Ho, Ho, Ho

Let's talk about Christmas.

I grew up with Christmas being one of the biggest times of year that I looked forward to not because of the presents (although that was always a nice benefit) but because I loved spending time with my family. It was the time of year my daddy didn't have to work 80 hour weeks, my mom was happy and joyous, and my sister and I were always off school. Christmas is a religious holiday, but I grew up with it being something different. Christmas was about believing in magic and the power of imagination to what it can do for the world. I was a HUGE believer in Santa, the Easter bunny, tooth fairy, even Leprechauns for St. Patty's day...

Now, I'm an adult. In the summer when I was around the age of 9, my parents pulled me and my sister to the side and told us the reality of the situation. It was them all those years they left us presents and gifts and told us they made up all of Santa and everything. I was completely devastated. I probably was hit harder than most kids because I was a hardcore believer in such beautiful things. Magic. Imagination. The power of believing in what it can bring you (the kids from Polar Express, that was me). Even when I started getting made fun of at school for it, I still believed. But when people you trust your lives to come to you and tell you that up to that point in time they completely made up a whole reality that wasn't even true... what is one left to believe anymore? Who can you trust at that point?


"Why do parents lie about Santa when it's not even true?"



"We wanted you to believe in the power of believing and knowing that no matter what imagination can make any situation better."

I understood this after a while but until recently I started thinking that there has to be better ways to go about this. Imagination comes from curiosity. Curiosity comes from desire. Desire comes from the urge to grow. As long as you inspire ways for your kids to keep wanting to learn and grow, the powers of their soul could be unlimited. When you stop the this urge to grow and learn, much like many of us face when we meet the reality of Santa and you slowly learn more and more about the real world, all else falls apart and we just fill our lives with such busyness, our awareness leaves our minds, curiosity is distracted by chores, and we are stunted forever.

Besides....

Why is it ok to let a fat old man come down your chimney, whom you've never met before, to leave you gifts and presents that he telepathically knew you wanted. This old man sees you all the time (if that doesn't ring pedophile I don't know what else to tell ya....). He comes into your home when you're sleeping away in your beds, hangs out for a while eating cookies and drinking milk... and LEAVES?! Yet, we're not allowed to say hello to the greeter at Walmart or the nice lady standing outside waiting for her ride to come. Hmm....

Not to mention a traveling rabbit whom I suppose travels by teleportation because that was never really explained anywhere (no way can a rabbit hop that fast) who craps out rainbow colored eggs hidden in random places on your property with candy filled surprises and just hops away into some underground lair for the next Easter to begin?

And don't forget about the Tooth Fairy. I mean how creepy is it that a flying fairy knows when your tooth falls out, magically appears in your bedroom while you're sleeping and steals your teeth out from under your pillow. I mean, the idea is sick in itself. And once again, it's looked down upon by many parents to say hello to strangers. And we're told very young to NEVER trust strangers, go away with them, or let them into the house when mommy and daddy aren't there.

Has anyone ever stopped to think that maybe many people develop on a subconscious level a psychological barrier that stops the growth of the human spirit because they're so broken by what the outside world did to them when they were younger? (And that's even putting bullying, bad parenting, and school aside) At least for the believers in Christianity and Christmas.... we experience the shattering of beliefs we lived for at such a crucial time in our development as a person. The hope for something magical and greater than what their eyes could see. When you really break it down and look at it, who's to say God isn't just the next step up from Santa? There's just no higher source to tell believers otherwise.


I say that if you're a parent and you celebrate Christmas every year, don't lie to your kids and make up a whole bunch of crap that doesn't exist. Be honest with them. Teach them that there are other ways in believing in things through passion and creativity. And also, don't let Christmas turn into a contest on who can buy the best gifts because this whole Santa thing has become more of a marketing scheme in the eyes of salesman and saleswomen everywhere to get you to buy more things. Christmas is about family. It's about love. It can be a very romantic time of year too and it should be enjoyed through all the moments of it. Don't let it be ruined by false impulses that are implanted through marketing and peer pressure. Be honest. Live free. Love every minute. And enjoy the people you have in your life because in the next minute, everything can change.

Source for Inspiration

So, I've gotten to the point where my creativity has taken yet another plunge to the deep abyss of the sea and I'm trying to take a sub down to the bottom to find the light of it all again. Maybe teleport to that alien planet and remember all the things that make this life truly wonderful.

I spend countless hours on the internet lurking over people's photostreams on flickr... finding other photographers who create work that simply takes my breath away.... discovering new places I want to see a travel to.... dream dreams that no one dared to dream before... and finding people who want to do the same.

So, after lurking online for over 2 hours now... here are some images that not only completely inspire me... but translate the world into how I see it most of the time :) These kind of images make me want to better my photography more and more.

I follow the night
Can't stand the light
When will I begin
To live again?

One day I'll fly away
Leave all this to yesterday
What more could your Love do for me?
When will Love be through with me?

Why live life from dream to dream?
And dread the day when dreaming ends

One day I'll fly away
Fly, fly away

Moulin Rouge

my heart is on my sleeve...

It's been practically a month since I've written here. My mind has been concentrating so much on updating my flickr photostream, everything else seems to get forgotten about. Which, balance is key to make anything right. So here it goes.

My mind races faster than the speed of light. The only way I can calm myself down is by doing an immensely stimulating activity that not only works both halves of my brain, but also works out the needs of my soul through creative expression. And usually, that involves me doing more than one thing at the same time and working myself up into a huge chaotic mess to try and please all parts that are screaming for attention. Then I have to make myself think... am I the only one feeling this way?

Time for a long drive.

Roll the windows down. Turn the music on. Quiet the mind. Speak no words. Feel the wind in the air. Drive somewhere no one can find you at. There... feel that? Peace.

I care too much about what others are doing. I care too little about what I'm doing and what I have in my life. The problems that I feel are mountainous on my shoulders are small ant hills compared to what some others in this world have to deal with. And I need to remind myself that. But I'm not afraid to let the other side of darkness kiss my face either. Take me into the abyss and I swear I'll come out alive. There isn't anything in this universe that can change who I am no matter how hard they try. The pressure to be something I'm not lately has been greater than it ever has been before. But do I fold under the pressure or keep pressing on like I always have? I'm not even sure I know how to fold. I was taught to keep fighting through anything and everything. So I guess I just answered my own question. Always keep fighting through it.

And the next thing, relationships are like water. They flow very steady, change very suddenly, and last all different lengths and periods of time. Sometimes they fork out into different directions where they meet up again and sometimes they find new bodies of water to join forces with and go in completely new paths. You cant make a river flow a certain way. You have to trust that someday, things will be right again and you will flow in the right direction. Maybe sometimes people have to carve their own path to the same destination to feel completely accomplished. I suppose I'm completely guilty in that myself.



This is my latest Flickr post. Basically, the past week or so I've been feeling very emotional. Taking 5 minute crying breaks in the bathroom feeling so alone and no one to talk to. I don't like wearing my heart on my sleeve and letting people see the weakest sides of me but I'm human. Maybe, embracing the things that make me feel uncomfortable about myself can inevitably help heal all the insecurities I feel inside...

MegaWacko

I've been doing my daily posting over on flickr, but I can't help but want to seriously blog about the negativity that seems to be coming at me. I've been hearing a lot from people that I interact with about a very low hope in the survival of our great society as a whole human civilization together. Many people seem to be falling into the idea that 2012 everything is going to end and we are going to create the beginning of our own end.

Has anyone ever stopped to think that maybe the very thought of this implication of possibility that we may actually create such situations for ourselves? What would happen to our civilization if more people believed in the impossible and pushed to make things work that "shouldn't"? What if we all learned to take whatever comes out to us with a smile and an unbridled passion to never give up in even the slightest sense of the word? Maybe instead of thinking about the end we could learn to appreciate what we have right now and use the brilliant ideas that get lost in day to day activities to advance ourselves not only technologically but also spiritually and mentally as a civilization. Believe in the power of imagination, creation, and hope. Believe that there is still friendship, happiness, and love.... even though this sounds cheesier than the moldiest cheese you'll ever set your sights on but there is always someone or something that cares about you. Somewhere in the universe, someone is thinking about you. You are never alone.



To change the subject and go completely off rhythm, I discovered a new band that I LOVE. They're called Abandon All Ships. Title of the blog came from one of their latest songs. I need to buy their CD.