10.2.06
When do we grow up? Is there a moment in time where we all of a sudden are able to call ourselves adults? If so, when? And how? Is there really a defining moment in our lives when everything changes and we become who we are? You know, like when Michael Corleone shot that cop point blank and became the Godfather or when Anakin took that final step into the dark side to become Darth Vader?
Sure, it’s easy to say that this sort of thing only happens in movies and I shouldn’t look into it too much. Well, lets assume for one moment that it doesn’t happen in just movies. Sure, Martin Luther King Jr. didn’t just become who he is after one dream, and Michael Jordan didn’t become Michael Jordan after his first buzzer beater at North Carolina. These legends didn’t become legendary overnight, and nobody really does—including characters in movies. It seemed as though it was their fate to become the people they became. Despite all kinds of forces, which pushed them into different directions, (Michael Corleone to a leading a straight life, Anakin to the Light Side, MLK to accept his oppression, Jordan not making his high school basketball team) they overcame their plight and reached their destiny. Is everything that happens in our life prior to that moment a set up for our true destiny? Does everyone have such a pre-destined fate that is undeniable no matter what surrounds us? Or is it reserved for those special ones? The ones whose destiny is to alter the fate of the world around them? Is the world put in the hands of these precious few? Am I one? If so, who am I? Corleone, Vader, King Jr., or Jordan? I am none of them and I am all of them.
All the choices I have made are leading up to something, that moment when I become who I really am. Is that what this road trip is all about? Or is it just a set up? Either way, it’s in fate’s hands.
-Ray
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Drop everything...
...and go watch The Departed. I have several other blogs that I am writing, but I have to pause them to post this. You have to see this movie. The best movie to come out this year, hands down. Go see it now. I'll write a review later, but please go see it as soon as you read this. STOP READING THIS AND GO SEE IT.
Thursday, October 05, 2006
Finding Purpose
**This is a blog that I had started on September 19th, but never posted. Enjoy.**
As we enter our fourth week on our journey across “The Great 48,” as I like to call it, I have a few reflections on our journey.
The most enjoyable moments for me have been in the spirit of spontaneity. This trip has been, since its inception, been a crash course in what I can only describe as “planned improvisation.” We do what we want, when we want.
I enjoy the moments in between moments.
I talked to Mike the other day about finding a purpose. While we both realize that this is a trip in which we will have a good time, I find myself, like many other endeavors in my life, searching for a greater meaning. There are so many causes that need attention throughout the world, and I feel that we, with Enlightenation as our means in which to reach people, have the power to do something. What follows are some examples of things that I feel warrant attention because of the way they impacted me throughout this trip.
1. The amount of poverty in the U.S and neighboring Canada.
- Vancouver was a beautiful place with beautiful scenery and people. What struck me was the overwhelming amount of homeless roaming the street in downtown. Being from the greater Los Angeles area and spending the last year in San Francisco has really opened my eyes to the problem of poverty. I will openly admit that I need to do much more research into this, but clearly something needs to be done.
2. The closing down of the only movie house in Baker City, Oregon.
- Being a lover of film, I feel it is disappointing whenever a movie theater closes; when it is the only one in town, it is downright tragic. This is exactly what happened in Baker City. The theater, which had just recently been upgraded from one screen to three, was shut down because it did not have a sprinkler system. Deemed too expensive to replace, it has been closed.
3. The restoration of the old railroad along the Yellowstone River into Gardiner, Montana.
- Along the Yellowstone River, in which the three of us white water rafted, lie the tracks of a former railroad, which was once the only way into Yellowstone from the North. Abandoned and neglected long ago, the restoration of this railroad would be a beautiful way to experience the Yellowstone River and the views along the way.
There’s more but I don’t have the energy to finish.
As we enter our fourth week on our journey across “The Great 48,” as I like to call it, I have a few reflections on our journey.
The most enjoyable moments for me have been in the spirit of spontaneity. This trip has been, since its inception, been a crash course in what I can only describe as “planned improvisation.” We do what we want, when we want.
I enjoy the moments in between moments.
I talked to Mike the other day about finding a purpose. While we both realize that this is a trip in which we will have a good time, I find myself, like many other endeavors in my life, searching for a greater meaning. There are so many causes that need attention throughout the world, and I feel that we, with Enlightenation as our means in which to reach people, have the power to do something. What follows are some examples of things that I feel warrant attention because of the way they impacted me throughout this trip.
1. The amount of poverty in the U.S and neighboring Canada.
- Vancouver was a beautiful place with beautiful scenery and people. What struck me was the overwhelming amount of homeless roaming the street in downtown. Being from the greater Los Angeles area and spending the last year in San Francisco has really opened my eyes to the problem of poverty. I will openly admit that I need to do much more research into this, but clearly something needs to be done.
2. The closing down of the only movie house in Baker City, Oregon.
- Being a lover of film, I feel it is disappointing whenever a movie theater closes; when it is the only one in town, it is downright tragic. This is exactly what happened in Baker City. The theater, which had just recently been upgraded from one screen to three, was shut down because it did not have a sprinkler system. Deemed too expensive to replace, it has been closed.
3. The restoration of the old railroad along the Yellowstone River into Gardiner, Montana.
- Along the Yellowstone River, in which the three of us white water rafted, lie the tracks of a former railroad, which was once the only way into Yellowstone from the North. Abandoned and neglected long ago, the restoration of this railroad would be a beautiful way to experience the Yellowstone River and the views along the way.
There’s more but I don’t have the energy to finish.
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