Sometimes
telling someone to calm down
is like telling someone who has to pee
to hold it in.
Other times
telling someone to calm down
is like telling someone who is already peeing
to hold it in.
Category: Short Form
Being, Having, and Doing
Not being ill
does not always equal
being healthy.
Having abundance
does not always equal
having wholeness.
Not doing wrong
does not always equal
doing good.
Partnership – Part 2
Many partnerships
be it co-founders,
spouses,
or others,
end
in not so amicable terms
due a deterioration
of trust
and respect.
Before that happens,
it’s worth asking ourselves
do we even trust
and respect each other
now?
By trust,
I don’t mean considering their competence
reliable.
I mean do we trust
that they’ll be by our side
to support us
when we
are at our worst?
By respect,
I don’t mean
appreciating their competence.
I mean can we see value in them
over
and over
and over again,
at will.
So much so
that we can see this
even when they’re at
their worst.
Enough to remind them
of their own self-worth
that they themselves
have forgotten.
Contribution
Just as
an olympic athlete
is not an altruist
for contributing a gold medal
for the country they represent.
We need not be altruistic
to make significant contributions
to others
or the world at large.
To Those Who Carry the Burden
To those
who carry the burden.
The small business CEOs,
responsible for paying their employees’
salaries.
The parents,
responsible for their children’s
well-being.
The operating room doctors,
responsible for their patients’
lives.
To all those
who have experienced the weight
of responsibility on their shoulders.
You may be feeling the pressure
to meet expectations.
You may be blaming yourself
day after day
for failing to meet
expectations.
But may you never lose
the certainty
and confidence in yourself.
May you never doubt
your self-worth
or whether you’re working hard enough.
Because your life
is worthy of respect
exactly as they are.
While others may see you
challenged,
I see greatness.
Just
as the great mountains and valleys
are mere residues
of nature
under pressure and weight.
Great lives
are mere residues
of our will to sustain life
under pressure and weight.
p.s: This was inspired by my wife’s work and her comparison of nature’s work under pressure and weight and an artist’s work under pressure and weight.
p.p.s: I also made a video version of this narrated by AI.
Burden from Others vs Self-Judgment
Sometimes
we think the reason why
we feel anxiety
is because of the burden we feel
to keep our promise
to our investors.
But upon realizing empathy,
with ourselves
or our investors,
we may realize
that it may actually be
because we judge ourselves
as less capable
of carrying the burden
than others.
Change
For our behaviors to change,
our emotions
may have to change
first.
For our emotions to change,
our thoughts
may have to change
first.
For our thoughts to change
our focus
may have to change
first.
For our focus to change
our perspective
may have to change
first.
Perspective Taking
Other people’s perspectives
are not ours
to take.
The perspectives
we can take from others
are none other
than our own.
May we not confuse
our own perspectives
with that
of others.
Even if the perspective
is shared.
Weight
When doing something
big.
To think that
we
can carry the weight
alone
is a misunderstanding.
To think that
anyone
can or will carry the weight
with us
is also a misunderstanding.
It may be that
finding people
who can and will carry the weight
with us
and learning to share that weight
with them
well
is a major part of the work
itself.
Following our Passion
I don’t know
when “passion”
started to refer
to what we like.
Passion
used to refer to
something that must be
endured.
Something
for which we are willing
to suffer
greatly.