“Even places that have been shrouded in darkness for billions of years can be illuminated. Even a stone from the bottom of a river can be used to produce fire. Our present sufferings, no matter how dark, have certainly not continued for billions of years-nor will they linger forever. The sun will definitely rise. In fact, its ascent has already begun.”

Daisaku Ikeda

One of my favorite poets, the Argentine educator Almafuerte (1854-1917) wrote: “To the weak, difficulty is a closed door. To the strong, however, it is a door waiting to be opened.” Difficulties impede the progress of those who are weak. For the strong, however, they are an opportunity to open wide the doors to a bright future. Everything is determined by our attitude, by our resolve. Our heart is what matters most.

Wealth… is it really worth it? Everyone at some point searches for economical wealth. We spend most of our life engineering ways to make doe, to make lots and lots of money. And this is perfectly fine, but there is a very fine line between making money to live well and making money to be happy.

It all depends on what money means to us. When it comes down to it money is just a means to an end. Nothing more. Sadly, human society is built on doe and so it is part of life. That is an inevitable reality. So that is how money should be viewed, something that one needs to continue living, but nothing more. Money doesn’t equal happiness.

Did you know that the majority of the depressed population is either filthy rich or just plain filthy? It’s true. The happiest people are found in the middle working class. This gets you thinking. What is it that makes the working class so happy? Simple… Happiness comes from the satisfaction that there is something to be accomplished, conquered, and overcome.

Rich people may appear to have it all, but they really don’t. They have a huge hole in their stomach which can only be filled with a happy family, a happy home, and a fulfilled life. Money doesn’t provide those things.

So, though I’m not saying that you shouldn’t aim to be filthy rich, I AM saying that money doesn’t buy it all, and, therefore, you should work on you own human revolution in order to truly be happy.

This basic life principle is 100% true and 100% flawless. What it means is that for every action you make there will be a reaction. Do something good. It’ll come back to you. Do something bad. It’ll come back to you.

This gets you thinking doesn’t it. “Why would I do anything bad to anyone?” This feeling is completely justified. Why would you? It’s unnecessary, unpleasant, and unrewarding. So don’t, there’s no need to. Do evil and you will be building a hazardous path infested thorns, and guess what? You’re walking barefoot. Do good in the world, and this will build a safe, secure, and fluffy path for you to walk on.

This was a rather obvious realization, but most of us, including myself have a hard time following it or even realizing it. I had to get it knocked into my head by a very good friend of mine. Basically he told me forget about all my issues. He told me to stop and clear my head, to think about what I wanted, and forget about the rest. He told me to GO WITH FLOW. He told me to ENJOY THE RIDE.

No matter what happens ENJOY THE RIDE. If a girl responds to you, it’s cool. If she doesn’t, it’s cool (life makes up for it). If you get that job promotion, it’s cool. If you don’t, it’s cool (keep working at it, you’ll get it). If your mom scolds you, it’s cool (well, maybe not so cool, but you’ll get over it, she’s your mom).

My point, well, my friend’s point is that you shouldn’t get caught up thinking about things that have already come to pass. Just take what’s good for you, leave what’s not, and move on. Flow… Enjoy…

Well, if you watch the same shows I watch, you’ll be familiar with this one. There’s a Friends episode where super hot Rachel is sitting in Central Perk and she suddenly realizes that her life is going nowhere, and that her job as a waitress is not helping either. Her two good friends Chandler and Joey motivate her by telling her that all she needs is “The Fear”.

They tell her that what she need is to quit her job so that the fear of starving to death caused by the lack of a job will motivate her to get a job that she truly wants. She then quits her job, and within a week she gets the job that she desires most.

It works pretty much the same in real life. I’m not saying to senselessly quit you job. It’s just that if there’s something that you want, you should pursue it, and take steps towards attaining it. Be it a new job, the girl of your dreams, a better sex life. Get rid of what gets in you way, and when the fear hits you, use it as a catalyst to become fearless and achieve your goals. Be fearless.

Stress is not good for you. You start getting mad easily, you start looking at people the wrong way, you get into unnecessary quarrels, and you get a few nervous twitches along the way. For centuries man has had an urge to solve his stress problems, and for centuries man has had an excellent tool to get rid of stress right in front of his nose. MUSIC!

Music is a great stress reliever. It’s the only human art form that can truly touch your soul and alter your emotional status. And the best thing is that it’s available to anyone, anywhere, and anyhow.

I, for example, love rock. Anything with a bad ass guitar and a rocker voice really turns me on. So what do I do? The minute I get home, I crank up the volume and scream my head off to one of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers best songs. My family wants to kick me out of the house afterwards, but who cares.

So find a genre of your liking and turn that volume nod 360 degrees to the right. You’ll enjoy that.

Imagine you’re stranded in the desert. You’re thirsty, dry, hot, and vultures are circling your head. Just when you think you’ll die catastrophically out of dehydration, and have your eyes plucked out by you ugly feathered friends, you find an abandoned bottle making factory. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT! WHAT ARE THE ODDS!? In this factory you find the rusty lever to your right. You examine it. You grab to make sure it’s real and not some hallucination, and in fact, it’s real. You take a closer look and you find that it’s connected to a pipe. You also notice that it has moss growing near the base. This could only mean one thing. WAAATER! You grab it with all you might and heave. But it doesn’t budge. Your long journey through this barren wasteland has weakened your body, but not your soul. You give it another try, but this time you focus all your will power in that single motion. You grab the lever, and give it your all. The lever refuses to move, but you’re stronger than that. You shift your position, spread your feet so as to cover more ground and have more force. Then, you try again, and you will keep on trying until you accomplish your objective because your life depends on it. This time the lever starts moving, but barely a few millimeters. You break into a cold sweat, and every inch of your body is shaking. You know it’s hard and you feel like giving up, but you’ve gotten this far, so why stop now!? The will to split that son-of-a-gun lever DRIVES you. It’s your engine. FINALLY, the lever SNAPS with loud clanck, and PRESTO! The lever is switched on, and water is flowing like Niagara Falls. YOUR SAVED!

When faced with a problem that doesn’t budge, we tend to simply give up and stop trying. Fighting the chance to yield is quite the pain in the neck. While this is acceptable since we’re human, PERSISTENCE is key. Could the rusty lever switch position? With enough will power, I believe so. Life is our rusty lever, and our will power is like the oil that’ll loosen those bolts. Defeat all your problems. FIGHT, MAN, FIGHT!

Life is too short to hold back your desires. I say, “If it makes you happy, go for it”. Sure you’re going to make mistakes. But you’re human, so that’s normal. The question is, “How bad do you what this?” When you’re smitten by something, your stumbles and boo-boos will be worth it once you accomplish your wishes.

Fight for the things you believe in, and never let ANYONE put you down. People aren’t very understanding of another one’s pain. They WILL misjudge you and try to convince you that your goal is silly and unreachable. Be strong and hardheaded. Defend you goals and defend yourself. And remember, “Slow and steady wins the race”.