I Have a Dream

The following passage does not allude to anyone.

One day I was swimming in the lake near my house. When I emmensed my head in water after a long nourishment of breathe, my eyes focused on a small torn up book sitting in the corner of the abyss. Clumsily, I doggy paddled towards this unknown item. Forgetting the fact that I was in water, I read,

Far off in a galaxy, there was a boy who just loved basketball. Every single day chucking up shots, practicing his dribbles, and impressing spectators nearby. His mom told him to concentrate on his school work, friends laugh at his dream, and teachers snare indifferently at his ambitions. Besides the closest people around him, even luck wasn’t on his side. He twist his knee seven times in the past four years in circumstances including landing on the wrong leg, tripping on a tree stem, and bumping into massive players. Ten years later, he became a professor at Harvard exploring the profound wonders in the field of chemistry. Basketball was no longer a part of this young man’s life. The dream to join the NBA hung in the corner of his mind like a dangling preposition at the end of a clause.

Gasping for air, I frantically took out my lap top and typed the following excerpt down. Recently, I have been learning about both sides of the story: Transcendentalism and Anti-Transcendentalism. Both ways of thinking simply discussing the reality of human limitations. Transcendentalism believing in humans having no boundaries holding unlimited potential while Anti Transcendentalism believing in the opposite. Many times thoughts create reality, yet the reality holds true that his knee is way too vulnerable for a violent contact sport. Reality holds true that gravity is a proven limitation to our physical bodies. Reality holds true that we people live bounded in the laws of nature, the laws of science. Transcendentalism believing in the ability to break these boundaries and Anti-Transcendentalism pessimistic in terms of this ability. The question I want to ask is

During the circumstance when parents, friends, and teachers discourage him, surviving periods of upheaval with a vulnerable knee, times of giving up and despair, realistically, has this boy made the right choice to give up his dream as a profession basketball player? Why and Why not?

Related Forums
#1 http://www.realgm.com/boards/viewforum.php?f=243
-This is a Forum discussing merely basketball with memebers with similar interests. I figured this forum was directly related to this boys dream and my life, i left it a spot.

#2 http://www.abc-of-meditation.com/forum/general-meditation/default.asp
-This is a forum discussing the meditation and topics surrounding meditation. I fit this into one of my forums because mediation is a method of transcending our boundaries. It is an awareness this boy should began to realize.

#3 http://www.powerfulintentions.org/forum/
-This forum is primarily on the Law of Attraction. If one truely wants something, then he or she will recieve it. It connects directly to this boy's dream.

HAH JT, very intriguing way of presenting your question

Both ways of thinking simply discussing the reality of human limitations. Transcendentalism believing in humans having no boundaries holding unlimited potential while Anti Transcendentalism believing in the opposite.

Anti-Transcendentalism is not necessarily the opposite of Transcendentalism. Anti-transcendentalism is just transcendentalism up to a certain extent. I believe that there is unlimited human potential in the inner being of a human being, BUT this inner being is inside a limited body, therefore is limited when it comes to a certain point. However, in this situation, the boy did NOT make the right choice by giving up his dream of joining the NBA because one creates/ holds the power to one's own future. We need to not only believe in the secret - the law of attraction- but also ACT upon it. The boy has the potential to heal his knee and once that is done, the boy can therefore pursue his dream without any physical limitations. It is important to keep faith in good times in order to strive for all that one can be, but it is even more important to keep faith in times of despair so one never gives up. The boy, if he keeps passionate and determined to heal his knee, will eventually achieve, then able to open the path to his dream.

HELL NO.
IT'S NEVER RIGHT TO GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAMS.
well, actually in terms of survival yes he is right, this is the due to the sheer cussedness of the material world, we are limited, however, if you know perfectly well what your physical limits are and the NBA dream falls within those limits, by all means, GO FOR IT. If the NBA is actually out of reach, I'm sorry to say that it'd be best to give it up, and try to find something else that can evoke the same passion in you as basketball did. The physical world sucks ass, while your mind may be unlimited, you are still limited by physical laws.

This is a personal issue of mine as well. Personally, I think he's making a mistake. If he unwillingly succumbs to the decisions of anyone aside from his own, then he is conforming on a small scale.

Going out of the transcendentalist and anti-transcendentalist discussion, think of this. It is likely that we only have one chance at life. We may die at any second (a point that I was strongly reminded of a yesterday). Given the odds against us, do you want to spend your life doing living for someone else, who has already had their own? Moreover, do you want to spend your life doing something you would rather not? It's your life, and the purpose of it, if any, is for you to enjoy it. I'm sure one of the thoughts the boy may have on his deathbed is "If only I tried out for NBA...." When they save to live life without regret, remember how much that means.

Going back to the more formal points of the discussion, there can be an anti-transcendentalist side to giving up. Reality is likely going to throw obstacles at the boy to prevent him from achieving his dream. Maybe he doesn't get accepted by any team. Maybe his parents threaten to abandon him as their son if he chooses to follow his own path. In the case in which his life may be threatened by clinging onto his dream, sometimes it is better to pull back a bit. But there's a difference between pulling back and giving up. As long as he has enough will inside him, he can have another shot sometime in the future. If his parents threaten to abandon him, he can take their path, and switch to his own as soon as he can support a small life of his own without their aid. If he doesn't make the team, he can find a temporary job and continue to practice until he meets the standards. Long as he is in physical shape and has the will, there is no good reason for him to give up on his dreams.

The anti-transcendentalist ideas of obstacles are likely going to be more limiting than the ones mentioned earlier. As my discussion above shows, obstacles in the form of other people limiting the boy's paths are still within control, as he can work his way around it. The obstacles that are what you may call "a taste of reality" comply with the idea that death is spontaneous and unpredictable. Any accident or natural disaster is likely going to be out of our control should it have the potential to severely injure the boy or end his life. Should it come down to the point where he is paralyzed waist down due to some car accident, unless he still has the energy to play in the wheelchair basketball league (which i believe exists?), he may have no choice but to give up.

Unless of course, the unlimited human potential kicks in, and he is able to demonstrate miraculous healing abilities.

When then, do we give up? Regardless of what degree of physical injury is beyond recovery, the main idea is that you at least try. I believe that until one has tried, giving up is never the right choice.

Hi JTizzz.

Anyways, about your question.

During the circumstance when parents, friends, and teachers discourage him, surviving periods of upheaval with a vulnerable knee, times of giving up and despair, realistically, has this boy made the right choice to give up his dream as a profession basketball player? Why and Why not?

I would say, this is solely based on opinion. The definition of "right" and "wrong" are drawn by each individual themselves. However, his choice could be motivated by either those outside influences or of his own Being. If he let go of his dream of becoming a professional basketball player, then I guess the outside influences, or his ego mind, led him to his choice.

BUT. If the physical world is not a hindrance to our goals in life, why should he let go of his dream? If he really really really really wanted it, he could heal his knee and keep on balling to his dream--but this is just what I think, that anything is possible as long as you want it enough. (Remember you helped me with this before?)

This is kind of where people make choices that are "smart." Considering that we live in this world where physical reality cannot seem to be ignored, both sides of the case have to be taken into consideration. What he chooses then, is up to him.

I think that there isnt a right or wrong decision, but merely a decision of which whether he is satisfied or not. If the guy is satisfied about his decisions, then i would say that he had made the right decision, however, if he is not satisfied with his decisions, depending upon his age and physical ability, he may or may not be able to change his decisions. In that case, wouldnt it be best if he shifts his concentration on the dream or be content about his decisions and take responsibility knowing that it was HIS decision and that he should take the consequences.

What i am saying is that there isnt a wrong or right decision, just as anti-transendentalism and transendentalism can neither be categorised as good or bad, but only different. As a person though, one can only live on the planet with a physical body of a limited time, there is no use to mourn over the decisions that he had made, but rather, either go with what he wants and try to achieve the goal or to take responsibility and accept the consequences following the decision. Either way, the person is making more decision and that means more responsibiltity. I think that a right decision is one where one does not regret, and even if one regrets, they have to face it either to accept it or to change their life.

Hey there,
the birthday part had nothing but positive effects on your posting your question here in moderator position. You did a superb job pinpointing exactly what your question is with quite an eloquent story behind it.

Bravo!

I am really looking forward to seeing where this discussion goes. JT, why don't you invite your basketball coaches onto the forum, as well as a few of your choice teachers who you would love to have an answer to this question from.

nice basketball forum link, I clicked on that one.

ok! Excellent!

Everyone who posted a reply had a good point to your question; everyone has their own persectives on things therefore there is no right or wrong decision unless one thinks it is wrong or right (thoughts create reality).

But there's a difference between pulling back and giving up. As long as he has enough will inside him, he can have another shot sometime in the future..

^^ i really liked what henning said here. Sometimes when we face obstacles, we can't just focus on our goal and ignore everything else. Sometimes we have to sacrifice parts of our goals in order to cooperate with others, find the middle ground/ the grey area. We are all parts of a whole, therefore cannot be selfish (like the cells) and only concentrate on our own goals. Pulling back does not mean giving up though, it just means one is cooperating and able to work as a whole, it is also different from conforming to the society because one is not disregarding one's own belief, one is simply taking a step back to grow as a whole, then coming back to it.

But giving up WITHOUT EVEN TRYING is like betraying your inner passion. Giving up is not wrong, but giving up without trying is. Sometimes the physical boundaries cause us to give up but trying is the most important process. If one doesnt try, one will always be stuck in the past, not experiencing the new for oneself --> living in fear. But once one has tried with all passion, there is nothign left to fear / regret.
Everything happens for a reason, so if after trying, the goal is still not possible, another door will open up for the boy to take, another goal.

(FORGIVE ME if i spell things wrong. It's hard to type with one hand) I think that even through these circumstances, it's still not right to give up a dream. I believe that having dreams is part of what makes a person happy. When a person gives up his dream, could this be the ego mind manipulating you into doing something that is not right? Couldn't this be the wrong choice?

Giving up on a dream is something that i believes makes a person's mind vulnerable to the mind going into overdrive. This could be an answer to Proey's question about whats makes a person unique. Maybe it's his dreams.

Okay, time to fire up my brain up after a few days of rest.

First, I would have to agree with the others that this is not about right or wrong, because, just as in real life, there is no 'real' definition of right or wrong. The situation is made even more complicated because you left a huge blank in the person's story. You just skipped ten years of his life. During that time period, anything could have happened. The guy could have found something he liked even more - I've done this a few times myself. Also the story states that basketball was no longer in that person's life. This sentence I had trouble with the definition of the word 'life'. Judging from the next sentence, this probably meant external participation in basketball, in which case the guy still cares somewhat about basketball, just not as intense as he did before.

So, the question asks whether he made the right choice. I agree with the people who say this matter is not of right or wrong, unless you have very specific definitions of right and wrong. Now there are two ways to look at this, both of which has been covered already by...well, everyone who replied already. First is that the person made the 'wrong' choice, saying that it is never okay to give up one's dream. Here, we must define what we mean by 'dream.' How badly do we want the 'dream'? Is it something that we can just hang by if we don't achieve it at all? Is it just there to keep us busy? Or is the dream something that we definitely achieve in this lifetime? What happens if achieving this dream, as Henning says, will cause one to abandon everything else? Is he willing to sacrifice that much - I've seen people who do and people who chooses not to. If he really is willing to sacrifice, I must say, there must be something that happened during that ten year period.

Second, we have people saying that he made the 'right' choice, saying that it is perfectly acceptable if you back up for a while in a certain circumstance. However, since we would probably never know from the story, we must assume that the person stays in the chemistry field for the rest of his lifetime (in order to stir up the replies). This means he resided, possibly due to his pain of being rejected, or whatever, during that ten year period. This means that he is afraid of that past event. Past, not of the present. This could start a very harmful cycle of saying "I can't do it," the one that was discussed in the Secret. Either you say you can or cannot, you are right (some quote from the Secret). What has happened in the past will not happen on the present exactly, as is. The fact that the guy doesn't return to basketball means that the fire within him has been vanquished. One can stop for a day, a week, a month, a year, even decades if one does not lose that inner fire. Once he does, it is going to take something more than encouragement and practice to get that fire in him started again.

Geez, I just contradicted myself in the two paragraphs....but my reply still stands! XD

Luoh, you intercepted my post, so I'm going to reply to you >

Now do dreams really make one happy? Why can't a person be happy through other means? What is the mechanics of having a dream? What happens when the goal is reached? Won't we reach another one? So aren't dreams like drugs? You just want to keep achieving them? Will it become a problem if it gets out of hand? Thoughts?

i meant that dreams are ONE way to make people happy. Not the only way

Now do dreams really make one happy? Why can't a person be happy through other means? What is the mechanics of having a dream? What happens when the goal is reached? Won't we reach another one? So aren't dreams like drugs? You just want to keep achieving them? Will it become a problem if it gets out of hand? Thoughts?

Of course dreams make you happy, dreams represent what you are looking for in yourself and around you. To have a dream is like a mission; a purpose of life. So if you achieve a dream, you are fulfilling your happiness and your Being. I mean, if no one has dreams then what is the point of living? We will all be a bunch of satisfied shell fishes lying around. It is the dreams that motivate us to imagine, pursue and create. It is the source of inner will that nudges us to toward unlimited possibilities!!!

As for the question about what happens when a goal is reached...you look for another one. But its my personal opinion that dreams should be something a little difficult to achieve in order to create a nicer sense of satisfaction when fulfilling it...

Or maybe the unattainable kinds of dreams are the best

I think that dude wasnt that bright to give up basketball. Ken nei nei says that although we can reach into everywhere with our powerful minds, our bodies are still limited by the physical laws. But then what is arishita? or Sri? How did Sri manage to lift 7000 pounds(notsure) with only 2 human arms. That means, so what if he sabotages his tendon, he can still walk. He can still run, then why not train for his dream into basketball, NBA. Him listening to the surrounding opinions show that he misinterpreted the natural inclination for interdependency to dependency. He depended on the other comments and advices, and did not fight through the seemingly impossible path with his true potential. If he would just want, lust, with the law of attraction working all around us, he would probably be able to get to NBA level.

Hen G mentions that pulling back would be a better choice than charging blindfully into accomplishing the goal, playing in the NBA, getting packed and dunked on by bradley. THis might be true, but our bodies do age, our bodies age, when the energy is slowly leaving us, to bring us into spirituality, and bring the physical body into a new container of another pristine mind. So the boy has to consider the aging, people like Andrew Bynum, my pupil, Kobe, my padawan, Lebron, my student, all entered NBA at a young age. This is because their bodies are at their maximum when they are so young, 18~29. If the boy goes to Harvard, and then tries out NBA, that will probably not work. He might become a refree, but I doubt he can play ball. Because of the body limitations, that is due soul breaking free slowly, the boy only has 1 chance to decide, he has 1 opportunity , in a life time.

To Phillip:
Do dreams really make one happy? Try making one without using your ego, it ll make u moan....in pleasure, not pian. When you say that after one accomplishes a dream, wont he or she go for another? That is possibly the result of ego mind, craving for more goals. The being will only set goals when required. Siddhartha set out a goal to become a holy man, in the end, he tried so hard, but it doesnt even matter. Because after leaving behind his thoughts about kamala, his son, family, he achieved his goal in reaching enlightenment. But his being is still as the water, he does not ask for more goals. Only the egomind will start a chain reaction of exploding goals that result into another.

Dear Diary,

After a long day of school, I slowly paced my walk home. Sometimes I like to just close my eyes hoping that im walking straight. Other times I like to take the long way home just for the hell of it. Finally, I reached home openning up my lap top with the small book laying beside it. The question I posted on Monday still remained unanswered. I went straight to the forum I posted my question on with deep determination to clear up the fog once and for all. I received more than enough answers from many people from different backrounds. Organizing my thoughts for myself and for others, I decided to make a summary of what I have learned from my fellow peers.

Kathy asserted,

one creates/holds the power to one's own future. We need to not only believe in the secret - the law of attraction- but also ACT upon it.

While i pondered everyones comments i've figured not only this boy has to have the mentality to persue his dream, he has to take the initiative, take action, and take chances to make his dream possible, or once possible. Thus, when thoughts create initiatives, generate action, and movtivate one to take chances, one holds the power to change one's future. Therefore, one is in control. Thanks Kat!

Kenneth asserted,

while your mind may be unlimited, you are still limited by physical laws.

Yes, the mind, the being is unlimited yet the physical limited by the laws of physics, laws of science, and more broadly, the laws of nature. Thus, does this limitation over the expanding being forces the soul inside of us to remain stable and unchanging. What the boy needs to do, is break through the the mentality that he is living in a world of dogma. As a result, even if he is goverened by the laws of nature, he isn't. He is free via his thought of being free. This insight has been brought up by Emerson in his essay "Fate" Thanks Ken!

Henning asserted,

When they save to live life without regret, remember how much that means.

I can not garantee that boy has regrets being an NBA player, but a dream not persued is definately a regret. Dude, you are right. WE only do live once, why not live it to our fullest? Why conform to a life, to a path, to society driving us into a life I do not want, a path I do not want to take. Why let other people take control of your life and let others decide what your future is going to be like?

But there's a difference between pulling back and giving up

Besides that fact that they operate in different directions, one backwards and one upwards, this statement holds a lot of truth. Pulling back is with a mentality of, "I will come back and conquer this thing." It seems like pulling back is temporary and giving up is for enternity. Pulling back is a time to catch one's breath and giving up is to never breathe again. Thanks for your wisedom Henning. Concluding Hennings observation with his own words,

I believe that until one has tried, giving up is never the right choice.

Proey asserts,

If the physical world is not a hindrance to our goals in life, why should he let go of his dream?

This leaves me with the Addidas slogan," Nothing is impossible" The physical is not going to stop me from doing anything. The physical is not going to stop my being from expanding. My physical isn't going to leave me with the mentality of giving up but simply a thought of pushing harder for what i want, for what i need, and most importantly, for what i strive for. Thanks Pro

Josh asserts,

I think that a right decision is one where one does not regret, and even if one regrets, they have to face it either to accept it or to change their life.

This holds a lot of truth. Right and wrong are fairly relative but yet you gave a great concise explanation to differentiate between the two. Many people mentioned right and wrong all depends on how the boy feels, how the boy responds to his life. Yet, a life without regret is truely living. Your words convey hope. It gives me a feeling of ," Even if i make the wrong decision, no problem, stand right back up and try again." Accept how it is, accept failure, accept the fact that one needs change. With this mentality of change, one can truely transform and walk onto the path where he or she wants to be. Choose one's own path, dont let others choose for you. You know yourself more than anyone else does. Thanks for the insight.

Luoh asserts,

I believe that having dreams is part of what makes a person happy.

As simple as it looks, it is true. Dreams are like goals in life. Steph and I talk frequently mention the fact that anticipation feels better then actually recieving and getting something. Dreams, a very far and hard to achieve goal in life, stands as a finish line for a marathon runner, and serves the same as saving Princess Peach for Mario. Achieving goals and dreams truely make people happy, but having the dream and the process of persuing the dream is even better. Mario is extremely happy when he saves Princess Peach, yet he is even happier crushing mushrooms for at least ten levels just to save the girl of his dreams.

Phillip asserts,

This could start a very harmful cycle of saying "I can't do it," the one that was discussed in the Secret. Either you say you can or cannot, you are right

Thank you Phillip for the construction critisism towards this story found under an lake. Yet, I would interpret this small exerpt as a story of experience and merely experience. This holds a lot of truth. If one has the mentality of giving up, then surely one will give up physically by not even attempting or trying. Again, thoughts create reality. Yet, i have hit the question if thoughts have boundaries. Only the being is unlimited. One's brain is limited by what one knows, by what one experienced. Thus, unlimited potential/being, comes upon a limited brain due to limited knowlege, due to limited experiences, comes upon again a limited physical body due to the laws of nature. Unlimited, limited, and limited.

Overall Summary
Tying in everything, this boy came upon a choice, and whether it is right or wrong all depends on the mentality of this boy. It would be the right choice if this boy would not have any regrets (Josh). Everyone only lives once and why not live it to the fullest, why not live for yourself, why not live the life you want to live(Henning). One holds absolute control over his or her future (kathy) because the being calls upon the mind which calls upon the physical which changes reality, which changes the future, and which chooses one's path in life (Phillip). If one wants something enough, if one's mentality reaches a level of determination and persistance for what he or she wants, one will surely get what one wants(proey). This process is surely tedious yet joyful. This process of chasing dreams is a source of joy in ones life and is a goal to reach for, its a new thing to capture which makes one happy(Luoh).


Questions lead to not only answers, but more questions
While I was busy digesting my food, while my hands were busy typing in words, while my brain was busy processing information, a shine of light hit me while i gazed toward the horizon. It was dusk and the wheeping willow stood upright infront of me. Light having both particle and wave propeties arranged its self into a question. This, i thought, might be inspiration, this might be intuition.

With a unlimited potential, limited mind (from limited knowledge, from limited experience), and limited physical boundaries(from the laws of science, from the laws of nature), limits are set. Lets make the assumtion the the mind is unlimited with an overflowing fountain of knowledge and experience, Unlimited being feeding the unlimited brain, yet acting with a limited physical, can this boy transcend upon the laws of science, the laws of nature? why or why not?
(consider the boundaries between geneders. can males become females with the right mentality? Can the boys knee heal miraculously with the right mentality?)

If your assumptions were true, about the limits of physical laws and other limits. The boy's transcend over the physical boundaries may be possible. Afterall, there are more so called "miracles" on the earth of people overcoming situations thought to be impossible and against the law of the physcial domain. Yet, it is possible. It has been done before.

The mind has a great power, just as discussed in the movie, Matrix, the mind might be creating all the reality, therefore everything would be possible if one has a strong mindset and faith. Some of the physical laws can be bent and i believe that the physical law may be transcended to a certain extent with the right mindset.

Can a boy become a girl if he possesses the mind to do so? I think it is possible, and i think that i have read somewhere that by thinking and believing to be the other gender, i think there was this boy who excreted unusually high female secondary sex hormones that eventually made him somewhat very feminine.

With the right mind, every boundary can be broken, yet sometimes it takes others to break the boundary infront of us for our mind to believe that we could also do it since we have been so drilled in with the limitations and the restrictions that the society has put forth in our learning process.

If we are to believe that the mind is unlimited, then anything is possible. If the boy believes that he can transcend the laws of science, laws of nature, then why not? If the boy believes he can miraculously heal his knee, why can't he?

Something that i was alerted to this year is the idea that passion is very important. Well, in the case of this boy, if he was to believe that his knee could heal, and, AND believed and had passion for his dream,then what is holding him back? ABSOLUTELY nothing but himself.

Therefore i would have to say that if a person was to believe that the mind was unlimited (which i am sure is true), then aything is possible, thus quoting J.T and Adidas "Nothing is impossible" and those people who say "Anything can happen if you believe" (my parents )

I agree with Luoh and Josh.

I remember this one CSI episode where this girl has all the signs of pregnancy, but, she is not pregnant. She only shows the signs because she wants to be pregnant. "Thoughts create reality" can go that far--like, a thought or a want that you have can actually alter the release of hormones or some other biological process within a body.

But, correct me if I'm wrong, I think that thoughts can merely affect what you yourself can do, but not what something or someone else does. Like Sri Chinmoy or however you spell his name, you may be able to lift a macho amount of weight, but you cannot make someone else do so--unless, of course, they too are connected to their Being. So in a way, it is a matter of self-confidence, faith, and trust.

What do you think, law of attraction > physical laws? or not

this topic seems uber interesting and i think i'll go back and carefully read everyone's replies another day, but proey's post ignited a quick question in my head that i decided to first post a reply and come back to reread everything and reply a better reply later.

proey wrote:
I remember this one CSI episode where this girl has all the signs of pregnancy, but, she is not pregnant. She only shows the signs because she wants to be pregnant. "Thoughts create reality" can go that far--like, a thought or a want that you have can actually alter the release of hormones or some other biological process within a body.

but there was a limit to this "thoughts create reality" theory. she DIDNT conceive a baby. the pregnancy was a lie, an illusion. in a way, her thoughts didnt create the COMPLETE reality. I think this kind of goes in with how much of the physical domain we can transcend.

Oh, right. Haha, that's true . Well, maybe it's because the mind only has control over what we do have in our bodies... Hey, is the law of attraction used by the mind or the soul then? If it's by the soul... then, yeah, we definitely cannot cross the boundaries of the physical domain. But if it's the mind, maybe the mind can only go so far that it only affects what exists within our bodies themselves. Like, you need guys to make babies. But you do not need something else to lift tons of pounds. I don't know... Is this logical?

Dear Diary,

Creeping into the night, I walked within the shadows making sure no one knows where I am, what i am doing, and Who I actually am. I slowly shoved my key into the door hoping my parents were running late after work or catching an extra meeting. Openning the door, a warm welcome of," Happy to see you home!" came my mom running towards me. It was 8:00pm and i shouldn't have been home this late. I was imagining the content of the lecture my mom would give me on my way home, but no, it turns out to be a warm, and heart taking welcome of a combination of everyday words. This surely suprised me today.

I turned on my lap top seeing if there are any replies on the forum. My peers seem very transcendentalist and optimistic in terms of thoughts creating reality. That there is no limit to thoughts and these thoughts gathered can create any reality one wants, only if one genuienly wants change, wants what they really want.

Many times in life, I have my head down with the mentality of "I can't do this" or "this will never work" or "I will never reach this goal" Yet, one will never know if one will succeed or fail without trying. Trying is like the bridge among 3 islands. One island is the island I am on now, the island of hope, the island of initiative. There are two bridges connecting this island to the other two islands. One bridge leading to success, one bridge leading to failure. Success is great, yet failure is even better. One learns a lot from success, yet one learns even more from failure, thus, failure can become success, Sucess in terms of learning something more, in terms of experiencing something different, and in terms of not giving up. One of the forums I have stumbled upon during this time being a moderator had a pretty interesting reply. Someone replied me with this video and I am more than happy to share this with everyone else. Check this out guys



If this guy can do what hes done, go to so many countries, do this dance, then why cant we achieve our dreams?
What dreams or goals have you guys had?
Have you guys been actively pursuing your dreams or have you guys been living other people's life?
May 20, 2009

Nice Vid
O moms, 3rd time i watched it, and i didnt know he came here(Taiwan) before...damn, i missed out..

There are various kinds of goals, some can be classified as the ego, and some are just from the Inner Self. The materalistic needs are not acutally goals, they are more like a carrying capacity for greed, and when the human mind achieves the capacity, greed reproduces and floods into another area to infest, germinate, G1 S G2 prophase all over again. We must trash our ego goals, even though they might sometimes be a great motivation. Ego as in appearance, materialism. I was jeered at in 6th grade by AK, Andrew kao, he told me that i was a fat nerd, that was so unbelievably stupid. That pumped me up, so during my one year stay in Japan, i made a goal to lose weight. I did manage to lose 4~6kg, it did give me a big plus in sex appeal, and as Mike knows, Im pro 1000 times of his. But these kind of goals are made for a negative cause, i lost weight to prove to AK that i wasnt fat, nor stupid, and i would beat the hell out of him, into a purple pulp when i get back to taiwan. Too bad he left. And i doubt i could beat him. lol sorry for the freewrite, anyways, ego goals maybe be a big motivation at times, but are usually negative based or only satisfy one's needs temporarily.

On the other hand, it is better to search for the simple eightfold path/ spirity'all goals. There is no restriction to the goal, the goal itself will keep on extending, because that goal will probably raise more questions and minor goals that you also pursue. This is all guesswork, freewrite, but I do believe so. Because we are greatly influenced by the external society, we have a harder time searching for a spiritual dream.

After watching this video, I think that there shouldn't be any dreams that couldn't be acheived, however, the question is, is the dream our dream or is it merely other people's dream?

I think it is vital for one to find out and chase for their own dream, not a dream put on by others such as parents or the society. After realising and testified that this dream is out of our want most likely to be pushed by our inner-being that we are passionate about, then one should chase after this dream. Chasing after the dream is, in my opinion, more important than the goal, because that is when one live, when one experiences, and when one learn. However, to chase after this dream does not mean to do it in every possible way. Since the path to the goal is the essence of life, one should often check and stop at times to notice other parts of the world and other parts of the life and adjust whenever needed.

To chase after the dream is an easy goal, but to realise true, and personal dream that is solely oneself is the hard part.

I'm not technically part of this thread but was wondering, on a similar note as "Have you guys been actively pursuing your dreams or have you guys been living other people's life?"...
What if you are living your life happily but making others unhappy/unsatisfied? I don't mean in extreme cases where "living your life happily" constitutes like killing people or cannibalism or anything. Just generally, if you are just doing your thing and in your opinion living a great life, but another party thinks you aren't good enough. Do you go out of your way to make the other person happy?
And I don't mean to digress from JT's topic but I find this question maybe relevant.

Great gratitude dance though.

The following is with the assumption that one persues true happiness and content rather than short term pleasure (drugs, murder, etc) and temporary fun.

if you are just doing your thing and in your opinion living a great life, but another party thinks you aren't good enough. Do you go out of your way to make the other person happy?

Great question. First thing that popped in my mind after reading the question is the difference between giving up and pulling back. Lets go back to my island-bridge analogy.

Trying is like the bridge among 3 islands. One island is the island I am on now, the island of hope, the island of initiative. There are two bridges connecting this island to the other two islands. One bridge leading to success, one bridge leading to failure.

One is slowly taking life step by step towards his long term dream or goal. One is driving slowly on this bridge connecting either success or failure. Yet, someone is blowing a horn behind this person because one is creating traffic. One will have two choices. Many people tend to get frustrated and just turn back home, turn back towards the island he or she started with. Others may take the margin next to the road and stop for a while until the traffic becomes more smoothe then going back on the road again. This is the difference between giving up and pulling back. Giving up is to quit, pulling back is to break. If one's happiness is interfering with anothers life, i suggest to pull back, pull your car into the margins and just take sometime to catch your breath. When traffic is smoothe, when your goal isn't interfering with someone else's life, when the situation becomes negotiatable, comfortable, pull back into track and still pursue the life you want. Live life with no regrets.

Hope this answers your question

proey wrote:I agree with Luoh and Josh.

I remember this one CSI episode where this girl has all the signs of pregnancy, but, she is not pregnant. She only shows the signs because she wants to be pregnant. "Thoughts create reality" can go that far--like, a thought or a want that you have can actually alter the release of hormones or some other biological process within a body.

This was within biological limits, physical limits. It's perfectly plausible, let me explain in biological terms.
When you actually become pregnant there are certain stimuluses, chemicals mostly, and these can trigger electrical impulses in your neurons, neurons in turn release neurotransmitters which are proteins that can cause changes in other cells, and this part gets rather long and nasty so i'll shorten it, the neurons keep this reaction going on until it reaches your brain, your brain then stimulates other cells in your body to release THEIR chemicals which affects some other part of the body.

To clear things up a bit, you body is a like a long line of dominoes that branches out in friggin millions of directions, and when you die is when the last domino to fall, falls. So now, there are actually a lot of ways to become "pregnant" without actually doing anything involving sperm or an egg, if your neurons are firing off neurotransmitters that can activate the SAME response in the brain when you're actually pregnant, you can achieve the same result. once your body realizes that you aren't pregnant though, such as because certain chemicals released by a developing zygote aren't present, it will stop any further processes that involve pregnancy and the body will return to normal.

If you don't really get that, this is it: Getting "pregnant" like that isn't actually as hard as you would think, it's still pretty damn hard, but yeah, just not THAT hard. Hell, if I knew what thoughts to think, I could turn myself into a girl if i wanted to, no lie, we have one X chromosome true, but in girls, the extra one doesn't actually do anything, and oh yeah, even if it did, I could grow another X chromosome by thinking some other set of thoughts.

proey wrote:
What do you think, law of attraction > physical laws? or not

Definitely physical laws < law of attraction, just keep this scenario in mind: I want to swim in a lake of mercury and live to tell the tale, is it gonna happen? No. We are still limited by physical laws whether we believe it or not.


And JT:

JTizzel wrote: Live life with no regrets.

Hell yes. But unfortunately, the only way to learn this lesson, is to first go through those regrets, and like an action potential, it has to hurt enough to make you break the threshold and finally learn the lesson. jesus I hate having times like those, cuz I still forget that lesson sometimes, and then i have to learn it again, it might stick eventually. But damn, when I do have to learn it again, it HURTS.