i believe....
in you.
art rules.
sleep heals.
nature is beauty.
we belong together.
dr pepper is quenching.
real love is unconditional.
human rights are universal.
we are our reason for being.
even bad days are good days.
my friends are unsung heroes.
talking only gets you so far. act.
unconditional love sets you free.
learning is a lifetime achievement.
puppies serve to make man happy.
the best things in life really are free.
life is better with a kick ass soundtrack.
music is emotion on unbelievable steroids.
dancing is the most uninhibited form of art.
this is the best thing that could be happening.
the sun is a reminder everyday is a new opportunity.
all we need is within us from the second we are born.
somethings are better left unsaid, or rather, said in person.
rain is a reminder we all need the nourishment of mother nature.
some of the most influential people in our lives are complete strangers.
my parents have a pair of the most beautiful souls. they are the best i have encountered.
*originally published 9 Feb 2009, updated 19 July 2009.
7.19.2009
6.01.2009
and their dreams they dreamed awake.
as i lay here on my "new" sofa with flappy, whose snoring is providing a rhythmic escape from the noise of #6 hanging new artwork, and reflect on my day--my week thus far--i continue to realize my full potential is only restricted by the boundaries i place on my self. the real me is here. i am, as Acheson reflected, present at the creation. i just have to see what it is that my mentors, family, friends and co-workers say they see in me.
this period of my life marks one of great change rooted in a new understanding of myself, the world in which i have come to live, and the integral importance of the freedom of man; intellectually, artistically, figuratively, physically...
the journey to this point, as the journey to all new levels of evolution, was not easy. it was not the first and it will not be the last. i wish i could say i did it with a support structure and an amazing champion. but i did it alone. reflecting on this i have questioned whether it was best this way. i now know it was, because what i was going through was individualistic and very personal. in the lives of man one never really knows the other; he knows what the other reveals.
my decisions, professionally and personally, in recent months and weeks were done so to bring the way i live my life in line with my personal beliefs, ethics and values. at times this development was not easy, but it represents the core character of who i am.
and so, i made the decision to finally take the steps necessary for me to be happy. to follow my dreams. i recently told one of my friends i wished i was happier. he looked at me like i was crazy, he laughed, he told me that in his opinion i seemed pretty happy. he's right. (yes, the one problem i don't have is conceding when others are right--that is, when they actually are right). i am unbelievably happy. it's weird for me. it's life affirming.
i am following my dreams and in doing so i am helping others follow their dreams, enjoy their lives, their family and friends and our world. life really is your one shot. we don't get make-ups or re-dos. we get this one chance, but through all of it, several of us recognize that in this one shot we cannot accomplish all we hope. that can be a hard realization. but to be a realist is to know that each step is one small success toward a more just and compassionate world. a world that will awaken one spring with the nourishment of our past efforts.
we all view the world differently. none of us are alike and in trying to make others like us, we hurt them, we oppress them, we tell them that who they are is not good enough for us, for our standards, for our world. i for one would rather follow my dreams and be the individual i have chosen to become. i don't need to change people to be successful, i don't need to change people to be happy or follow my dreams. i will not agonize over their life choices, or try and make them feel bad for being who they are. i will not criticize them for their mistakes or fortunes and i will not seek to degrade their life because i have chosen a separate path. and with all that i said, i never have and never will seek to make someone who they are not. i really don't care who you are because i know in your heart, in your soul, you do what you do because of you.
i have always told everyone that they don't have to explain themselves to me. they don't have to justify their actions or decisions. it's their life. it's their one shot.
i have one rule in my book. to love. to love everyone.
we all are imperfect. we all have different ambitions, beliefs and values; but it doesn't hurt either of us to love and respect one another. to listen. to learn. to live. all you have to do is believe enough in yourself to trust and love others.
flap has now given up. the snoring of #6's vacuum has taken over the rhythm of the room. of my soul, my mind and heart. so with that i bid adieu.
<3 natey.
this period of my life marks one of great change rooted in a new understanding of myself, the world in which i have come to live, and the integral importance of the freedom of man; intellectually, artistically, figuratively, physically...
the journey to this point, as the journey to all new levels of evolution, was not easy. it was not the first and it will not be the last. i wish i could say i did it with a support structure and an amazing champion. but i did it alone. reflecting on this i have questioned whether it was best this way. i now know it was, because what i was going through was individualistic and very personal. in the lives of man one never really knows the other; he knows what the other reveals.
my decisions, professionally and personally, in recent months and weeks were done so to bring the way i live my life in line with my personal beliefs, ethics and values. at times this development was not easy, but it represents the core character of who i am.
and so, i made the decision to finally take the steps necessary for me to be happy. to follow my dreams. i recently told one of my friends i wished i was happier. he looked at me like i was crazy, he laughed, he told me that in his opinion i seemed pretty happy. he's right. (yes, the one problem i don't have is conceding when others are right--that is, when they actually are right). i am unbelievably happy. it's weird for me. it's life affirming.
i am following my dreams and in doing so i am helping others follow their dreams, enjoy their lives, their family and friends and our world. life really is your one shot. we don't get make-ups or re-dos. we get this one chance, but through all of it, several of us recognize that in this one shot we cannot accomplish all we hope. that can be a hard realization. but to be a realist is to know that each step is one small success toward a more just and compassionate world. a world that will awaken one spring with the nourishment of our past efforts.
we all view the world differently. none of us are alike and in trying to make others like us, we hurt them, we oppress them, we tell them that who they are is not good enough for us, for our standards, for our world. i for one would rather follow my dreams and be the individual i have chosen to become. i don't need to change people to be successful, i don't need to change people to be happy or follow my dreams. i will not agonize over their life choices, or try and make them feel bad for being who they are. i will not criticize them for their mistakes or fortunes and i will not seek to degrade their life because i have chosen a separate path. and with all that i said, i never have and never will seek to make someone who they are not. i really don't care who you are because i know in your heart, in your soul, you do what you do because of you.
i have always told everyone that they don't have to explain themselves to me. they don't have to justify their actions or decisions. it's their life. it's their one shot.
i have one rule in my book. to love. to love everyone.
we all are imperfect. we all have different ambitions, beliefs and values; but it doesn't hurt either of us to love and respect one another. to listen. to learn. to live. all you have to do is believe enough in yourself to trust and love others.
flap has now given up. the snoring of #6's vacuum has taken over the rhythm of the room. of my soul, my mind and heart. so with that i bid adieu.
<3 natey.
5.24.2009
until we disappear
until we disappear was originally crafted as a personal reflection and recount of my journey through life. the name is taken from a song, play crack the sky, made popular by brand new. "this story's old, but it goes on and on until we disappear."
the name provided significant meaning to my blog. the idea that we, whether we like to our not, repeat the stories of our past until we are no more. some say that's deep. i say it's real. it provides a similar significance to this re-branded blog. my hope during the first generation of this blog, my continued hope even now, is that we will stray from the story line; creating new stories that challenge the pretense that we are some how committed to a destiny that we have no control over. in my short life i have come to realize quickly, this is not the case. we, in fact, have the greatest power to change our story, our lives and our destiny.
today i begin the second generation of this blog with an emphasis on the hiv/aids pandemic, the individuals and families it affects, glbt individuals and organizations and i do so with the hope that a cure will be found in my lifetime; that equality will come in my lifetime. a focus i believe the greater public has lost sight of--in a world that effectively has added hiv/aids (and in many respects equality) to the long list of social issues we make the conscious decision not to solve. the list we choose to continue to pass on to the next generation--the story that goes on and on.
i am ready to close the story in this chapter and help write the next one. i am ready to end another pandemic. i am ready to change minds and perceptions and change the way individuals view disease and life.
several factors drove me to do this.
1) life. the value of life. the value of friends and the people i love.
2) tuesday i begin a new job in resource development with a GLBT and HIV/AIDS organization whose mission falls directly in line with what i hope to accomplish in this blog.
3) i am human, i need an outlet.
i will still post personal reflections and life happenings because i am who i am. i can change, i can improve but my values and the value i find in my individuality and the individuality of others is undeniable and thus will continue.
the name provided significant meaning to my blog. the idea that we, whether we like to our not, repeat the stories of our past until we are no more. some say that's deep. i say it's real. it provides a similar significance to this re-branded blog. my hope during the first generation of this blog, my continued hope even now, is that we will stray from the story line; creating new stories that challenge the pretense that we are some how committed to a destiny that we have no control over. in my short life i have come to realize quickly, this is not the case. we, in fact, have the greatest power to change our story, our lives and our destiny.
today i begin the second generation of this blog with an emphasis on the hiv/aids pandemic, the individuals and families it affects, glbt individuals and organizations and i do so with the hope that a cure will be found in my lifetime; that equality will come in my lifetime. a focus i believe the greater public has lost sight of--in a world that effectively has added hiv/aids (and in many respects equality) to the long list of social issues we make the conscious decision not to solve. the list we choose to continue to pass on to the next generation--the story that goes on and on.
i am ready to close the story in this chapter and help write the next one. i am ready to end another pandemic. i am ready to change minds and perceptions and change the way individuals view disease and life.
several factors drove me to do this.
1) life. the value of life. the value of friends and the people i love.
2) tuesday i begin a new job in resource development with a GLBT and HIV/AIDS organization whose mission falls directly in line with what i hope to accomplish in this blog.
3) i am human, i need an outlet.
i will still post personal reflections and life happenings because i am who i am. i can change, i can improve but my values and the value i find in my individuality and the individuality of others is undeniable and thus will continue.
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