Reprints

This next rambling is actually a reprint of two other blogs; they were origianlly made for my flickr site. I decided to post them here for posterity and, well, I needed an excuse to make another entry.

[Entry 1. Original posting: January 29, 2008]

Title: Shaguar


Jaguar XKR Coupe

I found this car while I was wandering around the streets of downtown Hinsdale, Illinois.

Hot. Damn.

This cat's got a 420hp supercharged V8, can go 0-60 in 4.9 seconds and even has a spare set of cajones in the back for that extra shot of manliness. MSRP is still under a hundred grand though, so I guess you could consider this a daily driver.

But to put this baby in the same catagory as my beige Honda Civic would probably be considered an unholy crime against humanity.

Seeing the picture of this car really made me think about my definition of "wealth" and "success." What am I working for? What am I striving for? What's my reason for getting up and going to work every morning and what am I hoping to gain when I sacrifice?

The band Switchfoot once said in the opening line to their song "American Dream"

When success is equated with excess
The ambition for excess wrecks us
As top of the mind becomes the bottom line
When success is equated with excess

With the advent of this new year comes the pending question of what the next step will be in my life. I know for a fact that I will be having to make some tough decisions that will lay out the path for me of what kind of an adult I will become and what my contribution to society will be. Will I pursue the path that is paved with altruism where the pitance on earth will be paltry compared with the satisfaction of helping my fellow man? OR will my path be paved with gold bricks, held with the mortar of the blood of my conscience and all the people I had to step over to find success? I guess only time will tell. Really, I want to be able to find that happy median where I can be a benefit to society and still achieve contentment in my baller status. It's been done. I'm sure of it. Is it really too much to ask?

[Entry 2. Original posting: February 7, 2008]

Title: And The Light Shines In The Darkness...



...and the darkness can never extinguish it (John 1:5 NLT)

Ahh, light. Can anything be more simple, more basic, more complex or unequivocally essential? Light, in its most fundamental form, is electromagnetic radiation consisting of the elementary particles we know as photons. A photon, by itself is a very unique particle. As a photon moves through space-time it exhibits properties of both waves and particles. Meaning, if we had a photon the size of a bowling ball, and we threw it, the bowling ball would move up and down while it travels in the direction we threw it. The photon is also unique from other subatomic particles in that it has no mass, and therefore, no weight. This property of the photon allows it to travel at 299,796,000 m/s in a vacuum, the fundamental speed of light, a universal constant. This is light. Light paves the way. Light helps us see.

To a photographer, light is a commodity. We use techniques, lenses, apertures, cookies and whatever we can, to try to harness light. We want to control it. We cherish it. We bathe in it.

But to some, light is something to be feared and abhorred. Light reveals. Light shows blemishes, failures, truths better left unsaid, hidden agendas and other secrets and lies that some would rather keep in the dark. To them, light is a curse and a calamity.

However, to others still, light represents hope. Light represents purpose; that as long as a light shines, darkness can never be victorious. I was recently shown by a good friend of mine the political music video "Yes We Can" produced by Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am. This song features a plethora of entertainers all citing lines from Barak Obama's victory speech he gave in New Hampshire. While hearing this, one particular line caught my ear. It was about two minutes fifty seconds in and the line was,

"We've been asked to pause for a reality check. We've been warned against offering the people of this nation false hope.

But in the unlikely story that is America, there has never been anything false about hope."

To me, those few words speak volumes. There is no such thing as false hope just as there is no such thing as false light. Light defines itself; any form it takes is proof of its existence. If there is a source of light in a dark room, darkness will be driven away and as long as that light stays lit, darkness will never overcome it. Darkness can try to surround it, can try to cover it, but the light will never be extinguished by the darkness and darkness will always lose. Hope is exactly the same way. As long as people hold hope, no matter how small, darkness and despair will never prevail. Despair could try to surround, darkness can try to cover, but the light of hope will always push the darkness back. There is no such thing as false light; there is no such thing as false hope.

So keep that hope alive. Protect your lights, keep the wicks trimmed and always have some extra oil ready. Whatever darkness you may have can always be pushed back with the light of hope. But if there ever is a time when you feel your lights fading, friends and family will always be there to help keep your lights lit, and of course the Greatest Light of all is always willing to come to those who need Him. So why not ask for His guidance today?