Being adrift through space, wandering for eternity, and I have yet to come in contact with anyone else like me. We were really alone in this massive gulf. Such a pointless existence not to have shared galactic wonder with other species.
I lay dormant and thwarted.
Disappointed and frustrated with the silence. Locked inside a mammoth hole, this mammoth desolation. This act of desperation merely made a validation of the vulnerability of the human condition. Predisposed to triggers and forms of ravaging malice had often destroyed hope of finding a temporary solution to the pain.
In space I wander if I will discover freedom for the human race as they have now lost all hope for salvation and I have been travelling here, in empty wonder and loneliness for eons.
I have not recorded much in my log if I were to be found dead no one will know of the struggle our civilization had to endure. With the passing of asteroids and beautiful, dark planets, I can conclude that I will drift endlessly through a passing vacuum of time.
I can conclude, for certainty, no further discoveries had been made to aide our helpless attempts of longevity. As my coordinates are set for V354 Cephei, I will return to the stars a broken man, with broken aspirations in one final attempt to find an answer worth dying for.
Never Settle for Second Best!
I am a guest speaker addressing a hall full of university graduates.
I feel privileged to be invited to one of the most prestigious universities that planet Earth has to offer. I’m not really sure if another planet has a better university, but I’m willing to risk my reputation on that.
With all the speeches that I have heard throughout all the years I have been in the education system, most if not all, have been complete rambles of big words that didn’t make any sense and had little, if not, any purpose to me. I never really remembered a single word they said.
Could it be that they had a fear inside to really tell students and graduates what the real world is like outside of the education system? Were they bound by a set of rules that they had to deliver a speech according to the legislation that had been written using a black ink pen? I never really found out the reason, I never got a set of rules, so it couldn’t be that exactly. I thought about this and what wandered inside my mind were thoughts that, maybe they didn’t really care to address points of realism or they never really wanted you to know their secrets of success. I’m a blunt person who never lies, I should say, I don’t lie that often. I would imagine that is why this university thought I would be the ideal person for the job. That could be their biggest mistake, perhaps, with modesty aside, they chose the best option.
I’m not going to use big fancy words or use flowery phrases and quotes from past inspirational icons. I’m going to tell you how life is and how to focus your thinking so you’re ready to take on what lies ahead.
You’re all about to leave your comfort zones and go into the workforce not knowing exactly what is going to happen. That’s alright; there is nothing wrong with not knowing what you’re doing. The only way to get there is by hard work and trusting that gut feeling you have inside. It’s all a risk; after all, it’s no different than picking your subjects in high school and choosing which degree to do at university. It’s all picking something that will hopefully work out in the end. Many people have plans and hopes; don’t be surprised if plans don’t go according to plan. You have to trust in yourself, trust a feeling, something that tells you what is right and go with it. You won’t be able to look into the future and pick what exactly you want. However, when you do get there, you can look back and see how it all worked out. You never knew what you were really doing, you picked and chose and you put in the hard work which got you there in the end.
I never knew what I was doing, but that’s not a bad thing. If I look back now, I can see how the choices I made got me to where I am today. If I didn’t make that particular choice, it would have affected every other choice and I probably wouldn’t be giving this speech to you now.
As you move along in life and you have taken the first steps to start and assemble your career, no doubt, you might or how I would like to put it, fall in love. This could come up at anytime and affect any situation you might have. If you’re anything like me in terms of relationships, you wouldn’t settle for second best. Sorry, I used the wrong word in there, NEVER settle for second best. I really can’t stress this enough! You would only ever get into a relationship where feelings and emotions are maximised. It’s very rare, but it exists and finding it will be the most fulfilling thing you could ever do in your life. The sad part is, most never really find it, let alone experience the feeling. The best advice you can ever receive is to search for it and the only place you can is if you look inside yourself and trust your heart. It sounds clichéd and sentimental, but don’t be surprised when you find that person, you suddenly feel a rush of emotion and you start to become dazed. You will know it’s because you belong with them. If you feel like you belong, you know its right. You will feel it, because it’s right!
Like anything in life, you will need to love everything you do, the same way you will feel like you love and belong with the person you’re with. Remembering never settling for second best, it only gets better knowing you’re with someone you love and in a career you love. It’s basically your whole life, so you wouldn’t settle for the second prize. It will not come on your first shot, it might not even come in several chances that you do get, and sometimes I would even imagine that the chance will never come. I don’t say this to cast a dark shadow on your hopes and what you want to accomplish, it’s just a little introduction to the next part of what I’m going to tell you. ‘Never’, ‘come’ are strong use of words and you mentality would justify this and it will only be yourself and no one else that would change it.
Through all the lessons in life you have come to learn and receive and through the losses and the trials you have been through, they have all given you invaluable life experiences. When you fail, no one else is paying as much attention as you are. You must learn from your failures and move on. Nothing comes from sitting in the corner wishing for some miracle that will never come. Don’t take failure as the higher power above is trying to make your life miserable, were not even sure if a higher power exists, so really, you’re talking to yourself. You just need to realise that with all failures comes lessons that need to be learned. With all failures comes with alternative pathways that is most likely much better than the path you were on before. Sometimes, failing re-directs your mind and puts you on a path that was better than before and opens more opportunities for you. You might never really make it or you move on and see which other doors that are hiding have left for you. You’re bound to open a door that’s right. Always account for variable change, you just might not know what opens up for you when something doesn’t quite work out.
I took a slightly different approach when diving into the depths of the numerous areas life has to offer and the layers of problems that can be found. I’m not giving you anecdotes to these situations; I’m merely pressing what it is and what there is to be found. Anecdotes are used to persuade you that these moments in life do happen. With every story you’re going to hear, there is always going to be what didn’t work out and abruptly how everything came together again. You don’t want to hear this, at the end of the day, you just want to know the message it brings and the moral of the story. The most successful people in the world have amazing stories to tell you and of course you will hear about their fairytale ending. Truth be told, not everyone has that fairytale ending and mostly some people will eventually break down trying to get there. They’re those people who are not successful and you will never get to hear their story, it will never be told because it’s seen as a complete and utter failure and does no good to graduates entering a new phrase of their life. If you have never failed, how can you measure your impending success? Through other people’s failures?
I can assure you, those successful people at one time or another had no idea what they were doing as well. They were hoping for the best and they stuck to what they trusted inside. They put in the hard work and they experienced failure more times than once. Some failures even got them their fairytale ending; it opens their eyes and other paths that lead them in the right direction. They chose to go with what they loved and never settled for anything less. Most people never really realise how close they were to success, because when they had failed, they stopped. Who would have known? They would have needed just one more step to succeed. Sometimes the sacrifice is an overwhelming concept.
With all that I have said, does it even matter if you all were going to live forever? It probably wouldn’t matter. Since you would have all eternity to succeed in anything you choose to do, you could do whatever you want, at your convenience. But, the reality of it is, that is not quite true. We all will have to face death, one way or another, even if we run away, our joints will get arthritis or something like that to put us at a disadvantage. Not really fair when death doesn’t get old! With all jokes aside, if everyone in the world has to deal with this reality, why not use death on our side? What does anyone have to lose? You’re put on this life and you’re taken away from this life just as you were put in it. Understanding that someday this reality will hit us, why not make the most of the time we have? Does it really matter if you failed in something you did in your life when death comes knocking? Does it matter that you were afraid to speak to that girl or boy you liked from across the room? Death has no limitations; it just takes what it wants, when it wants. It’s not embarrassed that it might fail, it’s not fearful of anything; it has no expectations but one goal in mind. We don’t have to be any different towards that mindset. If it’s certain that death is going to knock on our doors, then what is the delay from doing whatever you want, to achieve what you want to do, with what your heart tells you to?
Life can be given as fast as it can be taken away, with that in mind, you learn to appreciate every detail in life and all of a sudden, appreciation is something you will grow to love in the end.
It’s better to look at death as a concept more than anything else. This is my exit strategy to get out of the depressing mess I got myself into. In all truth, no one wants to let go of the world, even if heaven is the next destination, I’m sure many people would rather take another route than death. Unfortunately, there isn’t another route and if you look towards the sunset, there is only one road. So, if we have time ticking away life in the corner there, we should never waste it on trivial matters and what other people think when they try to put you down. Learn to pave your own way and go head on towards what you want to achieve. What have you got to lose? We are all going on that same route to one destination, go there with style.
I don’t really know if I saved myself with that exist strategy, but even if it didn’t, am I going to let that bother me with what I know now? Of course not, well, maybe a little.
I have learnt to live with three key words that have made my mind at ease to allow me to continue going forward. If you can find respect, trust and loyalty in relationships you develop or with that special someone, you will find that true happiness will become your being. Learn to appreciate life itself and when they say to love truly, you better believe it! I hope you all have great lives and achieve wonderful things.
Remember, never settle for second best!
Thank you all very much!
Just by the water, I sat on the bench looking over the horizon.
It was silent and the world seemed like it will never end.
The sky kept on going, looming away into the distance.
That’s how I remember that day, no matter how far I was able to see, it felt like there was no end.
Even though I felt my heartache, I looked over the horizon and something inside of me changed. It’s as if someone had said, “Everything will be alright.”
When I came down from the hill, I felt the anxiousness creep up and the heartache … over the hill the sky kept moving forward, going further into the distance as I looked back for one more time, holding on to each breath.
For a moment there, I swear I heard the world say, “Everything will be alright.”
Did you notice what’s in a number? Behind every closed door is a lock to a problem we have thrown away the keys for.
In searching for this key, we become powerless.
In 2010, 285 million people have type 2 diabetes worldwide.
More than 121 million people suffer from depression worldwide
64 million people have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease worldwide in 2004. By 2030, it is estimated to be the fourth leading cause of death worldwide due to an increase of people smoking. 3 million people died of COPD in 2005.
It’s estimated 57 million people die a year.
26.6 million people worldwide have Alzheimer’s disease in 2006.
10.8 million people are diagnosed with cancer per year and 6.7 million die from it.
8.8 million new cases of tuberculosis and 1.5 million deaths in 2010 worldwide.
7.6 million children under five years of age died in 2010 worldwide. That’s 21,000 children each day and 900 children every hour.
7.25 million people died of heart disease in 2008.
6.15 million people died from a stroke in 2008.
3.46 million people died of lower respiratory tract infection worldwide in 2008.
Multiple sclerosis affects 2.5 million people worldwide. In the United States, one person is diagnosed every hour.
Alcohol claims 2.5 million people each year.
1.78 million people died from HIV/AIDS in 2008. In 2010, 34 million people have AIDS worldwide.
1.39 million people died from lung cancer in 2008. 1.37 million people die every year from lung cancer.
Tobacco is a major cause of heart disease, lung disease and lung cancer. Tabacco is responsible for the death of one in 10 adults worldwide. Tobacco is a hidden statistic.
In 2008, 99% of children under five years of age who died were from low to middle income countries.
1.21 million people died from road traffic accidents in 2008.
Suicide takes the life of one million people every year and an estimated 20 million attempted suicides every year worldwide.
520,00 people were murdered in 2000 worldwide.
There’s 250,000 cases of rape reported annually that covers 65 countries.
It’s hard to notice when the window looking outside has a rainbow with no end. It’s hard to see the road back when the mist covers your tracks. There’s an empty seat here for you to notice that when the rain drops and hits the ground, to an ant, it’s a tidal wave of dreams never realised. And when the lighting hits on a rainy day, you will question that you thought the umbrella will save you from the fall. But you sing the chorus and you’ll wait for Christmas, but you know your family isn’t coming home. You put your dad’s old record of Elvis and listen to his sadness and by the time the song ends, you’ll see by all these numbers that you’re likely to be covered in darkness. In the night of despair, you wonder how your fear could be so heartless.
When did we become so helpless?
Fate is uncontrollable.
Don’t believe in fate, however, the concept expresses enough truth to warrant its place in existence.
Lying in bed with the lights off, hands behind your head and eyes wide open with the ceiling welcoming your attention. What goes through your mind? Is there a sense of appreciation in pondering life’s many enigmas? It’s your quiet time.
Insecurities become apparent as they have always been; never clouded. Not noticing them for a while as the feeling of knowing is enough for you to stop going.
Stop caring? You understand and you’re certain everyone else stares at their ceiling; with this assumption relief gently passes over your chest.
It’s not so different.
We often believe we’re walking away from problems, but we forget how our problems are holding our hands. Problems don’t believe in an end or a beginning, they have always existed in the dark. Questioning their origin, questioning like if a God exists. A delicate system made by rules associated with no logical answer.
Answers, that’s a thirst worth craving for, a lusting divine so elusive, oblivion will enclose our curiosity in due time. Best to wait for hope, but it’s not coming.
Human is what we are, a process, rules and principles governed by time and aging. Once this concept is understood entirely, a moment of obsolete is born.
Obsolete.
The system whispers simulated emotions and feelings into your ear. It lingers while you understand not understanding this moment and for that moment to exist in something that didn’t exist.
If you’re overwhelmed with this emotion, your reaction speaks in actions. The tear’s breath chokes on its own moist; it’s that point where you cry and feel in the deepest part of your throat that something is embracing the loss. In that moment, it’s a matter of minutes before they have all gone.
It’s over, is it really over?
Bringing the camera back to you lying on your bed, powerless, you had it, it slipped, you knew it and you don’t know it.
All it takes is one blink of an eye and everything is gone, within a second is an eternity if you want it to last that long. There’s no reason, no explanation, it is what it is. The cycle continues with you lying on your bed with that tear falling and stopping, falling and stopping and eventually, suddenly, it moves swiftly past your cheek.
You realise, this experience will happen again in reality and in your dreams.
That’s the way it is. It’s not going to change, before you existed and in the darkness of your life, this is where you will be for the rest of your timeless existence.
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