David and Goliath

There he was, hanging off the side of a frozen waterfall.
David was a speck in the landscape full of giants and he struck his ice pick into one.
Sheer determination, he thought was the best way to conquer this goliath.

It was a quarter past noon and the ice was starting to glaze from the sun. The slight warmth soothed him but made his trek treacherous. Five minutes ago, he saw a chunk of ice smash into the frozen river below. It reminded him that one misstep or bad luck, it was his turn to paint the river with pieces of his flesh. He was also running out of time. The giants took the sun away at three and darkness is a beast you don't want creeping up climbing frozen water.

David swung his ice pick over the ledge and made sure it held his weight. With tremendous effort that was depleted a while ago, he crawled on to the horizon. Gravity was his enemy for the day but here, flat on his back, it was his friend.

Blue sky.

The height that David thought was "not that bad" at the bottom was stupendous up here. He looked down with great triumph at the fallen giant and roared. The canyons roared back in applause and gilded him with rays from the sun. He gave a quick bow and headed to shore. There was no time. Darkness arrives without permission and shadows were already creeping up the cliff face. 

David was glad that it was a calm night. He made camp on a flat boulder overlooking the river. The embers from his fire glowed and cracked the silence with staccatos. Before falling asleep, David found peace connecting the stars in the sky. The heavens were generous with wishes as long as he was patient. The longer he stared into the diamond studded abyss, the better his chances were of catching one falling. 

-SS

Virtues

George Washington Carver's 8 virtues

1st. Be clean both inside and out.

2nd. Neither look up to the rich or down on the poor.

3rd. Lose, if need be, without squealing.

4th. Win without bragging.

5th. Always be considerate of women, children, and older people.

6th. Be too brave to lie.

7th. Be too generous to cheat.

8th. Take your share of the world and let others take theirs.

In Pursuit

Think of yourself in the future.

Now - Hold this image.

And then visit yourself where you are now, and how you feel now.

Now - Hold this image of your future memory visiting yourself now.

re - collecton

Pretty Girl

1. So I’m walking across campus and I come across someone who’s dressed like they came straight out of Vogue magazine. Boots that match her leather jacket and scarf that match her pants. Her make-up and hair flawless. Bomb looking girl; I just want to give her a thumbs up for taking the time to look extra-beautiful today.

Ethereal Moment

2. I visited a place this weekend where time did not exist. There was no past, no future, no regrets, no stress. It was raining and my best friends and I were chillin in the car. R&B was playing in the background and for a moment everything disappeared. There was absolute silence except the individual drops of rain hitting the roof to the beat of the music. Then I heard my friend gently hum-sing to the tune and I went somewhere ethereal. It was absolute beauty, a true bliss. I was in the company of my best friends, raindrops, R&B, and her voice. I was immersed in the essence of the moment. I felt the raindrops slide down my skin and her voice flowing through the air. I was suspended in serenity till the song ended; life came back and it was over. 

Mental Conversation

3. I’m sitting outside on a warm summer afternoon and I just finished a paragraph in my book. I look up across the patio and I see a girl casually sitting with her legs crossed and reading something on her phone. Her teal dress accompanied the clear sky and her toffee stranded hair scattered across her ears. She reached into her shopping bag on the chair next to her and grabbed a piece of red vine. She casually chewed on the red stick of liquorish, taking her time to absorb whatever she just read. There was a slight chill with the breeze and she adjusted her beige cardigan that matched her wedge heel.

Scores of people walk by and some go into Starbucks and some are waiting for the light to change. The air out on the patio is filled with conversation and laughter and the girl takes another red vine. She nonchalantly looks around; her eyes and ears stopping at each table to inspect its guests. As her senses makes its rounds, her eyes meet mine and we gaze into each others eyes.

She’s pretty.

With our gaze locked we mentally talked about the people around us. Or I hoped that was the exchange that took place. Seconds felt like minutes and before it got awkward, I ended our conversation. When I looked up again, the pretty girl wearing the sky was gone, never to be seen again except in my fading memory.

Coffee Shops

4. I really enjoy coffee shops. No, I love coffee shops. It’s a transformation machine. I walk in groggy and in a horrible mood, but once I step inside, the sweet aroma of coffee and that jazzy music starts to lift my spirits. I order and sit down staring off into the artwork on the wall. Empty-minded, I get lost and pretend I’m part of the art. Like, I somehow, by staring blankly, I transcend myself into the painting. I disappear until the barista comes over and places a hot, steaming mocha latte in front of me. “Enjoy!” she says. 

The first sip is always heavenly. It’s familiar and new at the same time. It livens my palate and lights a spark. The more I sip the bigger the fire becomes until my insides are warm and my mind buzzing. I can feel the caffeine coursing through my veins.The music changes to something more upbeat and my foot starts to tap to the music.

I’m Ready. Ready to start the day and get things done. The world becomes brighter and my mind clears like a foggy morning to a sunny afternoon. I am transformed. Time to get to work. 

Salted Sea Breeze

5. His foot slid into the sun-baked beach, wiggling his toes to root them deep into the sand. The warm energy from the earth flowed from his toes to the edges of his fingers and it kindled his soul.

He ran those fingers through his hair making sure each strand experienced the salted sea breeze.

He took a deep breath filling every corner of his body with the crisp ocean air and exhaled all his negative energy into the passing wind.

He saw the sun poke out of the ocean fog and felt the individual rays meet the energy from his soul. He felt immortal and as long as he was anchored, his spirit flowed free. 

SS

Words of Encouragement

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. -1 Corinthians 10:13. 

"I'm having a hard time coping." 

          "With what?"

"With life and love and being lonely and watching all my friends walk away from me, even the ones I didn't think would leave." 

Amore

A man quit his job and went searching across the nation to see how love was defined between people. Heres what he found out. 

Self Love

The happiest couples always consisted of two (sometimes more) emotionally healthy and independently happy individuals. These people practiced self-love. They treated themselves with the same type of care that they treated their partner... or at least they tried to.

Emotionally healthy people know how to forgive, they are able to acknowledge their part in any disagreement or conflict and take responsibility for it. They are self-aware enough to be assertive, to pull their weight, and to give love when it's most difficult.

Commitment

After that emotional health came an unquestioning level of commitment. The happiest couples knew that if shit got real, their significant other wasn't going to walk out on them. They knew that even if things got hard - no, especially if things got hard - they were better off together. The sum of the parts is greater than the whole.

Trust

Happy couples trust each other... and they have earned each others' trust. They don't worry about the other person trying to undermine them or sabotage them, because they've proven over and over again that they are each other's biggest advocate. That trust is built through actions, not words. It's day after day after day of fidelity, service, emotional security, reliability.

Establish that foundation, and you're in good shape.

Intentionality

This is the icing on the cake. There's a difference between the couple who drives through the rainstorm and the couple who pulls their car to the side of the road to make out in the rain. (Yes, that's a true story.) There's a difference between the couple who kisses for 10 seconds or longer when they say goodbye to each other rather than just giving each other a peck... or nothing at all. There's a difference between the couples who encourage each other to pursue their personal goals at the expense of their own discomfort or inconvenience... even if it means their partner has to stage kiss another woman.

The couples who try on a daily basis to experience some sort of meaningful connection, or create a fun memory are the couples who shattered my perception of what was possible in a loving relationship.