Y.S. Stephen - Reader | Casual Observer

  What is it like, not having any expectation of yourself, going with the flow and doing what you can with the time you have been given? What is it like, not having expectations of yourself or others, treating each person, good or bad, the same; leaving all judgments to the Creator of heaven and earth? What is it like, not having any expectations, fully trusting in God for everything? I don’t know what it is like, but I know it is called perfection - a state of mind close to heaven.

Insults are hurled because the “hurler'” instinctively knows it’s gonna hurt us. They peer into our psyche and decide on the best weapon of choice - a word or action that will sting the most. These "hurlers" do well with stereotypes. For example, they generally assume most people dislike not having enough and strive to make more money. They trust that fat people tend to hate themselves and that people of certain races bemoan their origins. With this information, they fire random bullets with the intent to bring us down emotionally. A lot of insults or snide comments are based on an assumption of shared values, with the insult- er  believing we believe what they believe. Try throwing pennies at a man who does not believe he is poor. Or try calling someone a nasty nickname you just learnt from a show they don't watch and what you'll get is a confused look that tells you your jibe has no effect. This is one reason why we must always examine mainstream narrative...

  Watching and reading about Channel 4’s Dispatches made me realise nothing is original. That chasing fame and wealth is a pointless activity and useless in the long run even when you have acquired either.   We all chase Facebook’s “Like” and Google’s “+” for various reasons - exposure for our work or art, the need to appreciated, and the assurance that we are doing something right. But when people start to purchase all that with money, then we cannot based our criteria for doing well on the “Like” and “+” anymore. We cannot adore those who amass millions of “fans” as being at the top of their game while those who work equally as hard at their craft are looked upon as nothing because they have zero hyperlinks declaring them as worthy.   As far as I'm concerned, I believe it’s all about the process - enjoying your work and hoping someone out there loves it and are blessed by it. As it was written in Ecclesiastes 2:24 and 3:22, (I will paraphrase) there is nothing a...