The loss of innocence

©Gleb Garanich / Reuters

It began out of nowhere. A deafening raid before the break of dawn. The baleful sound of sirens, of missiles, of bombing.

The first casualty of war is innocence.

It was lost before the sun came out. As children scrambled into basements and shelters, unable to understand what was happening and why.

In a game of power, civilians are the ones most affected. And most cannot comprehend why fate led them here.

It doesn’t matter what war we are talking about, you won’t find winners there. Both sides lose.

And that is the bitterest truth.

Also part of Your Daily Word Prompt

Advertisement

The source of a storyteller

© Roger Bultot

Being a tourist in an unknown place entails the extraordinary emotion of discovering something new, that you often don’t even expect to find.

We wander to distract our minds, to escape a mundane routine, to change sceneries and perspectives on life.

But we travel for fulfilment; to breathe in as much of the world as possible, to open our minds to things beyond the obvious.

Travelling may leave us speechless, so that we can later become storytellers.

For it is better to witness places first-hand even just once, than to simply read about them.

It’s about the sentiments they awaken.

Also part of Friday Fictioneers

Blossoming days

©MCD_Delphi

Weekend escapes are reviving mainly because they offer the much-needed getaway from our routine. Regardless of whether it’s boring or not, we all need some time away from what we usually do. If only, to change our perspective on life by merely altering the scenery around us and opening our eyes to something new.

Going to places abundant with myths and history is rejuvenating in more ways than the obvious.

And as spring approaches, nature is seemingly beautifying itself to welcome such excursions.

One of the most beautiful images of this time, is a cherry blossom in bloom.

It is so rare – the full bloom may only last a week – and short-lived (have a lifespan of 30-40 years) emphasising that pretty things should be enjoyed as long as they last, almost urging you to live the moment.

In Japanese folklore, cherry blossoms – sakura – represent the impermanent nature of life. They symbolise both birth and death, beauty and violence, as they historically signified the short but colourful life of the samurai.

Cherry blossoms are a symbolic flower of the spring, a time of renewal, and the fleeting nature of life.

Whatever they are believed to symbolise or represent, they are a majestic sight, reminding us that there is beauty everywhere, and can be enjoyed no matter how little it lasts. As long as you have the will and open-mindedness to do so.

Judges of character

© Dale Rogerson

You can tell a lot about a person from their library. What books they read. What worlds they delve into. What thoughts occupy their minds.

Like Robin Sharma said: “Ordinary people have big TVs. Extraordinary people have big libraries”.

Libraries are almost like your portrait; they reflect an image of yourself only few can see.

You can also tell a lot about a person from the pets they keep and the way they treat them. Animals are a great judge of character.

Combine the two, and you have a verdict, right there.

Happy pet and big library means special owner.

Also part of Friday Fictioneer

Don’t spook

We’ve been through a lot these past couple of years. Things we’d never even considered possible. Our way of life radically changed. Our routines, our habits, our ‘normality’. We’ve learned to expect nothing because everything can change from one minute to the next. And we’ve learned to anticipate the worst, because…well, we’ve seen it happen. We’ve seemingly lost hope but not the will to carry on.

But we’re spooked.

Because doubt and uncertainty have taken over us and our daily lives.

We spook too easy nowadays, precisely because we don’t know what to expect anymore.

We’ve been so used to the weird, the strange, the bad, the irregular, that when something ‘proper’ comes along, with no evident flaw, we’re scared. Afraid that like a bubble it will burst in our face and someone will be lurking around the corner ready to laugh.

We’re spooked because we know we deserve better but are too fearful of acknowledging that value in ourselves.

We’ve been through so much, yet we’ve survived it all.

Now we must show courage, in resisting the things we fear the most and walking straight through them. Good things are bound to happen. And perhaps everything we’re looking for is exactly on the other side of that paralysing fear.

Reason you cannot explain

He seemed oddly familiar. It took one single look to get her hacking her brain if she’d seen him before or if the resemblance to someone she knew was so uncanny.

She felt he would play a role in her life, even from the first moment their eyes crossed. She couldn’t explain why.

Instinct, after all, is reason you cannot explain.

And it would turn out to be real.

He was different to everyone else. Prudent, self-assured, active, social, funny, with witty humour, and above all, charming. He knew how to speak and act appropriately depending on the circumstances, and that was something so undervalued in people nowadays.

But expectation is a dangerous sentiment. You raise people up onto pedestals too high for them to reach at times. And when they crumble down, you’re the one to get hurt, not them.

You’re much better off if you anticipate nothing. Let life surprise you instead. Just go with what you get, and relish every moment of it.

Expect nothing and appreciate everything. It’s the way to avoid disappointment.

When it happens to you

You see it occurring all around you. You read about it, you question if it is as exaggerated – over or under – as they say. Then as it begins to happen all the more, you wonder how come you’ve been off the hook for so long. You’re almost convinced that it’s just a matter of time until it happens to you.

Until it does.

And the initial surprise is shed by the question of “OK, so now what?”

You think you’re prepared, but you never are, until it happens to you.

The challenges we face in life are not the problems per se, but the way we allow ourselves to respond to them.

Sometimes we affect our own fate, and our mentality plays a great part in that.

Stay positive (unless it’s a Covid-19 test). Think positive. Attract positive vibes.

Masked control

She sneezed and suddenly the entire bus felt tense. It was as if everyone was holding their breath and counting the seconds until the next stop so most could get off. The pandemic has made us too touchy, always on edge, afraid of almost everything. We fear intimacy because we’ve been deprived of it for so long.

Mask constantly on, she got off at the next stop – that was the plan anyway.

She was observing people as she walked by. Their eyes had become their most descriptive characteristic at the moment; when you conceal everything else, what remains becomes more noticeable and gains greater power. You could sense their exasperation with the current situation: some had already given up wearing masks altogether, others were wearing two; most were slumping as if literally bearing their troubles on their back; and more often than not, they were all irritated by something.

So that’s where we’re at: being constantly agitated and not being able to explain why. We’re tired in all ways it is possible and we lack the motivation to do the basics, let alone go the extra mile. We’re carrying all this stress that is often inexplicable and unjustifiable and we seem unable to shake it off.

It’s easier to complain than to react. Perhaps that’s what we’ve forgotten. And we’ve allowed ourselves to tolerate it all passively for so long that we’re now dwelling in the comfort of inaction, seeing no reason to change anything.

No one will push you forward or get you going unless you do. You are your own motivation, alarm clock, red alert etc. If you don’t find a reason to move, no one else will inspire you too either.

We’ve become so reliant on others, on having things ready, at our feet – perhaps this is the downside of so much automation and technology in our lives. The fact that we tend to disregard that we are in fact in control.  So much, that we can even regulate the volume of our own sneeze.

Level up

There is a belief that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with. That’s why we need to choose those around us wisely. Because they affect the way we think, act, behave, live.

It’s interesting how when you cut yourself off from the toxic people in your life – those who did you more bad than good and who made you feel worse rather than better – you actually improve in every aspect. Once you withdraw from what is bringing you down, you level up.

This is often obvious from the way you behave, you talk, you walk, you hold yourself up, to the mood you radiate and the aura you emit.

One of the main and most fundamental reason of stress and the psychosomatic symptoms it causes is the fact that we are forced to associate ourselves with people we often don’t even like, let alone match with or share common perspectives, among others. The mere fact that we are doing something we detest is a cause of tension that we bring upon ourselves. Just imagine the strength of the contrary: engaging in something you love and are passionate about. Can you sense the difference?

We are responsible for the choices we make and the people around us, and can change this at any time.

And most significantly: when you can’t’ control what is happening, challenge yourself to control the way you react to it. The way you respond to external occurrences is where your strength lies. Rise up to it.