For millennia, humans have envied other animals that can fly, birds to be more precise. Wings have fascinated humans everywhere. In popular Greek Mythology, we learn of the story of an inventor named Daedalus who made wings to escape into the sky with his son Icarus. In history, we learn of the daring exploits of the Wright brothers and their attempts to make an airplane. Ancient South American civilizations even worship a winged serpent named Quetzalcoatl. Flight has been a dream of the human race since the beginning.
Like most ambitions, once one is fulfilled, another begins. When man gained the ability to fly, they wanted to soar higher - so they did. They reached great heights people from a thousand years ago never thought of. The adage "The sky is the limit" seems obsolete today because mankind had reached beyond the known limit. Every finish line is the starting line of yet another race.
As humans continue to soar, they express desire for more. They draw pictures of humans with bird-like wings, angels as they are called. Somewhat beheld like perfect, angels have spread in culture, set like some unreachable goal. As with all humans, they live in pursuit of their goal, not the goal itself. Envisioning oneself as a human capable of flight is indeed an uplifting habit a typical person does. Dreams of flight seem to be the anti-thesis of a nightmare.
But with all flight, one needs to land. One cannot fly across the skies forever. That is the only thing about flight most humans fear: landing. It's either you land or you crash down. The sinking feeling during flight in a dream can spell a nightmare. In the story of Daedalus, Icarus strayed too far from his father and went to the sun like a moth to the flame. In the end, the sun destroyed Icarus' wings, causing his death. But landing doesn't seem to exist in a human's point of view, since human flight had defeated the purpose of the finish line.
Soaring until we die - it seems like a miserable fate for us humans to have. It would be better to keep our feet on the ground, literally and figuratively. If ever we feel the need to fly, fly where you know you can land safely.
... Or crash on the ground headfirst.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Sunday, August 2, 2009
What is Luck?
What is Luck?
Really now... What is Luck?
Say there's a bus accident and out of the thirty passengers on the bus, only one survived. Many would say he's lucky since he survived while the others died, but is he really lucky? If he's really lucky, the tragedy wouldn't have happened in the first place.
Say you're a poor kid living in the slums of some rundown city. By some random chance, you happen to meet a rich kid who tells you about himself. He tells you about how his parents gave him good food, clothes, and education yet lack quality family time. You compare it with your own life and realize that you're lucky to have a loving family despite the hardship. But if you're really lucky, you wouldn't be in the slums in the first place.
Say you're the child of someone who has a weak heart. Your father dies in his sleep, rather than suffering in agony. You consider him lucky that he escaped suffering. But if he's really lucky, he wouldn't have had a weak heart in the first place.
The word "luck" seems to be forced into seemingly good situations that are surrounded by a large chance of a bad. But that isn't good fortune at all. Such absurdity...
Luck doesn't seem to work that way so let's redefine it. "Luck is success, prosperity, advantage, etc. in a specified set." "Luck is partial immunity (to some degree) of strife."
Say you're a perfectly normal human in the planet. Everyday, every hour, every minute, and every second, out of the billions of humans in the world, a handful dies, a bunch is stricken with disease, a handful are drowning in poverty, and almost everyone has experienced misfortune... save for yourself. That's the only instance where you should be the luckiest person in the world.
Everyone's lucky... in a way.
- the seemingly chance happening of events that affect someone; fortune; fate
- good fortune; success, prosperity, advantage, etc.
- an object believed to bring good luck
Really now... What is Luck?
Say there's a bus accident and out of the thirty passengers on the bus, only one survived. Many would say he's lucky since he survived while the others died, but is he really lucky? If he's really lucky, the tragedy wouldn't have happened in the first place.
Say you're a poor kid living in the slums of some rundown city. By some random chance, you happen to meet a rich kid who tells you about himself. He tells you about how his parents gave him good food, clothes, and education yet lack quality family time. You compare it with your own life and realize that you're lucky to have a loving family despite the hardship. But if you're really lucky, you wouldn't be in the slums in the first place.
Say you're the child of someone who has a weak heart. Your father dies in his sleep, rather than suffering in agony. You consider him lucky that he escaped suffering. But if he's really lucky, he wouldn't have had a weak heart in the first place.
The word "luck" seems to be forced into seemingly good situations that are surrounded by a large chance of a bad. But that isn't good fortune at all. Such absurdity...
Luck doesn't seem to work that way so let's redefine it. "Luck is success, prosperity, advantage, etc. in a specified set." "Luck is partial immunity (to some degree) of strife."
Say you're a perfectly normal human in the planet. Everyday, every hour, every minute, and every second, out of the billions of humans in the world, a handful dies, a bunch is stricken with disease, a handful are drowning in poverty, and almost everyone has experienced misfortune... save for yourself. That's the only instance where you should be the luckiest person in the world.
Everyone's lucky... in a way.
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