Holiday Thoughts

I've been blessed over the last week to have had an awesome holiday spent with good friends in new and different places. As my holiday comes to an end I wanted to share some insights from my break:

-regardless how boring or flat a place may be, if you are with a good friend its the best place to be

-randomness is the birthplace of significant experiences

-who knows what will happen tomorrow/next week/next year/in 20 years?

-its worth eating a home cooked meal at 10pm even if you sit up all night with a full stomach

-if you set your mind to it, you will find a Mounty in Canada

-try the local cuisine, worry about exercise later

-if you can catch up on sleep on the next flight, why not pull an all nighter?

-fear sucks

-every moment is a chance to learn deeper truths about self/life/the world

-foreign toilets are weird, keep your cool

-speak to strangers if its safe to do so, who knows how their story might impact you?

-staying with newlyweds and soon to be parents will have an impact on your discernment

-everyones journey has value...even if they drove on the other side of the road to get to the same destination

History

I wasn't going to do it. I promised myself I wouldn't. But...Miley Cyrus at the VMA's. Too many people have written too many articles and blogs about it already, and I wasn't going to add to all the noise. But then, she said this:

"You want to make history. Me and Robin the whole time said 'you know you are about to make history right now?"

Sigh. I have to blog about it now. I have to blog about it now because I try so hard to convince the young people I speak to that they can make history; how are they meant to believe that when the examples of "history making" are so negative? Here I'm not just talking about Miley, but America's impending involvement in Syria and all the other crazy stuff going on in our world right now.

Everyday is an opportunity to make a statement with out lives. It doesn't matter how small or insignificant that impact might mean to us. Yes, some people get a bigger stage and a bigger audience in their life, but our lives all have an impact on those around us and the world we live in. Take, for example, the old man I spotted in the Cathedral this morning, who was carrying a hat with the slogan "I recommend Jesus"! I'll be smiling all day about that and who knows who else will be impacted by his message. The rapper Tupac once said: "I might not be the person who changes the world, but I might inspire the mind of the person who eventually will!"

I mean, what sort of history are we writing right now? What are the consequences of twerking in barely nothing in front of a worldwide audience? Yes Miley, you made history, but at what cost? When did making a statement become synonymous with scandal?

My point is this: we get to choose the sort of impact we have on the world. Yes, performances like Miley's get fussed about, get a bunch of YouTube hits and get posted about all over blogs and news sites. At the end of the day however, we just forget about it until the next scandalous performance. The most memorable statements in history are those that haven't been about self-promotion, building a reputation or increasing a fan base. Think, "I have a dream!"

Want to know how to make an actual impact on the world? Make good choices!!!
Oh, and then there's this:

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbour as yourself."