When we encounter a question regarding our favourite quote, we already expect that the answer is going to actually entail quite a few. But since this 'assignment of the day' says singular, I'm going to keep it simple and pull out one out of the great number that have accompanied through my years.
It might seem amazing how often this quote can apply through every different situation, but then again that's exactly it: it's about life. So often what details our interactions with other people is not only what we or they do, it's how we all react.
For instance, when someone angers you, you have the choice of lashing back, or taking the high road and ignoring them. Lashing back gives that person the satisfaction of knowing they have that power over you, to make you react to them in such a fashion, or simply, to react at all. And that's on the outside, the 'public reaction'. What about inside - where you're really feeling the need to tell them off, get down 'n' dirty, vocally beat them up, or maybe even physically beat them up? What I've found is that you become a better person within- eventually - when you're able to control how you react on the outside. Soon, the words of other people fall off, "water off a duck's back", and they become insignificant, as unworthy of your attention as the little critters down below in the cracks in the sidewalk, probably less so. You develop an unwavering cool and calm. (From this one can then figure out that the people I do react to without the 'cool and calm face' are those who mean a helluva lot to me.)
Is it about ego? Not necessarily; I'd say it's about you preserving the wholeness of who you are. It's maintaining the goodness of your own being, we could say it's our own karma.
Which brings me to another thought, often we are presented with the choices in the moment we are to react. The way we choose to react actually guides how we retroactively believe we really feel about the situation. When you choose the easy anger route, and react accordingly, when you look back to whatever stimulated the reaction, you feel that yes you were actually angry about it right away. Contrastedly, had you chosen the cool "let it go" reaction, your recollection of the moment would make you feel that it wasn't actually such a big thing, and in fact below you. The way we react colours our actual cognition of recollection, our memory of emotion. Our reactions are so much more tangible, that it's easier to say 'I reacted this way of course I must have been pissed off', rather than trying to untangle the folds of feelings you may have felt originally. Often we forget that we choose how we react.
Day 5, Sunday: Publicly profess your love and devotion for one of your blogger friends. What makes them great? Why do you love them? If you don't have blogger friends, talk about a real-life friend or even a family member
Ahh, this is one of the worst assignments ever for me! I hate making mushy public declarations. I mean, the people I love know I love them - without having to dramatize it! And I like keeping it that way. But okay, okay.
First on my list is Wanderer. Kiara, Roo, Granny....the reason why she's first is because the assignment itself says 'blogger friends' so I'm keeping with the literal 'blogger friends' dictum by singling her out. This girl, years younger, and yet, since the very first time I laid eyes on her (well, her writing), I felt such a strong bond. The first time I did this was before I even registered my own blog. I was visiting Jiya's blog, reading one of J's posts about being down and depressed, and before I wrote my own comment of consolation, I was absolutely taken by the depth of insight, maturity in the one comment that was already there. I clicked on the commenter's name, visited her blog, and somehow I learnt that she was only 17 years old! To put what she wrote and that maturity with her age just bowled me over. When I write about this bond we have, I get a little teary-eyed. I'm getting it now too. But yeah, I think even if I were to give a little speech at her wedding years from now, I may even say this very same thing. Of course, by then we'll already have a ton more memories made, a lot of crazy antics, randomness and blah blah. Despite the number of years between us, I feel a similarity of frequency that's beyond explanation. And yet, we're so different in our own ways (thank heavens, who wants another IQ?)...and I know she's going to grow into one of the most magnificent women ever. I guess you can see how much of it is mutual by how much I'm rambling about her.
Second is Ajay Kontham. Again rank due to the 'blogger friend' dictum. There is an adorable quality about this dude, he rambles on about his life with such honesty, you can't not like him. He writes quite abundantly, and he does it so easily, for the reader I mean (he's often said how he struggles just to write things, and how many drafts he has hidden in his post folder)...it's enjoyable reading him. Makes me feel as if I'm reading an excerpt from a totally personable novel, a narration of an average guy's life, and I like that. He makes me laugh at odd times, at his clumsy way of trying to lecture himself or, in the past, disclaim whatever he writes as absolute nonsense. He's stopped doing that lately which is such a relief to all and sundry, because the guy can write. And he knows it, or he wouldn't write. But he has a great humbleness about himself, he doesn't try to be a real hero about it, he's down to earth about stuff like that, though you can tell he wishes he was Dexter:P
And that brings me to my friend Nerdyy who has only recently opened his OWN blog, and has been making good use of himself there. He's taken to blogging with such an ease that you can't help but say ABOUT TIME BUDDY, about him actually doing it. And can you imagine, he was going to wait till Summer to open his own blog. Good grief. Anyways, now I have a place where I can kick off my shoes and comment away :P "snarkily" as he says about my comments. Well he's just one of those great friends I CAN be totally snarky with and he knows its all with great love, afterall our friendship bloomed with a scornful look of disdain directed his way :D But yeah, another thing I need to point out about why he deserves a place in this write up is his consistent support and encouragement with his comments, in whichever silly crazy form they take.
Seeing as this is already getting lengthy, I have to end it with one more person who I cannot leave out. Mr. Invisible Smoke. He's always last but not least on these kind of lists. He ranks less as a 'blogger friend' or net friend at all, because he's there to poke and bug in real life. But yes, his grudging entry onto Blogger happened a year ago, again with my coercion. Thinking about his growth on blogger makes me swell with pride, because it charts his development as a cook. Prior to his first attempt, he thought he would burn water and didn't know how to work a rice cooker. If you go through his posts these days, you wouldn't believe it. In fact, last week Wanderer asked me what does Smoke do for a living? Is he a chef? - I kid you not. She really thought he was that good, to be a chef! But truly and honestly, I can't even put in words how amazingly proud I am of him, so I won't even try. Likewise, as my best friend, he's been a great encourager and supporter through all I do. The nonsense I write, making time to listen to every song I post and comment on it all, even reading my essays when I send them to him, when he has no clue what they're about..So this assignment couldn't be completed without mentioning him. Quit gloating now.
I have some honorary mentions of course:
Layla - she has a hard time doing so much work, but she tries..and its her trying that touches the heart. :D
Ether - again a quiet and observing commenter, an AWESOME writer himself.
Jiya - because through her I met Kiara, and then AK, and somehow from visiting her blog I was in the mindset to start writing on blogger itself. :)
