Sometimes you need to remind yourself that the existence of a trap directly in your path doesn't mean you need to fall into it. The fact that someone is staying in the trap--voluntarily--when you see a way for them to escape, staying because for them the trap feels like the only home they've ever known, does not mean you need to go into the trap ( Read more... )

I believe in basic human rights for everyone, whether or not they deserve them ( Read more... )

On Sunday afternoon, I added a new interest to my list on LJ: "listening to shadows." The shadows have been telling me things I never expected from them, but I suppose that's the way shadows usually are. Last night's shadows were particularly noisy. I think they belonged to a raccoon. There's a Procyon lotor hanging out in the neighbor's ( Read more... )

People become what they focus on. This is why, while it may be useful to know what you are fighting against, it is urgent and necessary to know what you are fighting for ( Read more... )

This morning, I had a simply lovely rant in mind that I wanted to write out and post for your enjoyment. But I decided to do some research in order to bolster my point and got so caught up in reading on various topics that the impetus to rant simply faded away ( Read more... )

So I'm sitting here at the computer listening to a stream of music consisting of two-decade old songs which, as determined by a proprietary algorithm based on aggregate data from zillions of users all over the world, are generally well-liked by fans of an artist whose latest work-in-progress has been made available online one mp3 at a time, and I'm ( Read more... )

In this world, we all have our troubles. Every single one of us has moments, or months, or years, where we feel we are suffering--must suffer--will continue to suffer more than we can possibly bear. For the biblically literate, the story of Job is the obvious comparison. Poor Job! Calamity after calamity, misery upon misery, all piled on top of ( Read more... )

There are long stretches of winter and summer when you can hardly tell the days one from another. All the world is brown, or all the world is white, this day is like tomorrow and it just goes on and on ( Read more... )

(aside from the coughing keeping me up at nights, that is)

...is that people always become whatever they focus on.

People in love become lovely. Even if the object of their affections is not so wonderful, when a person is focused on the wonderful qualities which they believe are embodied by the person they love, then they become better for it ( Read more... )

One of the things to remember is that your strengths can weaken you. It's hard to remember this, of course. We may appreciate paradox in a theoretical context, but practical paradox does not sit well with us ( Read more... )