Reflections

It's been a while since I have added anything to this blog.  I would have to say since 2009 by the looks of my last posting.  Nonetheless, I haven't forgotten that this site exists, and I felt that it was high time I contribute.

A lot has happened in the past 3 years.  In fact, a lot more has happened just within the past several months, but this post isn't for a recap of my life's events.  It's more or less to put down some reflections that I was re-introduced to today.  Quick flashback:  back in 1996, I would sit down to a dimly lit desk and start to write.  I really didn't pay attention to what I was putting down on paper, I just knew that I wanted to write something.  I've done that a few times since then...either writing original pieces of my own, or taking down words of wisdom that I've encountered over the years and tried to live by.  I say "tried" because...well...nobody is perfect, but we'd all like to think that we're making improvements upon ourselves and doing well towards others. 

In either case, what follows is from something I scribbled in 2000.  Simple reflections that meant enough to me to make me write them in my little log book.  I'm sure they're probably older than when I noted them, but I feel that they hold true today.  Who knows, you might even find yourself reflecting on them and trying to make a change for yourself after reading.

1.  Maybe God wants us to meet a few wrong people before meeting the right one so that when we finally meet the right person, we will know how to be grateful for that gift.

2.  Love is when you take away the feeling, the passion, and the romance in a relationship and find that you still care for that person.

3.  When the door of happiness closes, another opens, but often time we look so long at the closed door that we don't see the one which has been opened for us.

4.  The best kind of friend is the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with...never saying a word...and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had.

5.  It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it.  But it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives.

6.  There are things you'd love to hear that you would never hear from the person who you would like to hear from.  But don't be so deaf as not to hear it from the one who says it from their heart.

7.  Don't go for looks; they can deceive.  Don't go for wealth; in the end it fades away.  Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright.

8.  Dream what you want to dream, go where you want to go, be what you want to be, because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do.

9.  A careless word may kindle strife; a cruel word my wreck a life; a timely word may level stress; a loving word may heal and bless.

10.  The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.

11.  Happiness lies for those who cry, those who hurt, those who have searched, and those who have tried.  For only they can appreciate the importance of people who have touched their lives.

12.  The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go on well in life until you let go of all your past failure and heartaches.

Writer's Block

So I'm sitting at my computer wondering exactly what it is that I plan to say. To be quite honest, my mind is somewhat of a blank at the moment. I know that I want to write something but I just don't really know what that something is. I'm at the computer, thinking of what there is to say. I mean, I haven't put anything into my blog in a while, but the desire to want to have something there - the urge to have words written and an artform expressed - persuade me to do more than just look at the screen and hope for responses of old text. So in the spirit of fulfilling a need, I sit here and contemplate. I'm not quite sure just how long I've been thinking about what to type, nor am I certain of what all I've done as I've waited for an idea to come to me. I've managed to pull myself from my chair, eat a meal and watch a bit of TV, all the while searching for that inkling of inspiration, but alas I am without a topic or an idea of what to create and springforth into the blogging world.

So as I sit in Dallas, TX, I look outside and see Children's and Parkland Hospitals across I-35 South. The sounds of 18-wheelers and motorcyclists go zooming by. Interestingly enough is how I get up when I hear the sound of the motorcycles when they pass. They all seem to go shooting by, moreso in the southernly direction, at high speeds. My guess is because - at night - the law enforcement are few and far between, making the long stretch of 10-lane highway prime real estate for stunts, tricks and speed. The neat thing is when they all pass by in groups of 5 or more. I can peek out the window (as I'm sitting next to it) and watch them go by. There's a feeling of freedom in watching them, as I too ride - or at least used to. I know what it feels like to be saddled over a two-wheeled crotch rocket, with nothing but wind blowing in your direction (or force fed as the case normally is in this type of situation) and a blatant disregard for all those who can't keep up. It's a thrill, a privilege...and not one to be taken likely. Because just as soon as you're not respecting that privilege you become a wet spot on that real estate I spoke about earlier. And no one likes getting their car dirty after it was just cleaned.

I wonder how many will understand that last sentence.

I never quite realized that sometimes being stuck inside a hotel room with nothing to do could really open you up to things that you would normally not pay attention to or give a second thought towards. I've found that looking out the window and just watching things go by can be both peaceful and educational. For example, I've watched people turn the corners near the hotel and I've noticed that most drivers tend to make a left turn a lot faster than they do a right one. When the emergency copters are flown in to the hospitals across they street, they almost always land with their tail rotors pointed south. Each tree in front of my hotel is the exact same kind, and it's the same on the other side of I-35. There are three flag poles with a different flag on each. The wind is blowing but the American flag is catching more air than the other two, yet there is no obstruction to any of them. One of them isn't moving at all.

I wonder if other writers have serious writers block when they sit down to tell their stories. I wonder what kinds of inspiration they keep at their desk, or the different mantras they use to get their creative juices flowing. I always figured Stephen King had a combination of comic books and old Alfred Hitchcock movies to come up with some of the stuff he has. But inspiration is different for different people I guess. Some have a gift and others don't.

Perhaps some of them just sat in front of a window and looked out on the world...waiting for the flourescent light bulb above their noggin to light up.

As for me...I just wish I had something to say.