Logish Paradox

Learning to Persevere

A while ago I wrote about how perserverance and motivation are interdependent. To depend on one without the other will be ineffective to success.

Now, I have a confession. I’m the kind of person who solely relies on motivation. Motivation, meaning being mindful of the task’s purpose. Once I lose focus on that purpose, I tend to give up. It is only when I lack the option to give up, that I endure and persist on.

Therefore, knowing the only way I’d persevere is to remove the option of giving up, I made it a point to announce my goals for the holidays. I had hoped by putting my reputation on the line (reputation of being true to my word), I’d finally take action. However, I’ve hit a snag. I still lazed off and lost focus.

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Anyway, I’ll take this opportunity to train myself to persevere and always be mindful of my task’s purpose. And watch fewer episodes of Naruto Shippuden each day. Hehe.

Logen

Racist Propaganda

If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.  -Adolf Hitler

Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it.  -Adolf Hitler

Hitler may be a bastard but having read many of his quotes, they make sense. This entry is one that touches on a brief aspect of racist propaganda.

It is racist to act on a predisposition about a person based on his/her race. But! isn’t it worse when you spread the stereotype around.

This isn’t just innocent gossip. It is propaganda! The truth is merely a person’s perception of reality. Therein lies the power of propaganda because propaganda seeks to exploit this, a person’s view of reality.

Remember the last time when a baseless rumour was spread around. As more people repeated it, more people believed it to be true. People tend to believe in things that are believed by the majority because after all, the mentality is “how can so many people be wrong”.

An idiot spews nonsense and is believed by some idiots; those idiots spew the same nonsense and is believed by more idiots; once a substantial number of idiots believe in nonsense, those people who were unaffected will also become idiots just because many of their counterparts believe in nonsense.

The solution to this spreading of racist predisposition is obvious. Use your brains to reason if the racist mentality makes sense before you pass it on in conversation. After all, the power of knowledge is the only power that can resist propaganda.

It is similar to sending your friends stupid chain emails. On thinking about it, this is a bad analogy because I have idiots who send me chain mail, asking me to forward the email or be killed by a killer clown. Obviously and sadly, not many people use their brains much.

Logen L.

Hell’s Museum of Infatuation

I am a robber. There is an artifact I want from the museum. But the value of things on display are supposedly priceless.

Knowing I can only see that beautiful piece and not touch it makes me resentful. The piece has hypnotised my senses.

Robbing the museum will not make me the true possessor of it. After all, while I may be able to retrieve it, its soul will vanish. An empty shell, though beautiful, is meaningless…

If you do not already understand, read on. The artifact is a person, the museum represents the many obstacles. The talk of ‘robbery’ implies coercion to love.

Even if I force you to love me, what would I have gained? A person without a soul…

Logen

Pain and Comfort

I was chatting with a friend earlier and we came upon certain things. These things reminded me of the past and helped form valuable insights.

In talking about choices that affect the future, this friend had indicated he was afraid of history repeating. I remembered my own fear of my past and the fear of another friend. It was then I realised everyone has this universal fear of their past hurts and desire to escape it.

This hurt is very much like a burn caused by fire, resulting in the victims avoidance of fire. However it is much deeper and potent at consuming the mind. Deeper, because it is the cruel kind of pain entwined with the victim’s helplessness, which leads him to believe himself to be inferior.

It is the kind of pain that robs a person of his hope, strength and purpose to live on his life. Eventually, the pain may die off but it leaves a ghost that enslaves its victim into a vicious cycle. At the hint of history repeating itself, the heart races, the head pounds and the breath becomes short.

On the same wavelength, I identified another piece of insight while talking to this friend. As human beings, we reach out from within our sorrows and desperation, hoping to find a person who would understand.

Just knowing that you’re understood, makes a difference. It indicates you’re not alone in your suffering and, that someone who understands you has acknowledged your worth. But many times, we isolate ourselves, and never allow the world to assuage the hurt and to understand. In this sense, we are all similar.

I know this because, I myself have many times felt myself scratching desperately at the walls of the abyss, trying to crawl out. And in my heart, I just want someone to believe in me, to witness my tears and acknowledge that I’m not disposable. However, my ego despises being pitied at, because some people confuse support and pity.

It is this understanding that calls forth compassion. It is when I see myself in the person suffering that I cannot just watch without helping.

Logen

Is Motivation or Perseverance More Important

I’ve taken a 7-day stint on my goals. It’s this procrastination syndrome I suffer from.

Nonetheless, I shall take this failure as a break and reflect. At the very least, this serves as a reminder for the following.

Motivation for change is a powerful driving force. However, it is temporary. Once the mind is disillusioned by time and obstacles, motivation ceases. Therefore, the only other driving factor to keep one’s momentum is perseverance.

The more I think about it, it seems perseverance, as a force, is equal to motivation. They complement each other. Motivation is the reason behind one’s goal. Perseverance is the mysterious force, which drives one, even when there is no indication of success.

Of motivation and perseverance, one without the other, is a sure path to failure. Without motivation you have no purpose and no goal; without perseverance, you give up before succeeding.

Logen

The Red Mist of Nostalgia

This is a recount of a dream I once had.

—

I stood rooted to the cold concrete, entranced by what I saw. Before me were glowing red mists, swirling in a curious fashion.

It gained momentum and slowly manifested into people I knew. At this point more than twenty of them faced me.

Though, they still had the reddish quality of the mist, each were frozen into the mannerisms they were well-known for. He had his trademark smirk, she had her cheeky grin; another had his hand on his nose, as if he had been rubbing it previously; yet another had her left eyebrow raised in exasperation.

I gazed on, appreciating the quirks of my friends. I thought about how they left a huge impact, even though some didn’t talk much to me. This is the funny quality of youth. Drama was always round the corner. I continued my reminiscences and contemplations.

Suddenly, just as mysteriously as my friends had manifested, each of them began to glide swiftly away from me. One by one they reached a certain distance, and there they lost their statue-like quality. With a whooshing sound, they had once again become smoky red; the mist that they were fashioned from.

All this while, as they left, I felt a distinct emptiness. Deep down, I knew it would eventually happen but I chose to ignore the truth of it.

So lonely…

Logen

Have You Seen Something But Failed to Notice It

There are moments in life, I’m sure, when you get too encumbered by thoughts. As a result, you do not live in the present moment; to see but not notice; to hear but not listen. Remember the last time you looked at a book, but none of the words made way into your brain?

Just this evening I was dining in at Botak Jone’s. I was served my meal, and the waiter clearly asked for $14. I rummaged through my wallet and then handed him two $10 and two $2 notes ($24). About to dig into the food, he politely told me that I had given him ten dollars over.

What the heck? I heard him say $14 for sure. But somewhere along the way, it seemed correct to overpay.

I will no doubt be more alert in the future, but it seems that I’m blur by habit. When out with friends, talking while crossing the road, I rely on them to look out for traffic. On a few occasions, someone had to pull me back to prevent myself from flying.

Anyway, I’m hoping Vipassana meditation can help with organising my perspective. This form of meditation reminds one of the transient nature of life, and the importance of letting go. Furthermore, there are studies that have shown meditation to be effective in developing astuteness.

Logen