What it means to be real.

I ate lunch alone at one of my favorite mexican restaurants. The further I go in this journey the more that I am convinced that man cannot stand alone. He needs a family, he needs a community, he needs a friend, a partner, a companion that will never forsake the bond that they will carry forever.

Christopher McCandless was the subject of the feature film Into The Wild. he was a young college graduate who gave away every material thing he had and sought life on his own as a transient trying to find more about the true meanings in life after forsaking a family he felt had betrayed him. Through his many experiences with many different people including an old man who offers to take care of him, McCandless travels north to Alaska to truly embrace his independence from conventional society and live off the natural earth. Upon finding out that he is unable to return to society due to nature's harsh reality, McCandless writes in his journal "Happiness is only real when shared." Accepting his fate he dies alone in the wilderness.

May we never waste a day without sharing our happiness with others.

Death

I ran over a blue bellied lizard on my bicycle. I've never done that before. It looked like it was writhing in pain from its probably broken back. He died slowly. I don't know I guess I was just shocked because I have never killed something like that before. I ran over a small bird a few weeks prior in my truck. It is bizarre to me because that whole day I seemed to be avoiding birds and honking at them to fly away.

It is curious and strange as to how easy something can be ended. Why the absence of a person's life in our lives can cause so much pain. Death encompasses so much.

My senior year of high school, I lost a friend to an accident. She was not necessarily a very close friend nor one that I had seen in a while but then the news of her death came like some kind of tragedy you hear on CNN except this time it very very close to home. It shocked me so much.

It kind of sparked this strange thing in me to sort of reevaluate how I interacted with people.

Nowadays, I try to always let my closest friends and family know how much I care about them and what it is that I love the most.

I guess love hurts mainly because of death, death takes away what we value and ultimately that which we need. But again we have a unique way of being able-key word "able", to cope and move on with the hope that there is a purpose to every season.

I know for a fact that since my friend's death, I seem to cry a lot easier. I guess that is what happens and tears are a sign of joy and despair.

Talk about a hard Lesson

Thanks God. thanks for sending someone to beat death and show us what is most precious.

Alleluia,

ps Matthew Kelly is walking again! such great news to hear of such an amazing man of God who has touched many lives. I hope to discuss pacifism and just war again.

pps. I am not sure how I would handle the departure of a close friend or family member these days. But I would only hope that God would show me his will and purpose behind it.

Continuing on the journey.

Still nothing to report. Well... My brother is in town and his lovely fiancee' it's nice to have some more people to chat with. I guess...God wants me to find something so I guess I should keep on looking. Jobs, Classes, summer projects....Hopefully by August there will be something good to report.