Happy Landings!

There is an old quote that says:  "To love is to risk not being loved in return."

I was having a discussion with a friend recently about the concept of rejection.  Someone was pursuing their romantic interest which just wasn't there.  They were feeling a bit guilty about rejecting this person but since the feelings were not there; the only other solution would be to give in and start a relationship with someone with for whom you have no interest.  Kind of between a rock & a hard place when you don't want to hurt someone's feelings nor do you want to grow old and die with someone that you didn't really want to be with in the first place.

I think most of us have been on both sides of this coin at one time or another in our lives.  Granted, on the surface, it probably seems easier to be the rejector than the rejectee but I am not sure that is always true.  This person was really taking to heart the pain they would be inflicting on that other person's psyche.  But as the old saying goes - 'the heart wants what the heart wants' (or vice versa).  I've been the rejector and I've been the rejected.  It sucks to have to be one or the other.  We can guide, maneuver or influence many things in our lives: our careers, our interests, our hobbies, our friends and our families but I don't believe that we can make our hearts want something, or someone, that it doesn't.  We're quite powerless, actually.  Maybe that's why love can be so very sweet or, worse yet, so very bitter.

But then again....maybe that's the reward for the daredevil act of putting one's heart on the line.  If you're a stunt cyclist you probably crashed all the time while learning your craft  Probably far more crashes than successful landings.  Although, I'll bet they would tell you that one successful landing makes all the pain of the previous crashes go away.

Here's to those that are kicking their tires, revving their engines and getting ready to once again take that mighty leap of faith!   Happy Landings, Everyone!


.....and on that note - I'm outta here!

Karmic Realignment

Lately, I have been thinking a lot about the concept of Karma.  When people mention Karma I think most people tend to think about it from the negative side, i.e. "do bad - get bad".  I think that there is some merit to both sides of the karma koin though.  I don't think I've ever been "a bad person" but I certainly believe that there has been a lot of room for improvement.   The last couple of years, I have been trying to realign the Karma in my life, i.e. "do good - get good".  I think it's more of an effort to be on the good side of karma whereas it's pretty darn easy to fall prey to the dark side (and, YES, they do have cookies).

I have a friend, we'll call him "Stan".   Stan is one of the good guys.  Stan is on everybody's list of the proverbial "nice guy".  Stan is someone that has been in my circle for about 10 years now and was very instrumental with my move to Nashville and also to me reevaluating whether or not I was truly "one of the good guys".   When I looked at my life - I realized to my own dismay that perhaps I wasn't that much of  "a good guy" or at the very least I could certainly stand to be more like "Stan".  Stan has this affect on a lot of people.  It was an eye-opener.

This awakening has been a big part of my Karmic Realignment.  This has become more than just a philosophy - it has become something that I strive to achieve.  No, it's not my religion and no, I don't believe in the concept of good works buying anyone's ticket to a heavenly hereafter.  However, I do believe that you get what you give.  Why shouldn't we?  If you're mean to people then why should people be nice to you?  If you take from other people then why shouldn't it happen to you?   Sure bad things happen to good people but at least then it's a tragedy or unfortunate.  When Karma bites someone in the ass that has it coming - then Karma is doing its job.  When good things happen to people that deserve them there is a sense of order and that maybe, just maybe, Karma is keeping it's part of the bargain and bringing balance to the world.

I've been making a conscious effort to focus on the good side and believe me it takes A LOT of effort.   It's so easy to be negative and to feed that negative side of our soul.  I'm not perfect and I am certainly not trying to say that I am above the bad thoughts that invade our minds.  There have been people that have hurt me over the years and I am certainly not wishing for them to win the lottery or anything like that.  I am, however, just trying to keep that out of my circle.  Indifference is often the best weapon for me and I try to remain indifferent to the point of non-existent.  Again , it's not easy and I don't always succeed - but I try.  Hopefully, Karma recognizes effort as a positive.

Oh and Karma is also one of my favorite CDs by Winger but I think that is more of a coincidence than anything to do with this blog


.......and on that note - I'm outta here! 



~ JM