A few rules

I went out into Adams Morgan last night with a good friend from college, Chris. Chris and I have the same philosophy surrounding travel and the meaning of life and the importance of EXPERIENCING things (that's for you, Kris! haha) Sitting in a hookah bar with him and his roommate last night really got me thinking on the inexcusably long Metro ride home. I thought about some recent things that happened to me, I thought about things that happened to me years ago, and I thought about things that I hope to happen to me in the future. I came up with a few "life rules" that I'm going to try my best to embrace. Here are some of them :-)

1.Never stop thinking. This is important. If someone ever says to you ‘You need to stop thinking so much,’ call them ignorant in your head and keep thinking deeper. It is this mentality that breeds stupidity and sheeple. Your mind is the most important tool you have, if you stop using it, it will atrophy. Question everything.

2. Everything is going to be just fine. Stressing about things beyond your control is foolish and unproductive. It will all work out as it should in the end. Note that that doesn't say that it will work out the way you would like for it to, but the way it should. While that might be tough to stomach, it will all be worth it.

3. Don’t be afraid to talk about anything. You shouldn’t be afraid of reality. This goes back to rule number 1; question everything! If you're unsure of something, ask! If you don't know where you stand in someones life, ask! If you are frustrated with something based on lack of information or knowledge, ask! What could it hurt? It's *almost* always better to know for sure and embrace reality than it is to constantly wonder "what if".

4. Everyone is a hypocrite. Sad, but true. I'm a hypocrite, you're a hypocrite. Just don't make it a habit :-)

5. You are all original. Every life experience is case sensitive and unique. Every time you wake up or go to the bathroom or quote someone else, you are becoming more you than anyone has ever been. I'll be honest, I try my best to never say "I understand" to people who tell me things because I don't understand and I never will. Regardless of whether or not I have experienced the exact same situation, I can never understand how that person feels. Because I'm not them! I don't have their background, their friends, their thoughts, their experiences. Likewise, very few things frustrate me more than someone telling me that they understand what I'm going through, or that they understand how I feel about something. Because, unfortunately, they don't. And while I agree that empathy is vitally important to humanity, there's a point where it just isn't really real.

6. Stop rushing. Shut up and embrace the sound of silence.Stop and slow down for a hot second. I'm HORRIBLE at this, which is why I can relate to number 4. I recognize the importance of relaxation, I'm just not very good at it haha.

7. Religion shouldn’t be taught, it should be found. And it should be personal. No one should tell you what to believe except you. There are so many things I wish to say about religion, but I'll save it for a later post :-) And while we're on the subject…

8. Don’t be restrained by one religion. People change every moment of every day. Minds grow and evolve. Religion has no law so feel free to mix and match. Make your own. I don't think feeling this way makes me blasphemous. Religion is based on ideas of man that were written down and practiced all over the world. Again, I'm not going to get too into it ...

9. Talking to yourself is healthy. Is there anyone that you have more in common with? Talking things out can save you from making mistakes or from saying or doing something you might later regret.

10. Ok, here's the hypocritical thing again, don't have any regrets! Do everything you want to do, whenever you want to do it. Don't regret anything. Don't do things that may cause you to have regrets. Own your life, or it will own you.

11. "There is no such thing as time. The sun never sets or rises. Days and years don’t exist. There is only your life. Earlier today you were born and death is predicted later in the evening." I don't remember where I read this, but I think it's a sensational point of view. It reminds me of Arab time. In the Middle East, there are "times" posted for things, but a lot of places run on Arab time which could be anywhere between 15 minutes to 2 hours late. I appreciate life so much more when things are run using Arab time haha because you're just living your life, not thinking about deadlines or having to be somewhere or what needs to happen next. Just live in the moment. That being said ...

12. We will always be in a transitional phase. Look outside and know that everything will be replaced at some point. This existence is temporary.

13. Be happy, but don’t force it. Be honest if you aren't happy, but strive to be. If you have a day where you feel like you aren't happy, be proactive! Do something to put yourself in the position where you can be happy.

14. Ask a child for advice. They may not know much, but they know what is important. Take the time to do things that will bring you back to a child's mindsight. Watch children's movies, color, make chocolate chip cookies, reminisce about your childhood with an old friend. I know that living in the past isn't the best idea, but sometimes, it's healthy to catch a little glimpse.Everything in moderation :-)

15. Words will always be just words. Love is just another four letter word, only the feeling is real. Don't take things too seriously, even this. :-)


So this wasn't my most beautifully written post, nor did it really include anything terribly profound but it was time for another post and I just had some thoughts from last night that I wanted to write down. So, here they are!