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 |   Second blog -- answers to an ocean of prompts |
 "Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself." CHARLIE CHAPLIN  Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet confinement of your aloneness to learn anything or anyone that does not bring you alive is too small for you. David Whyte        This is my supplementary blog in which I will post entries written for prompts. |
| Prompt: "The two most powerful warriors are patience and time." Leo Tolstoy, War and Peace Write about this quote in your Blog entry today. ========= My truth is, my patience I had to work on very hard all my life. As to my time, it is running out but I'm trying to make every moment count. Well, who said existence wasn't complex! In our existence, patience and time may not really be warriors because together they may win or not. As to the relationship between the two, it is not always friendly, either. There are moments frozen in time, etched in memory, where the idea of patience is elusive. Yet, the potential for change and renewal is there, but only sometimes, when the virtue of patience becomes intertwined with time. The passage of time allows for reflection, understanding, and acceptance. Through its temporary perspective, griefs and grievances may lose their sharp edges, and the weight of our burdens may lighten. Then, while the time flies, it gifts us the promise of a new beginning, a fresh opportunity to embrace life. . |
| Prompt: A weed is but an unloved flower." Ella Wheeler Wilcox Write about this quote in your blog entry today ------ I have to say that the nature of beauty changes from eye to eye. In other words, beauty is subjective. In plant life, most weeds can be beneficial for our ailments, although we don't want them in our flower beds as they have a knack for taking over and harming or crowding out the flowers. When the quote applies to people, however, it may mean that human beings who may be seen as undesirable or troublesome may have hidden qualities that go unnoticed and unappreciated. What we see as flaws or shortcomings in others may be unique qualities waiting to be appreciated. Such human weeds, too, like in plant life, can reveal their true use when given the understanding and opportunity. Among such individuals, Nikola Tesla comes to mind. From my Google search, *"Tesla invented, predicted or contributed to development of hundreds of technologies that play big parts in our daily lives -- like the remote control, neon and fluorescent lights, wireless transmission, computers, smartphones, laser beams, x-rays, robotics and, of course, alternating current, the basis of our present-day electrical system." Yet, Tesla was not a savvy businessman and suffered financially. From my Google Search again, **"Tesla had obsessive compulsive disorder, which compelled him to do things in threes, including only inhabiting a hotel room that was divisible by the number three. He had an obsession with pigeons and an aversion to women wearing earrings, contributing to his reputation as eccentric. He suffered a nervous breakdown when he was young, and may have had dementia before he died. He never married." I had also read somewhere that he is deemed as being autistic posthumously. Now, was Nikola Tesla a weed? Maybe to the people around him at the time. He might have been looked at as weird and wacky. But look, how useful he has been to humanity! This means we need to seek the hidden beauty in people who may be overlooked or misunderstood. It is a reminder for empathy, understanding, and open-mindedness so the unique qualities and potential in each person contributes to a more inclusive and compassionate human family. *https://dragonattheendoftime.com/nicola-tesla/ **https://www.aaas.org/brilliant-and-tortured-world-nikola-tesla |
| Prompt: A Whole New World If you were to create a new planet and a whole new world, what would it look like and what kind of people would its inhabitants be? ---- I am not an expert on world building, but I've always wanted a better earth. So I'll start by naming my ideal planet Terra 2. Terra 2 orbits a star very similar to our sun, in a habitable zone with the existence of liquids and especially water. This planet has a diverse landscape, ranging from lush, emerald-green forests to vast blue oceans that stretch across several large continents. Its mountain ranges pierce the skyline with breathtaking waterfalls cascading down their sheer cliffs. The atmosphere, composed of a perfect blend of gases, ensures the best conditions for life to flourish. A remarkable feature of Terra 2 is its flora that gives off an ethereal glow even during the nights. And yes, Terra 2 has nights and days as it revolves on its axis as well revolving around its star. The trees and plants with many more hues and colors than here on earth give off a soft light that is comforting and beneficial to all other life other than themselves. But then, this is the thing with Terra 2. All life on it supports all other life to keep its delicate ecological balance. Wildlife on Terra 2 is equally diverse and fascinating. Majestic winged creatures soar through the skies and beneath the surface of the ocean are coral reefs, kelp forests, and other aquatic life. Better yet, not one live organism eats any other live organism, plant or animal. Their food sources are automatically obtained from the oceans or the mountains and that food never spoils. The people on Terra 2 are connected to the planet innately, nurturing its nature. Even their architecture is eco-friendly. These inhabitants coexist in balance and harmony and absorb their differences, if any, through many creative endeavors such as art, music, and other ways that they have created. These people are highly evolved with qualities of empathy, wisdom, and an appreciation for their connection to one another and to their planet. Their outer forms look like humans but with elegant expressive eyes that shine like their flora. Inwardly, they believe in collective consciousness that unites all beings as they have advanced intellects with a focus on harmonious living. The education in their schools encourages a deep understanding of the planet's systems as well as a sense of responsibility, while highly valuing all arts and community and cooperation. Their transportation systems use their innate powers to move from one place to another in thought first, then in body. This way they don't need any outside energy that could dirty their air and waters. They have no divisive ideologies, religions, laws, countries, states, or even groups or cliques, and they coexist harmoniusly with their planet and each other. As such, conflict is almost non-existent. Should a slight disagreement come up, they approach it with empathy and diplomacy and they encourage compromise and dialogue. Therefore, their disputes, if any, are solved through peaceful means. In short, the Terra 2 inhabitants are highly evolved, elegant beings that do justice to the beauty of their planet. . |
| What do you think of rumor starters and gossipers? Do their rumors and gossip eventually come back to bite them? Did you ever write a story about rumors and gossip starters? ----------- I think, in essence, rumor starters and gossipers are people with a natural curiosity about the lives of other people. They sometimes do what they do with a desire for social connection. and then at other times, to assert power and control. Even if some rumors may have a basis in truth, they are usually exaggerated. Some, however, may be entirely fabricated. Yes, rumors and gossip eventually can come back to bite their starters, even when a rumor is not too hurtful. For one thing, such people lose credibility because no one will believe what they say or take them seriously again. On us, the listeners' part, it is important to question the validity of such information and to check its truth before sharing it with other people. We have to recognize that not all rumors can be easily refuted, and sometimes, the best course of action is to focus on promoting a culture of empathy and understanding, both on the rumor starter or gossiper and the people that false information has hurt. I don't believe I ever wrote a story about rumors and gossip starters since I never thought of this concept before. I think, however, that could be an interesting idea for fiction. Probably, crime writers might use gossip and rumors more effectively than most other writers. Then, just a Google search gave me these books on rumors and gossip: The Rumor: A Novel by Hilderbrand, Elin The Gossip Monster by Katherine Follett Gossip: A Novel by Beth Gutcheon The Stuff That Never Happened: A Novel by Maddie Dawson The Things We Don't See by Savannah Brown Unfortunately, I wasn't even aware that these books and many others like them existed. I may have encountered a piece of gossip or rumor in a story, but I can't even recall that at this moment. I guess I should be more aware of the rumors and gossip idea in fiction as those things have been an integral part of human communication. As the movie “Star Wars” declares, “there is a dark side to the force.” |
| Day 3025 March is a tomboy with tousled hair, a mischievous smile, mud on her shoes, and a laugh in her voice.” ― Hal Borland Tell us about some of your childhood antics when your hair was tousled, and you had a mischievous smile. ------- Gosh, this is so far away that even the pale memory of my antics feel like they belong to someone else. What I know from what the others have told me that I never did naughty stuff like raiding the cookie jar or drawing on the walls. If anything, I was naughty when and if another kid was around just to stay pals with her or him. To begin with, I did worry about the cats my aunt had in the house and their kittens and I would hold the newborns very gently even though my grip may not have been the best for their health, but my aunt instructed me not to touch the kittens at all. So, I just sat by and talked to them and told them the stories my grandmother used to tell me. To this day, I like talking to the cats and other animals. But the worst thing I did was this: I once opened the front door when no one was looking and lifted the latch on the gate outside by taking a chair and stepping on it to reach the latch. Then I brought the chair back and escaped to the beach and became the "lost child" in the community. Even this was done without any bad intention because we were already going to the beach and the adults took their time getting ready for it. That certain beach, at that time, was the country club of the community, so in hindsight, I can understand the adults' attention for their looks and whatever. I probably was tired of waiting for them. My poor family searched all over town, while my mother had several fainting spells, as they thought I was abducted. Then, someone thought of the beach. They found me there playing on the sand, all happy and agrin. Do I want to re-live the sweetness of my childhood antics back? Nope! I don't like any backview or hindsight for things that'll never come back. This is because, I believe, in a child's mind, those days couldn't be carefree or enchanting for children depend on adults and their whims and kids have little to do or say in most things due to their lack of life experiences. Childhood and its antics cannot be considered sweet and carefree, even when looking back with an adult's eyes. Plus, I have difficulty in believing in the assumption that a little chaos can be harmonious in the grand orchestration of life. Wouldn't no chaos be better? |
| Prompt: “Life is pleasant. Death is peaceful. It's the transition that's troublesome.” ― Isaac Asimov ----- Life is pleasant? Many people would object to that. Life is pleasant only on occasion; otherwise, it is just hard. Yet, that's all we have and that's all we know about for certain. As to death, who says it's peaceful? We won't know it fully until we experience it. As "life is a stage," we are all playing a role before the cosmos and dancing the intricate dance of the molecules of matter and energy. The way I see it, at its best, life is a continuous exploration, a series of chapters written with the ink of time. As an aside, I can't take my mind off from writing, can I! Yet, into life, we weave our experiences, emotions, and our existence as we know it. Then, woven into our fabric is the inevitability of death, accompanying us, as if our shadows, every step of the way. As to that transition, it leads us into the unknown. Do we merge with the eternal there or maybe return to life as cosmic energy? Who knows! We may believe or not in the religions, philosophies, and cultural boundaries that explain and assess death and the transition in between as the integral parts of our being. Still, who can know and insist for sure, unless when experiencing it first-hand? This is not to be disrespectful to anyone's beliefs--and I am a strong believer myself--but similarly, how can we know about pain or joy or anything else while watching someone in pain, in joy, or in anything else, unless we are experiencing it ourselves? We'll know for sure about that transition--whether it is troublesome or not--after we enter it, when it becomes a gateway to the eternal for each one of us. For, in our outfits of existence, each thread is essential, and each of us represent a unique expression of the Creator. . |
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