Departures

Death. A normal phase for everything and to everyone. A part of a process called life. The concept of Phoenix rising from the ashes is somehow more than just a fantasy but inspired by well, reality. Whenever a living thing dies, new life emerges.

With enough moisture, any decaying organic matter, a new life arises - mold. I never have seen such a disgusting thing become so elegant in this time lapse video.

When we die, we rot and we give life to other beings. Like how plants or animals become our food to live, we die and become theirs. It's a matter of giving and taking, a balanced harmony amongst all of us.

During the elementary years, we are taught about different hierarchies and us humans being the top of the Food Chain. What makes us advance is probably that we control other species. Other species have clans, have social orders and have their own political agendas we might not be able to fully understand. For we know they might have been secretly "studying" us and waiting for us to be vulnerable enough. After all, we humans are the only creatures in the world who destroy the things we build in the name of God, Gold and fucking Glory which I don't want to understand all I know is, this three G's can be summarized into one and that's probably "Greed".

Death, Life, and God. Three things human nature go nuts for since the beginning of time. We give simple meanings to ordinary things that have complex explanations to some. From common questions like "why is the sky blue" to "where do people go after death?" gives everyone at some point, a scratch in the head gesture.

We go on and define the things we are told to as their definitions, as their true explanations. Growing up and looking around, observing the nature of humans related to me, I realize that there are more than the answer we are told to.
To be less redundant, imagine a situation that our parents told us as the only way to go from our school to our home. Actually, they never said it was the "only" way, but they never gave us other options as well. As we get used to this method we either conform and continue believing in it unless we'll have a situation that finding a detour is a necessity. We then find other forms of transportation, routes or whatever. From this point, we can either return from doing the old one when it's available again or carry on and continue the new discovery. We actually have another option. Find more ways and choose the most suitable.

Most will stay conformed and follow the set of beliefs and standards given to us when we're young. Jumping out of the norm can cause bad reputations such as being a rebel, arrogant or in some cases a nut, crazy cuckoo.

Government and religion control these situations and some people already knew that. They instill fear to people causing us to be much more organized. Well, I kinda agree that people believing in different things can probably cause chaos. Since the beginning, tribes has set standards the clan has to follow. The only problem is some rulers chose the standards beneficial only for themselves and not for it's people.

The government already have their way and of course, religion is the "schemiest" one. What better way to control people is to instill fear, right.

Death, Life, and God.

We live with different definitions on how God would not be disappointed with us, in order not to die in his eternal tormented box called Hell and this is just one definition of a god. There are thousands of similar gods with their reward and punishment system.

What do really happens after we die?
Lot's of things happen after we die. We're just not there to see it. We can't accept the fact that the world would go on without us so we create this biased illusions and definitions to comfort us that when we die, we can still see it. What makes the humans living on earth so special in this large universe that we are the only ones to be capable of being a ghost, resurrected or have the opportunity to have a direct contact with a "creator"

Death is painful when we're the ones left alive. That's all I know so we better take the best out of life, together with the people important to us. 

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Love and Labels

In retail/department stores, there are different classifications, sub-departments and between those departments, there are different variations of materials, style and colors. During the inventory, it helps the stock controllers adjust the discrepancies or the problems within the stock.

Now that was the retailer’s perspective, but usually, we have the consumer’s perspective.Everyone is a consumer, but not everyone can be literally a retailer.

In our everyday lives, departments and divisions help to filter the things we need to look for. Take for example the grocery store, imagine if every item is arranged alphabetically, it would be a total chaos. The reason they have specific sections for Dairies, Sweets, Toiletries, Frozen food keeps our lives easier by a minute.

By this time, you might think and say these are all common sense – usually, we unconsciously forget the simple things until it was reminded to us. Tricks look so simple after magicians revealed the technique – but left us either dumbfounded or amazed during the performance.

This short blog is about humanity’s dependence about labels and how it affects relationships or how we view relationships (either with a partner or with a group). Labels are society’s one way of accepting or rejecting an idea. Labels keep our lives easier but at some point, the labelled people are having a hard time.

Topics for labelled people or labelled groups are so wide that separate sub-topics are already covered for sure in a plethora of websites, blogs and articles.

Variations can be religion, culture, race, gender and other topics.

All are very sensitive issues and probably everyone has their own opinions based on conspiracies or maybe based on facts.

Labels does not only helps us to recognize, choose and reject the things we think are necessary, materialistically speaking, but like said before, socially as well. In a small community, sub-groups can be highly noticed depending on the label.

Let’s say the work environment is a small community. Race is definitely a form of “label”. Working outside the country in a multi-cultured environment can be challenging – most especially if it was the first time. You meet people with a different culture, with a different language and with a different religion maybe, outside your comfort zone. It is going to be a full adjustment on your side. The first thing you’ll look after are the people in the same race. Why? Finding people in the same race can filter the closest culture, language and religion. Same race = same other sub-labels in a community, mostly.

With labels, finding a group or a category we can be a part of makes it a hell lot easier. Though with every pros, comes cons.

The dominant people in these groups can take advantage of those who are lost and trying to find somewhere they belong. Songs like “Somewhere I belong” by Linkin Park and “Creep” by Radiohead – defines how us humans are struggling to find groups and how we fear for being ostracized (banished from societies). Just imagine how the third sex struggles for acceptance in a conservative, religious country. Same as the request for labels between being boyfriend, girlfriend into husband and wife and the best example maybe is the battle for position in terms of hierarchy of labels in a company (manager, directors, assistant, etc.)

According to the book of a psychologist named David Raney, “As a primate, you are keen to social cues that portend your possible ostracism from an in-group. In the wild, banishment equals death. So it follows that YOU WORK TO FEEL INCLUDED because the feeling of being left out, being the last to know, being the only one not invited to the party, is a deep and severe wound to your emotional core.” – Let’s face it, even the most introverted person needed a group somehow. Well a conference of introverts is hard to imagine, but I can see different people in hoodies holding a phone, wearing earphones sitting in dividers clapping alone in their personal space bubble. Kind of weird and funny but I can consider myself as an occasional introvert – Ambivert maybe if it is the official term for that?

Anyways, the reason why people fall in love faster in an environment which they left out or alone for the first time is very much often.

Now in that same environment you are not so much familiar, you tend to be afraid of losing someone that possibly treats you not well enough just for the fear of being left out and alone again.

The solution can be well of in the mind as well, either we tend to get used to the person/group and wait to have a better treatment from that particular person/group, or find a better person/group.     As of July 2015, there are 7.3 billion people in the world – though more options means more confusion, choices are necessary to know what we really desire and how to have it.

Labels might be infuriating and a mess but labels are necessary that will always separate us from others but for now, we can depend on it as a human nature’s way of organizing things. 

Jesus! Even this post needs labels.

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Trials and Karma, The hidden relationship

Ever heard of the story about looking through a glass filled halfway with water? Then the spectator will be asked about his/her perception about the given visuals of this glass, whether it’s a photo or an actual glass of water. The outcome expected was originally just two answers: Half-full or half-empty. Then professors, speakers or motivators will explain about how your perception about this experiment affects your everyday view about everything. If you see it as half-full, you’re a positive thinker and if you see it half-empty, you’re a negative Nancy. I have no idea how this story went viral. Quotes encrypted on the image of the glass of water was posted everywhere. The problem was you never had the chance to think about your perception on this short project. Before you even think about how you will react on the half-full/half-empty glass of water appeared on your newsfeed, you’ve already read that the only choice was this two things which is: Half-full/optimist and Half-empty/pessimist.

Plot Twist!

                Better than the original. Why are we limited to black and white when there’s another color lying around somewhere? Alright I know you’re thinking, “What’s your point?” – This is not really about the glass; or about pessimists/optimists thing; or about dragons… It’s how simple things affect people’s mind. How people would accept options given to them, as if it’s the only option they can choose from. Remember that math exam that had a multiple choice? Yeah, I hate that too. Especially that letter “d. none of the above”. – And if your teacher hated you enough, it will have a follow up instruction of “if none of the choices have the answer, write the answer in the blank” Yup! Good times, good times. But in reality, that style of answering questions in our daily lives is the proper ones. We should not be limited on the choices given to us by trying to take what the large consensus had been doing, or the norms. It’s like reinforcing the “think outside the box” because cultures are these boxes, and we’re living inside of it – Not questioning the flaws of it, but just given to see it negatively or positively. Like “you’re either with us or against us” cliché.

                Since we’re starting to visualize the past, let’s go further on our nostalgia express. Remember the high school days when there was that one girl you hated because of her slutty style flaunting the guys. Then you’d say in the back of your head “wow, what a bitch” when in reality you should all just be studying, but you watched too much teen movies so you lived your high school years like it. Better yet, that bully or the guy who insistently copies your home works and test papers with no consent whatsoever. You hate that guy. Then few years later, you heard that he didn’t pass college or stop doing school. You say to yourself – “KARMA’s sizzling up this dude’s fate plate” with your eyes glaring in a distant and a half grin on your face. That was really awful of you, but you think he probably deserved it right? And that’s the overused definition of Karma – “what comes around, goes around… bitch.”

                Then let’s make the same story, but on the different perspective. Let say your best friend did well throughout his existence. He have helped people, and made them feel better about themselves. He was the motivator of the class, and the peacemaker of your group. He is, in general, the good guy in this story. Suddenly, you lost connection with him after high school. Few years later you heard a story that he didn’t made it through college. You, now on a different perspective and in subjective opinion, thought – “I think whatever happened to him was just a TRIAL in his life, or a TEST. I’m sure he’ll be better and he can conquer it, I hope.” See the difference on how people see things differently, subjectively. But we don’t question it, do we? Did us even thought about the connection or the similarity on how we see “Karmas” and “Trials”, maybe some few individuals had already figured that out.

                We’ve seen and heard what people are already been saying to us. Motivating/comforting us on the same things over on over again. So we think bad things happen to bad people is called “Karma” and bad things happen to good people are called “Tests” or “Trials”. We never tend to question why? My thoughts are this, we never accept complicated and valid data. We only accept what is simple to understand, or what we want to hear. People hate choices, subconsciously. Free choice and big decisions drains the brain energy, that’s why passive people feel at ease than the dominant or aggressive ones. We hate it when people tell us what to do, but in reality we’ve been doing things society tells us to believe.

It’s easier to be instructed than to be the instructor. Just think about this – In school, what’s the difference between listening to your professor and doing a report in front of the class. Which is easier for you? 

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