evolution

Small Steps – Every Day

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I used to get frantic trying to do everything at once.  Worried to the point of becoming stressed, even about the things I could not control.  It took me a while to realize that there is “time for everything under the sun.”  I had read that many times, but never grasped the deep significance the phrase had. 

We go nuts multitasking and running around trying to get everything done.  In the end, we feel burned out and unhappy, the colors of life lose their brightness, and there is no music to our day – just the hurried stomps of our feet as we run like robots without a cause.

It took me a while to realize that small steps everyday accomplish a lot.  Sometimes, even the best antidote against procrastination.  Small steps everyday take you closer to your dreams and goals, and let you feel and see some progress.  Today, I don’t run with the pack, I take small steps, but surely, and everyday – I am happier that way.

Just Be

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What would happen if we allowed ourselves to just be?  To do as we genuinely felt and not as we tought we would look better in front of others?  What would happen if we acted by true care as opposed to having to care?  I think we would be happier, and only give the best of us to others by just being. 

Being genuine to yourself entails being true to others as well as your own self.  It is applying the golden rule.  Many times, we covet the ideal lives of others – the successes that we view as perfect lives – without realizing that the only way that we can meet a fullness of life is if we just be. 

When we embrace ourselves, our creativity, our spirituality, and our physical state of being, along with our lives, we are in the path of becoming what we are to become – of being as real as we can be – of fulfilling our purpose as human and spiritual beings.

When we write, many times we worry about rules, about sounding like our favorite best-selling author, or about setting writing goals according to somebody else’s standards.  However, we forget one important thing, that life, goals, writings, and anything else that goes with it, will not mean anything if they are not centered and meant for the true self and its true purpose. 

 Just be and the rest will follow is a good way of approaching life, but in our way to letting the true self shine, we can strive to better each day by asking ourselves – Am I letting myself be?

Show Up to Life

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Many times we think that life is hard enough, specially when things are not going our way.  In an “instant society,” we expect fast results and want things to take shape right away.  In writing, it is the opposite, patience is a virtue, and the slow mode of speed seems to have two lower sub-modes.  Many talented writers give up early, when they don’t see fast results proportional to the hard work they put in.  It is discouraging; however, when you love what you do, you never know what hanging around just a little longer will bring.

Life is like that too, no matter what you happen to do, or be, if you want to beat the “instant expectations” and hang in there, just show up.  Show up to life – show up to write every day, show up to be a parent, to be a doctor, a teacher, you … just show up to life and things will start taking shape.

Giving Through Creation

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Have you ever read something and felt alive, inspired?  Have you listen to music that has captured your soul, and touch every fiber of your heart?  Read a poem or looked at a painting that transported you to unexplained heights?  All these are examples of creations.  We are human, but also spiritual, and the need to create is embedded in us; it is our spiritual nature.  We give to others thru our creativity, we create to inspire, to please, to entertain, to love …

My spiritual path has been one of investigation and of finding the divine thru a non traditional approach.  In order to find true spirituality, I had to put aside everything that I have learned about it, and start fresh, with the intention of finding my true spiritual path.  It has not been easy, it still is not; I keep learning every day.

We all have a purpose, it is up to us to find it.  However, there is creativity on each one of us.  Divinely inspired I have learned that creation is like water, it gives life; it is the fountain of the spirit – the myrrh of the soul, the soul’s path to spiritual closeness.  It is contentment and happiness for our souls, and we can find it by being happy where we are, by listening, and be perceptive to our spiritual awareness.  When we feel happy where we are and we make happiness an internal issue, separate from outside circumstances, we are receptive to the divine and we fuel the creative forces within our soul.  This is how we give to others and we bless our surroundings with our soul’s creations.  By giving back we thank the Great Creator.

And how would a Creator see its creation?  How do we feel when we create something that we are so proud of?  In the eyes of God all his children are good, in the eyes of the man, the children are limited by the limits they establish themselves.  To God, there are no limits, and his children are precious – more precious than the treasures of the Universe.  When we give back through creation, we are acting thru the same love that made us.

Doing Things Lovingly

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Life has its ups and downs.  Many times we run through life at fast speeds in our effort to get things done.  After all, it is a society of doers, of achievers, and doing the opposite would attract some frowns and judging, right?  Doing is good, but sometimes, our doing becomes robotic, lifeless, dutiful, and boring.  We don’t enjoy the things we once did because they have turned into stale routine.  We go through life as “zombie doers” without realizing that the magic has left our hands, and our hearts wish for excitement in our endeavors.  However, maybe the magic is still there, and what happens is that we have stopped doing things lovingly.

Doing things with love and passion is in every one of us.  It is up to us to enjoy each moment and dedicate attention to the task at hand – no matter how menial it seems to be.  Washing dishes by hand can be transforming when you start feeling the soapy water, the fruity floral scent of the dishwashing liquid, and hear the squeaky sound of a clean dish.  Somehow, this menial task becomes alive, engaging all your senses.

This is what doing things lovingly means – to enjoy the task at the moment, or to pay full attention to it, to be mindful for the duration of it, and to be thankful that you can do.

Writer’s Wisdom 51

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Respecting your character’s background

Your characters will evolve throughout the story or a series.  They will naturally evolve and will become deep and complicated; their personalities will start showing more strength and charisma.  If you are attuned to your characters you will respect their evolution in your writing.  A character that was bubbly in the beginning of the story, but has gone through a lot of heartache and difficult situations as the story progresses should not be presented in the same way – the situations that you create for your characters will permeate their personalities and modus operandi.  Ignoring that important part, will result in a lack of credibility and will make your writing appear fake.  Readers interact and identify with your characters, they feel what the characters feel.  If a reader does not “feel” a character, he/she may get discourage and stop reading or lose interest in the story.

By being true to your characters, you are engaging the readers and respecting them.

Have we become a better race?

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Are we doomed to destruction or have we become a better race?  What do movie genres have to do with it?  Read on.

When we think of science fiction, we think of the future and all kinds of things that can become possible.  The sci-fi world fascinates us, as it stretches our imagination as far as the times go.  The present time determines the type of science fiction that we experience.  Today’s sci-fi is more challenging that it was 20-40 years ago.  Old school fiction has become today’s reality.  If you ask a teenager to view an episode of old school Star-Trek, he/she might not be as impressed as many teens were many years ago.  This is because a lot of these gadgets resemble many that we currently use.  So what is there to fascinate him/her?

Our minds have learned to evolve as our future becomes more technological, and our responses to a particular movie genre, have too.  I doubt if a person taken from the 1930-50’s would be able to handle viewing today’s horror movies.  Will this person be prepared to handle the quick scene movements, the explicit bloody scenes, strong language and all that stuff we love to be scare by, these days?  I don’t think that mentally, emotionally, and physically this person was ready.  He/she could possibly end up at the emergency room with a series of physical symptoms, close to a heart attack, and possibly, emotionally marked forever.  In a sense, technology in the movies has made us strong, maybe even detached.  Does that mean that we are less sensitive to violence?  Maybe, or maybe not.  We just don’t scare that easy anymore.  But we still seem to condemn violence in our society.

Today, some old movies seem too slow in scene movement.  We have become used to handle fast speed in action, sci-fi and horror movies.  Our lives move at high speed as our technology does, too.  We have become like cyborgs, in that sense.  We process huge amounts of information (our brains have acclimated) and handle visual stimulation faster.  Just think of what a game of Atari looks like today – slow motion.  The dexterity that today’s teens demonstrate while playing video games and playing with techno equipment is impressive.  There’s no doubt that we have evolve as a species.  Some might argue that our values have not, but if you go back to study the atrocities of centuries ago, then the argument remains open.

Many believe that the human race is doomed to destruction as a result of its own chaos.  I see a race that has evolved from barbaric to sensitive, diplomatic, and strong.  Every era has its challenges, and leaves its mark on our evolution.  So for better or for worst, we remain, stronger than ever.

 

 

The Evolution of the Vampire – From Monster to Hottie

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Our obsession with vampires dates back to ancient times.  Many ancient civilizations like the Assyrians, Babylonians and other orient cultures included the bloodsucker in their mythology.  Although variations of the vampire exist in different cultures, the similarities outweigh them.  The vampire has evolved throughout history from a despicable killer- monster (fueled by mass hysteria and the recordings of a few historians, also fueled by mass hysteria) to the romanticized image of the beautiful and mysterious being that is capable of feeling love (plus he has a healthy bank account).  We have given back a soul to this vile creature.  We have humanized him again, and we have accepted him in our circle.  There is a big gap between Nosferatu, Dracula, and Edward Cullen.  So, how did vampires become hot?  How did we manage to switch from fear, disgust, and repugnancy, to acceptance?  Simply put, by looking in the mirror.

The things that we feared most about a vampire, turned out to be the ones that we desire most.  A vampire represents our aspirations and where we are headed as a society.  Our technological advances are geared to promote a futuristic society that values beauty, power, money, sexuality, and immortality (or at least longevity).  All these are evolved characteristics of the modern vampire.  Think of all the products out there that are dedicated to the attainment of these vampiric qualities.  Pretty much every product or service advertised is designed to target one of those.  So, we have commercialized Dracula, we have made him what we dream of becoming.

On the other side, as we become more spiritually oriented, he has become immune to crucifixes and holy water.   One characteristic remains unchanged – his dissatisfaction, the longing for something he cannot have, the constant pain of the separation from the object of his desire.  And that is the unifying quality that as humans, we share with him, making the vampire redeemable.  Throughout history we have take him from damnation to redemption.  We have saved the vampire, but at what price?  In one way, we have sucked his identity and given him ours.  We have made him human.  We have given him an image in the mirror (our ideal of beauty, power, sex, love, money, life).  Our aspirations as a society have become his reality.  We have become like him, and he has become more like us.  Taking all said into consideration, what’s not to love?