the act of play itself. To be as a child is to realize one’s lack of control and overall ignorance within the world — to exist despite one’s feebleness, thankful for being well-cared for. To be as a child is to be inclusive of others, inviting them to play, sharing the fun. It’s to extract enjoyment from each activity and interaction, to smile and laugh.

Magical Mountain

“Unleash your power! Let go Jean! Jean let go!” — Professor X

Within the human narrative, there is a common theme of pent-up power. Crushed beneath a giant, energy of the seemingly weak finally surges, building until unleashing as a shockwave of supremacy. The so-called mighty fall at the hands of the formerly meek — after all, was it not said: they shall inherit the earth?

Themes such as this litter our landscape. So tell me again how random this world is? No, it’s as scripted as a book. Just don’t look too closely or you’ll spoil the surprises. It’s a funny thing to consider of course — yet, where would we wander without pre-cut paths? We’d be hacking through thick brush, lost while banging into trees.

It’s a comforting thought you see. They that mourn shall be comforted. Those seeking righteousness shall be satisfied. The merciful shall obtain mercy. What we seek, we shall find. It’s all there, written in plain sight for us to see. But the unrelenting captivation of daily life holds our attention too closely to consider the actuality of our situation.

But when we just keep staring, severing connections to the scenes, constraining ourselves to see only the pixels, we can perceive it — the fiction before us. And by understanding this artificiality, our power flows. “Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.”

Spirits from Beyond

I was just reading the first part of the 1843 story A Christmas Carol, and found the chain metaphor an interesting one. Scrooge’s deceased partner Jacob Marley was wrapped in chains he forged for himself through earthly endeavors. He toiled ceaselessly in his business and thus wore the fruits of his labor.

As Jesus said: No man can serve two masters: for either he shall hate the one, and love the other, or else he shall lean to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and riches.

And in the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna says: At the end of time, he, who having abandoned his mortal frame, departeth thinking only of me, without doubt goeth unto me; or else, whatever other nature he shall call upon, at the end of life, when he shall quit his mortal shape, he shall ever go unto it. Wherefore at all times think of me alone and fight. Let thy mind and understanding be placed in me alone, and thou shalt, without doubt, go unto me.

It’s interesting to think we’re creating the chains in this realm that we’ll carry into the next. It reminds us to heed the focus of our time and energy lest we carry a burden we wish not.

At the very least, if we’re to carry chains, we should forge them from the things we adore. Yet in spiritual lore, the goal is to remove the bonds entirely. And we do that by detaching from the fruits of our labor while we endeavor.

We perform action not as a wretched creature lost to life, but as a master actor fulfilling his role on stage, aware of an ever-present audience, and joyfully performing the part we were meant to play.