Finding Your Sanctuary

Many people are eager to make this world a better place and are hopeful to make a difference. I am one of the few who are just getting by, living and breathing not knowing where life will take me. I am not the type of person who thrives on having a plan, maybe because I am spontaneous.

Have you ever felt at one point or another that you want to be alone and do whatever you like without people judging you? Me, a massive yes but it has gotten easy through the years when I didn’t care about what other people think of me. Another way that helped me find my own happy place is to find my sanctuary.

I’ve chosen my mind to be my sanctuary for its portability, of course. Our mind is the starting point of all the thoughts we are having. But a tangible sanctuary would be my bedroom. Of all the rooms inside the house, the bedroom deserves much respect (just like the toilet) for the special reason that we put ourselves to rest in that special spot. It doesn’t have to grandiose, but a clean bedroom conducive to rest and sleep will do. In my bedroom, that is where my artworks start to happen and my writings come to life.

Other ways to find your sanctuary is to know what you like and what you think would be helpful or beneficial to you now and in the future. For example, if travelling feeds your soul, maybe your sanctuary is in other places. Others find comfort in nature, in the company of friends, in helping other people, in reading a good book, in writing, in music and art, in solitude, among others. When we find our sanctuary, that is when we begin to perform our best. If not the best, at least it is the beginning of something extraordinary. 🙂

 

 

 

Why You Should Be in Control of Your Moods

The idea that the weather and people’s moods are connected is quite old. Do you agree? If yes, how does the weather affect your mood? – The Daily Post 

For ages, it’s been known that weather affects our moods and it’s always a hearsay. “Is there a truth to this,” you might ask. According to the plethora of articles in the net, yes and no. But then who cares? Take this for example, what if you are a writer, you woke on the wrong side of the bed, you woke up sick plus the weather is gloomy? To make things worse, you woke up with flu  and you feel sluggish. Then, a strong brush of typhoon wind has touched your dry face. Whoa, what a combo you got there! Is that one recipe for a bad mood? What do you think? 😀

Now, let me tell you the stories of my friends whom I know always have bad days. So, A works at a faraway place and her travel time everyday is between 2 to 3 hours, going to work and getting back home. That is a total of 4 to 6 hours! She’s underpaid and works for about 10 to 12 hours! Sometimes, even more! Mind you, the salary is so meager that even undergraduates would not want even a piece of her technical job! She is the breadwinner of her family and sometimes she regrets not having enough time for herself.

Enter B. B is a father of 3 kids, and a father of another 2 kids outside marriage. That’s a total of 5 kids! Having 5 kids these days is a disaster unless you have the means to give them a good life. Sounds normal, but what’s tormenting is that when all these kids were born, several close people of B got sick and died. He also lost his business and some partners who owed him money didn’t pay him back. He also lost his dad and now, he also sends money for his mom’s monthly medication and money to send his siblings to school.  These stories, I guess, were more than bad weathers but bad cases and very common, too.

I asked both friends if weather had affected their moods and they said, “NO.” Is it because they’re used to it or they just chose not to be affected? According to the both of them, weather can somehow affect our moods but what really affects us is the way we think about the situation.  I definitely agree.

A weather may be a good one and a place may be so wonderful, but it is what we do to what happens to us define the moment. Even if it’s a beautiful, autumn day and you won the lottery, none of it seems to matter if you choose your mood to be a bad one. Too bad, a day is wasted before you even get to start it. And, when we are feeling bad, we get to do bad things we don’t even want to do!

“When you’re in bad mood, you find jerk on anywhere.” ― Toba Beta, My Ancestor Was an Ancient Astronaut

Thus, my conclusion is this:

We must be in control of our moods, or else our moods will control us. We cannot control the weather but we can control our moods. Knowing that fact, isn’t it wonderful that we have a choice? Let’s choose the good one.

* Daily Prompt: Climate Control

Goodbye Umami

When the world began, many senses of taste were born. Among the most distinct of all the senses of taste are these four: sweet, salty, sour and bitter — and then umami came.* What if the umami has not been discovered? What should we call this sense of taste that is good but hard to explain? If someone came up with the term umami, we can also come up with another sense of taste that we recognize! 

If there’s a taste that I can bid farewell to, that would be umami. I can’t say goodbye to the bittersweet taste of dark chocolate, the delicious sour taste of green grapes, the spicy kick of tom yum soup and the irresistible salty taste of bacon! Have I known umami or not, I am okay with the four basic senses of taste. Don’t get me wrong though, I am happy that umami has been discovered but I can live without it.

Note: This is a story I just created. Information may not be correct because I made this up according to what I know at the moment.

* Daily Prompt: Picky Tongues

Top Gadget for 2014 and Counting: A Good Mood Gadget

Creation. I am a person who would always love to create something for someone especially when granting someone else’s wishes or whims. But this time, I will not create a genie that would grant my wish or any other person’s wishes — that would make life dull and life won’t be as much exciting. This is a one of a kind creation, a breakthrough this 2014, with a magical manifestation that would leave people breathless. Is this too much marketing? I don’t think so because the product will speak for itself.

What I would create is a good mood gadget that one can use when s/he is in a bad mood. This gadget looks like a pen and becomes a wand when being held after five seconds. This will not work if the person is in a good mood because he is already in a good state. The person in a good mood can just give it to the one who is in a bad mood – annoyed, sad, crabby, grumpy, worried, etc.

The person who’s in a bad mood just needs to wave the good mood gadget aka wand, like he is drawing something in the air. He can draw stars, waves, hearts, his name or whatever he wishes to draw until he won’t notice that he is feeling much better. The drawing activity will take about five minutes to complete in order to work and will become a pen once it reaches six minutes of activity. If the user is inconsistent while waving the wand, it won’t work. There should be no disruptions as one must be focused if he wants to be in a good mood. As a watcher, you’d get to see your pal beaming with happiness, smiling back at you or just laughing.

As with any gadget, there is a bonus to this one! If you lose a thing and you need to find it right away, you can drop the gadget then the gadget will search for the lost thing. How? It will become a wand again and will direct you to the location of your lost object. Cool, huh?! But remember, the bonus benefit will only work after you are put into a good mood with this gadget. And yes, people with a good mood can use this gadget to find their lost stuff!

I think many people would like to have this kind of gadget because every person gets stressed. No one is a martyr. Besides, when one is in a good mood or happy state, he can perform better and do lots of good things. With or without a Nobel Prize, my good mood gadget will be my contribution to the world. Go and give it a wave of your own! This is definitely one of the world’s best gadgets of the year! 🙂

Note: 90% of the proceeds would go to charities around the world.

Daily Prompt: World’s Best Widget

Idea

It all just came to me

And then it never left

Until it happened.

* Daily Prompt: Brain Wave

School

My so-called second world

Somehow prepared me

To a life of chaos.

* Daily Prompt: The New School

Wave with a Friend

Having my first wave shared with my friend on a hot December day is what I consider a best day ever! 🙂

After SUPing, we had some goofy pics and here’s one shot of us…

* Daily Prompt: The Best Day Ever

Our Planet

This is not another Elysium or Mars but a happy planet that is sustainable for everyone. I name it Our Planet. 😀

This photo is not a moon. It is a light in a darkened room which resembles Our Planet.

* Daily Prompt: Interplanet Janet

Secret Kindness

You thought nobody could help

So I did but

You do not have to know.

* Daily Prompt: Random Act of Kindness

Post for Dec. 20.

An Escape and a Lesson

My neighbor called me up to say that my family’s house was robbed. He was so eager with his story and said that I come home right away to check and assess the situation. I looked at the wall clock hanging by my boss’ wall and realized that I am working late again. Overtime. Overworked but I have to finish my task and at that time, I was paid by the hour plus the differential pay when working past 9PM. My mind told me to just continue working because after all, what’s the point of hurrying back home when I am already robbed — er, we’re already robbed?

I got home around 1230AM and voila, what a sight to behold! From afar, it is like I can see our humble abode in broad daylight with all the big spotlights focused on our gate! Whopper barks endlessly and the police cannot get in through the front door. They are afraid that Whopper would bite. At the back door, the knob was already wrecked. That was the time when the other police and some of their assistants entered the house to check the robbers. A total of 4 were found but only 2 of them were caught.

At the precinct, I saw the 2 robbers and to my disgust, the other robber is a minor. Obviously, the older bastard got the kid to do the crime with him with the promise that whatever they get would be divided in half. The robbers are both bruised but the older one was using a borrowed clutch because he fell from the second floor when the police was running after him. I filed the case after that, freed the kid so that he could have a chance at life. The hearing continued and every two months and I am seeing the robber’s face and I realized how much the whole thing sucks. The so-called fiasco lasted for about 10 months and a half. Then, the case was dismissed. It was dismissed all because my witnesses are afraid to speak up, for fear that they will be the next victim. I just assumed that they are entitled to their own reasons but grateful that one of them called the police to report the incident.

The robbers are freed and it was such a sweet escape to them. The witnesses didn’t show up and up to this point, I never knew them — that, too is an undefined escape. As for me, my escape boiled down to the fact that I will no longer think about what and why it happened. I lost the case but it is a blessing that I did not lose my mind. I am grateful that the pipe and wrench did not have the chance to hit my head on that fateful night. If I went home early before 9PM at that time, I would be either killed or raped. One thing’s for sure, I would never get to hug Whopper ever again. I also learned about forgiveness after that. See, there is always a good side to every bad story. 🙂

* Daily Prompt: By the Skin of Your Teeth