Friday, August 7, 2009
Betting to live
I've heard it said that in order to win big when gambling, you have to bet enough that it will hurt if you lose. I've mostly lived my life that way...taking chances on people, places, actions, and I believe that could be my mantra. 'Bet enough that it will hurt'. I'm not saying that I always win, but that if you're not going to put your whole heart into whatever it is...why bother?
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Fear and Power
Good morning!
I was reading about Salman Rushdie this morning over my twigs and rocks (whole grain cereal w/walnuts). I was in college when he released his book Satanic Verses (1988) and unfortunately was more interested in marching band and my social life than learning about someone who had real things to say about real problems.
This morning I read that in February 1989 after releasing Satanic Verses, the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwā calling for Rushdie to be killed. Due to this, Rushdie had to go into hiding for many years. Although there are days where I wish I could disappear from the rest of humanity and leave all the craziness behind, I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like to be forced into hiding because an entire culture was instructed to kill you.
Growing up in the U.S., I thought the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran was someone to fear. So it's interesting that someone with power at the global level would be afraid of the words of a single writer. I guess his power was channeled through the fear people had for him, and he really had no power without that.
Although Rushdie is no longer in hiding, every February 14th he receives a message from Iran to let him know they haven't forgotten or forgiven and the vow to kill him is still valid. Yet he continues to write and live out his passion, act in movies, and very successfully move through life. So it appears he is the one with all the power after all.
I was reading about Salman Rushdie this morning over my twigs and rocks (whole grain cereal w/walnuts). I was in college when he released his book Satanic Verses (1988) and unfortunately was more interested in marching band and my social life than learning about someone who had real things to say about real problems.
This morning I read that in February 1989 after releasing Satanic Verses, the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwā calling for Rushdie to be killed. Due to this, Rushdie had to go into hiding for many years. Although there are days where I wish I could disappear from the rest of humanity and leave all the craziness behind, I cannot begin to imagine what it would be like to be forced into hiding because an entire culture was instructed to kill you.
Growing up in the U.S., I thought the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini of Iran was someone to fear. So it's interesting that someone with power at the global level would be afraid of the words of a single writer. I guess his power was channeled through the fear people had for him, and he really had no power without that.
Although Rushdie is no longer in hiding, every February 14th he receives a message from Iran to let him know they haven't forgotten or forgiven and the vow to kill him is still valid. Yet he continues to write and live out his passion, act in movies, and very successfully move through life. So it appears he is the one with all the power after all.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Beginnings
This is my first blog entry. I'm excited to see where this takes me. Nothing like getting back into writing by diving into the web head first. Thanks for joining me!
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