Hope vs. Faith

Faith means believing that something "is" although you can't see it, but you are sure of a positive outcome. Hope, on the other hand, is the strong desire for something to happen, whose result, nevertheless, is not at all certain. Is there a connection between faith and hope? There may be, and it may even be stronger than you expect. When you have faith in something, the starting point is your wish for a specific thing to exist. Let's say that you believe in God, in love, in friendship etc. The basis of such feeling is your strong desire for God, love or friendship to be a reality. Then you build on that, and reinforce it with your (possibly unconscious) willpower, till the wish becomes a certitude. Hope, therefore, is only the first rung of the ladder. If you aren't willing or - more likely - if you aren't able to keep on 'working' on it, you won't climb higher on the spiritual level.

Art and Feelings

Is there a poet, a painter, a composer that you particularly like? What feelings do their works evoke in you? What kind of feelings are they? Have you ever wondered where do such feelings come from? Some say that the aim of art is to communicate ideas, or to create a sense of beauty, or simply for pleasure. But others say that the aim of art is to generate strong emotions. I agree with them. Art speaks to your imagination, to your sensitivity, to your heart. This explains why you love an artist but you don't like another. I often wondered why I love Renoir but not Matisse, Tchaikovsky but not Prokofiev. For another, the opposite may be true. I haven't found an explanation, though. I am just aware of the feelings they arouse in my spirit. And that's enough for me. What about you?

Merry-go-round

Have you ever imagined your life as a merry-go-round? You are riding on it, and it cannot be stopped. "You" cannot stop it. And people, many people ride with you: all the people you have ever encountered throughout your existence up to now. You are all together, running around... Sometimes it all makes sense, you know where you are going, where the goal of it all resides, other times - most times - you don't understand why you, and the others for that matter, are there. It's an intriguing thought, a fascinating image that was beautifully suggested by the final scene in the old Fellini's movie "8 1/2". We, the whole mankind, are on this crazy merry-go-round that turns, turns and never stops. Until the lights slowly become dimmer and dimmer... and finally go out.

Touchiness

An adjective whose common use has always puzzled me is "touchy". The official definition states, "marked by readiness to take offense on slight provocation". Although I admit that this makes sense, I'm not convinced that it can be applied to all situations. In fact the provocation, although it may appear as 'slight', can have a profound impact on the person concerned. When a strong feeling, or concern, or desire is challenged, even belittled, the 'slight provocation' becomes a hard blow to the person's sensibility. And 'sensibility' doesn't only mean the readiness to get offended, as most people seem to believe. It also means "the ability to appreciate and respond to complex emotional influences".  I believe there is a great differences between the two. By they way, are you 'touchy'?

Useful Illusions

In a Star Trek episode we see a planet where ugly or disabled people  have their lives changed by superior beings who create illusions that make them see themselves as beautiful, active and happy. Could the opposite happen in our very lives? Many believe that - in reality - we are pure spirits whose earthly lives are simply aiming at making us experience different kinds of negativities such as hardships, pain, danger, injustice, hate etc. What could the final purpose of all this be? In the Star Trek story the goal was clearly the creation of a happier life for poor, wretched people. In our case the aim must surely be the spiritual advancement of our true Being. No-one knows for sure, but this is certainly a comforting hypothesis that can help mankind to live with a more positive attitude. 

Friends and Interests

Sometimes it might happen that you have to accept some people exactly as they are. It is only human to wish that all your friends share your ideas and interests. You like them all, but - although you enjoy their company - you realize that you cannot share everything with some of them because they seem to walk on a different path. You appreciate what they read or watch, but they are not interested in your literary or movie tastes. You would like to occasionally talk about more uplifting topics while their interests are limited to everyday, or more prosaic affairs. What to do? If you truly like these friends just as human beings, overlook the differences and, while with them, adapt to their ways. If you don't, just walk away. As simple as that.

Nature Challenges

When something happens that compels you to change your daily routine, you can't help feeling off balance. Your habits must necessarily be altered, your timings change, even your commitments undergo some adjustments or may be even canceled. The huge amount of snow that these days has blocked the roads, knocked down the electric power, cut out the Internet, seems to have disrupted many peoples' lives. What can you do? Nothing. How can you face the situation? With a stoic attitude. Not only problems caused by snow or storm, but any unpleasant occurrence that takes place in your life should be accepted as inevitable. It's up to you to try to make the best out of it. Find a way to minimize the discomfort and convince yourself to see the whole situation as an adventure, as a challenge that you can face and overcome.

Snow

You can see snow as another symbol for Life. When it falls and lies down on the ground, it is white, pure, untouched. If it happens to fall on a high, unreachable mountain peak, it remains immaculate. But if it falls on a town, changes happen. Cars tires press it down and feet trample, dirtying, squashing, 'destroying' it. Just like a new-born soul: at first it is pure, instinctive, innocent. Then the many different kinds of conditioning it receives - from childhood to adult age - transform it, often in rather negative ways. So fear is born, aggressiveness is encouraged, greed becomes a dominant character feature. Snow can't help being trampled over. Can a soul avoid being transformed for the worse?

Be and Do

What could be better in life than to "be" good and to "do" good? When you "are" good, you behave well towards yourself: you love and approve of yourself. This means that you don't have  thoughts, attitudes, and habits that are hurtful to your mind and body. When you approve of yourself, you are aware of your potential, of your efforts, you don't blame yourself but endeavor to learn from your mistakes. When you "do" good, you perform the same actions towards others: you love and don't criticize them, because you realize that they, too, are striving to live a better life, whatever this might mean to them. You also feel the desire to give them any help they need, according to your capabilities. All this can be summarized by the words "generosity & compassion", towards yourself and towards others.