If resentment says
“I will have
the last laugh.”
Regret may say
“I wish I could have
laughed about it
then.”
Author: Seung Chan Lim
When Making Art Begins
Making art
can begin with nothing more
than a thought.
One that says
“Hm…
There is something
here,”
A thought that inspires
a sense
of intrigue.
Progress is made
when intrigue inspires
yet another thought.
One that says
“I wonder
what that something
is?”
A thought that inspires
a sense
of wonder.
…
But then
a fork in the road
appears.
One that tests
our courage
and humility.
Humility
because we have to admit
we don’t know
what that something
is
and value
the process of coming
to know it.
Courage
because it will cost us
time,
energy,
among other things
to pursue this journey
of following through
with the sense
of wonder.
This is the same
whether your art
is writing,
making sculpture,
or starting
a business.
Selfishness
When we judge ourselves
as selfish,
it is often nothing more
than a symptom
of our fear of being judged
by others
as selfish.
Unintentionally Passive
Employees
are often hired
to solve
a problem.
But employees often think
they’re hired
to do
a job.
If the job done
doesn’t solve the problem
that inspired the hire
employees can be perceived
as passive
even if they’re proactive
in doing their job.
If the problem to be solved
isn’t clear
employers can be perceived
as unappreciative
and disrespectful
even if they care
about their employees.
Saying “No.”
Every time
we fail to say “No,”
to something
or someone
that crosses our boundaries,
we may unintentionally
fuel
the perpetuation of
a vicious
cycle.
When a Plan Comes Together
Plans
rarely go
as planned.
In fact,
they often fall
apart.
Perhaps this
is why Hannibal often said
“I love it,
when a plan
comes
together.”
As if to denote
that a plan
has to fall apart
first
before it can come together
to create
a new plan
that actually goes
as planned.
p.s: Much gratitude goes out to Pinky Parsons for inspiring this post.
Lost
We are only
“lost”
in relation to
where we want
to go.
If we don’t know
where we want
to go,
we may instead be
faced with an opportunity
for exploration
and play.
Unless,
of course,
we think we know
where we want
to go,
because we conflate
where we want
to go
with where we think
we should want
to go.
In which case,
we may still feel
“lost.”
Vengefulness
Vengefulness
can be
a request.
One saying,
“I want you
to empathize.”
“I want you
to empathize
with what it was like
for me to go through
what I went through.”
“I want my experience
to be appreciated,
respected,
and deemed worthy
of attention.”
“I want my experience
to matter.”
Lacking Empathy
“Maybe
I lack empathy.”
remarked the founder.
“Says who?”
I asked.
“My wife.”
he responded.
“When
did she say this?”
I asked.
“Last night.”
he responded.
“Right before she judged you
as lacking empathy,
was she criticizing
something
or someone you deeply
care about?”
I asked.
“Yes,
my mother.
She was criticizing
my mother.
How did you know?”
he remarked.
“I want you to know
that when someone
or something
with which you hyper-empathize
is being attacked
it can be very difficult
for you to empathize
with the attacker.”
I explained.
“That
is a normal
and natural phenomenon.”
I continued.
Respecting vs Expecting
To expect
is to passively await
in our assumed knowledge
of the future.
To respect
is to actively look
at the unappreciated wonders
of the present.
For each thing
we expect,
that inspires within us
anger-related emotions
like frustration
if we respect instead,
what can arise
is power
and confidence.
The kind
that comes from discovering
choices
we did not know
we had.