MONDAY, 6 JUNE 2005
18:57
Identity is expressed in the language, clothing and furniture of the time and environment in which we conduct our existence: my answer to the question “Is this who I am nowadays?” after feeling a little embarrassed in a Working House about the idea that certain decorative items will look good in my apartment.
[Makes one think again: Who would you be if you were born in, say, Moscow? Or, who would you be if you were born in Paris in 1871? Or, who would you be if you were born in 1771 as the eighth child of a poor peasant whose family is trying to eke out an existence on a piece of land on the outskirts of Bratislava?]
20:20
In the end 99.9% of the people on Earth comes and goes, and they either contribute in their own way to the maintenance and growth of civilisation, or they contribute to its destruction. Of only 0.01% of people and perhaps even less it will be said in hindsight that they were exceptional, superior to most of their peers, even that they were “destined” for important roles.
21:01
What she has been GIVEN manifests strength. What she has so far CHOSEN manifests character.
22:20
Everyone wants to know they are important. The idea that you are of no importance to anyone – neither man nor beast – is for most people too much to bear. How do people affirm their value? How do they make up for it when they become convinced that their value is insignificant?
WEDNESDAY, 8 JUNE 2005
Other people have their own stories, their own aches and pains, and have undergone other sufferings. They deem their own stories valuable and as valid parts of the Great Puzzle.
I also have my own stories, my own aches and insecurities, and I have faced my own challenges. Like other people’s stories, my own story is a valid and unique piece of the Puzzle.
Since everyone’s stories have validity and unique value for them, it is foolish to compare other people’s stories with your own and then to cast doubt on the value and validity of someone else’s stories.
Why do people have the desire to do so in any case? Is it because they are uncertain about the validity and the value of their own lives? Do they reckon that they will be more convinced of the importance, the validity, the value of their own lives if they question the validity and the value of other people’s lives? (And how often do I make myself guilty of this ridiculous behaviour?)
______________________