Pick Me Up

There are good days and there are bad days, such is life. What I find interesting is how people deal with life's setbacks and difficulties. Personally, I view most of my life as a sitcom. So most of the awkward, painful situations I run into seem humorous and enjoyable. I'm sure this doesn't work for everyone, but it makes my life quite fun.

The Enterprise and Uhura in waffle form

But there are some situations that even American sitcoms have to treat seriously. For these moments I try to find small moments of beauty to help lift me up as time works its magic and eventually heals all pain. Today, in need of such beauty, I turned to something I've been stockpiling for such an occasion, Star Trek waffles! They're a bit like the evil witch in Snow White, beautifully stunning on the outside, but completely inferior inside. But just this once, it only mattered that they were beautiful on the outside. The fun of eating Star Trek waffles greatly outweighed the waffles' below par taste. This is one of the greatest benefits of having a deep passion for something. When things get bad, you can turn to your passions for a dose of joy and distraction.

Unfinished Paths

Maybe God was trying to tell me something today, because I ran into two different labyrinths unexpectedly. Labyrinths are essentially paths that lead nowhere. Designed as a journey with no destination so that one MUST focus on the meaning of the journey itself. Also important when walking in a labyrinth, unlike a maze, one cannot get lost.
Labyrinths are tools to help us examine our lives. Walking among the turnings, one loses track of direction and of the outside world, and is able to quiet the mind. When walking a labyrinth you should examine everything that happens while walking in relation to your life. So if your mind gets distracted and you start walking in the wrong direction, maybe you need to look at what is distracting you and consider how it to resolve it and get back on track.
The first labyrinth was still under construction, like my life. And I realized that even an unfinished road can take us somewhere fantastic. You don't have to plan every second of your journey and wait until the road is finished before you start. Sometimes we have to start our journeys with no idea where they will go.

Even if you have no idea where you're going, I still think it's important to take time to periodically step outside yourself and examine your life and where the road you're on leads. Maybe you don't need a labyrinth, maybe you'd prefer meditation or writing down a five year plan. But it's important to know where you are and where you think you want to go on your journey.

"The unexamined life is not worth living." ~Socrates