Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Thoughts on 2013: (paraphrases of my reflections)


Lately, I have been finding it difficult to articulate my thoughts with the clarity in which they arrive.  (This is a surprising deal to me because, usually, I am able to play around with the broken structure of the flow of words and puzzles of my mind).  Perhaps the aesthetics of their phrases are meant to stay un-sketched as a thought and not scribed for later visual perception.  One thing is clear, and that is the reflecting capability that they offer.

Year thirteen of this new millennium has composed some interesting reflections among many – for some it was a good year, full of life-changing events that propose much bliss in the future.  For others it was a challenging year, full of disillusions and obstacles that are yet to be overcome.  For many, it was the year of turning points and realizations; of new beginnings and sudden ends.  And, although some may wish it to be over in hopes of new beginnings, it is no secret that the change toward this new bliss begins with the awareness that it is up to us to make this transition become a reality.
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I am a firm believer that “things in life happen for a reason”.  Sometimes, these reasons come as naturally as time, and they arrive unexpectedly and in a surprising manner.  The recent city-wide black-out, caused by the late winter storm, made me question and analyze my current values and my learned beliefs…

There I was, sitting in the darkness of my cold apartment, (trying to reconnect with the voice of reason that once brought me peace in the moments of most need). What I heard offered me some sound advice but in a language still un-deciphered.  As I attempt to understand what it is that was just heard, there is a sudden struggle between the beauty of the silence that surrounds me and the depressive ideals that betray my calmness - all in remembrance of the beauty that came and discarded my hopes without a shadow of a trace.  There was left a feeling of emptiness that could not be filled by the lack of air that embraced my cold, deflated lungs.  Suddenly, 2013 was a bad year.

In my balcony, as I looked out to the darkness, I was able to conclude that I am not alone; there are others who have gone through something similar, if not worse.  We could all sit alone in our self-made darkness or seek the light within us.
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It is easy to forget what truly matters when you are feeling conflicted.  When you are being forced to come out of your comfort zone, it is how you react in that moment that will decide the short fate of your near-future, but it will certainly not label the path you are destined to follow.

What is important is to know the difference between your wants and your needs; to be true to yourself as you follow the code of their guidance, and to also realize that this is a very fine line that evolves with time as you go through life-changing experiences.  These experiences, though harsh at times, help you to comprehend what truly matters and what can be taken at face value.  You may not be granted the wishes that you hoped for, but in the end, you have your health and you have your life and the love of those that truly care for you – that, alone, is wealth enough, (the kind of wealth that we often take for granted).

If expectations were set high at the very beginning and the bars were not met quite like you had hoped, it is not because someone is desiring your deterioration, nor is it because of some ‘supernatural being’ that is trying to test your faith, (unless you fancy a religious/spiritual recourse to make sense of your situations), but it is perhaps just because the experience, (however long or short-lived), is meant to be a lesson that you need to learn.
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Once I was able to learn to put my pride to the side, I began to notice that I was richer than my self-inflicted misery led me to believe.  Though the idea of love was robbed of me, it is certain that my ability to love cannot be taken, nor my ideals for affection, as a hopeless romantic.

This year, I have loved and I have been loved.  I have hated and I have been hated.  I have hurt and I have been hurt.  I have laughed and I have been laughed at.  I have ridiculed and I have been ridiculed.  I have experienced.  I have shed tears.  I have cursed.  I have dreamed.  I have lost sleep.  I have fallen, but I have also risen back up.  And although life did not grant me what I wished for this year, it certainly left me with enough breath of gratefulness and just enough to look forward to – my moment of reflection.
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There is something to be said about this year, and whether it’s good or bad, one thing is for sure: Be grateful for the memories because they will carry you forward in the year to come.

To all my friends and acquaintances:  Thank you for being you – for helping me when I needed the most help, for challenging me to move on, for stressing and frustrating me out and showing me another side of my self.  In the goods and bads, the ups and downs, life is only easy because it is not – and it is only when we realize this that we are able to attain something that is more cherished than a moment in time.


Good luck to all in the new year, and live prosperously with the experiences that are to come.

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