May. 13th, 2010

mellymell: (me at arches 2005)
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I believe in order to leave the most lasting of marks on the world you have to live your life as if you mean to leave no trace whatsoever. I'm not talking carbon footprints or "off the grid". I'm talking about living as if your life is not any more important than the one next to you.

Therefore the sage goes about doing nothing, teaching no-talking.
The ten thousand things rise and fall without cease,
Creating, yet not possessing,
Working, yet not taking credit.
Work is done, then forgotten.
Therefore it lasts forever.


- From Chapter Two of the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tsu.


I think the whole of humanity would be better off if everyone in it lived as if they intended to leave no trace of themselves behind. But human nature fights against this at every turn with a desire for immortality in its various forms. We know our lives will be over some day and it's hard to accept that everything we've ever done or worked for will be lost once we're gone. We fear unimportance. Art is created and signed. Structures are built and labeled. Stars are discovered and named after their discoverers. Scientific theories are proven and named after their provers. Medical advancements are made... you get the point. Embracing unimportance and finding a balance between that and productivity is something I struggle with constantly. I still have lots of room to evolve.

Maybe this is why I don't know how to respond to praise...
mellymell: (rainbow at island in the sky)
Happy 4th Anniversary to my beloved husband!

On the summer solstice, we will have been together 10 years. Hard to believe it's already been that long. Kind of funny that our dogs were born the year we started dating and our son born the year we were married. I never thought of it that way, but there it is.

We will be childless this weekend and have very little in the way of a plan. He and I both tried to surprise each other with a B&B and/or cabin rental in Western North Carolina, but we both failed. I guess that's better than us both succeeding. Besides, we've got a ton of Groupons to spend for restaurants where we can't take Jonah. Also, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo AND When You're Strange (a film about The Doors) are playing at The Belcourt right now. Non-animated movies FTW!

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mellymell

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