Tag: inspiration
For everyone who was told that after 30 (or some other arbitrary number) you: shouldn’t be on tumblr, shouldn’t ship, should do “adult things”, whatever they are, shouldn’t wear this or that, should “get serious”, and so on and so forth.
I was reading my writing today, and let me tell you, it may not be good, plot is not the best, and characters are a bit stereotypical, but boy do I have fun writing it
This is such a good mindset to have. There is positive energy in this post
it crests my dashboard and I feel something I can’t name or describe except that it’s awesome and humbling, and I remember the person I wrote the song about; and I think, your story has spoken to so many, in places so far and wide
to survive is to leave a legacy of hope
This is exactly what I needed right now. Well said and THANK YOU.
“Hold yourself as though
there is iron running in your veins
like your bones are made of shark’s teeth
like you are run by mysteries and stardust (because there is,
they are,
you are,
and oh, darling
you are beloved of the universe that made room for you to be–
live like it.)”— July 26 (via spondee-soliloquy)
ultimately i think kindness is the most radical thing you can do with your pain and your anger. it’s like, you take everything awful that’s ever been done to you, and you throw it back in the world’s teeth, and you say no, fuck you, i’m not going to take this. you say this is unacceptable. you say that shit stops with me.
humans are fucking terrible and this awful world we live in will fucking kill you but if you are kind, if you are brave and clever and try really hard, you can defy it. you can impose on this bleak and monstrous structure something beautiful. even if it’s temporary. even if it doesn’t heal anything inside you that’s been hurt.
i’m gonna sleep and i’m gonna wake up and i swear by everything in this deadly horrible universe i’m gonna make someone happy.
i’ve seen a number of comments and tags where people feel that they must swallow or repress their anger in order to engage in kindness. that is not at all what i am recommending here. radical kindness is an expression of anger. it is not passive. it is not repressive. it does not require you, in any way, to forgive those that have fucked you up. it does not require you to be quiet.
it just requires that you be kind. viciously. vengefully. you fight back. you plant flowers. give to charity. play games. pet someone’s dog. scream into the dark. paint and write and dance, tell jokes, sing songs, bake cookies. you have been hurt and you don’t have to deny that hurt. you just have to recognize it in other people, and take their hand, and say: no more. enough. fuck this. no more.
have a cookie.
i will say this again: we are all going to die. the universe is enormous and almost entirely empty. to be kind to each other is the most incredible act of defiance against the dark that i can imagine.
i will say this again: we are all going to die. the universe is enormous and almost entirely empty. to be kind to each other is the most incredible act of defiance against the dark that i can imagine.
1. The universe is indifferent. We ought not be.
2. A good quote: There are two kinds of people. Those who think, “I don’t want anyone to
suffer like I did.” And those who think, “I suffered; why shouldn’t
they?”3. Two good quotes by Kurt Vonnegut: “Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It’s hot in the summer and cold in the
winter. It’s round and wet and crowded. On the outside, babies, you’ve
got a hundred years here. There’s only one rule that I know of,
babies-“God damn it, you’ve got to be kind.”And: “Be soft. Do not let the world make you hard. Do
not let pain make you hate. Do not let the bitterness steal your
sweetness. Take pride that even though the rest of the world may
disagree, you still believe it to be a beautiful place.”Another good quote:
“I. THIS IS NOT A GAME.
II. HERE AND NOW, WE ARE ALIVE.”
You can be kind and fuel it with rage. You can be kind and fuel it with a bitter twist, or you can be kind and fuel your kindness with righteous anger, or you can be kind and fuel it with love or spite or ecstatic joy. And no matter what your fuel is, you still can make kindness happen in the world so that people can warm themselves by it.
Kindness isn’t an emotion, kids. That’s the thing. Kindness is action. Kindness is choosing to take your emotions and channel them towards doing the most good where you can; to choose the targets of your actions carefully; to spread a little joy behind you, when you have a little to spare.
Kindness can mean a gentle word or a shouted imperative. It can be a warm meal or a gentle hug or a clean death. Kindness can manifest in many ways, and not all of them are one hundred percent nice. The kind thing to do may be doing nothing at all.
But kindness is, above all else, an action. We are imperfect humans, and we cannot control our emotions–but we can control what we do as a result. We can control the actions that our emotions and experiences propel us to perform.
The darkness is nothing but the absence of light, you know. It is endless and nihilistic and all enveloping. A lit candle has no hope against it.
But if enough of us light small candles and little matches behind us as we walk through this wide, uncaring universe, we can light up that sky. We can take an empty world and we can fill it with each other.
That’s how we can take the bones of an empty universe and forge a warm hearth fire humanity can use to keep back the night.
But kindness is, above all else, an action. We are imperfect humans, and we cannot control our emotions–but we can control what we do as a result. We can control the actions that our emotions and experiences propel us to perform.
Good is a thing you do.
I dearly love everything about this, and fundamentally have faith in the power of kindness and the impact of compassion, so I’m grateful this post exists.
The “be soft” quote is one of my absolute favorite expressions of this concept, but because of that, I just want to clarify that it was written by Iain Thomas , and it very rarely is credited to him, and I think it’s meaningful to know where it came from, despite the fact that he isn’t a well-known author.
And to add to this a few more that are etched into my heart:
“If I can stop one heart from breaking, I shall not live in vain.” – Emily Dickinson
“kindness as a discipline. tenderness as a practice.” – Warsan Shire
and, fundamentally, essentially, this, though its exact source is somewhat of a mystery (certain places site excerpts of the Talmud, others paraphrased rabbinical teaching): “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly, now. Love mercy, now. Walk humbly, now. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”
The Judaic philosophy of Tikkun olam, or repairing/healing the world, has principles which I believe could be applied secularly by anyone who wishes to practice it, every day, in whatever way one can, even (perhaps especially) in the small, quiet acts. “The most modern and broadly understood notion of tikkun olam is that of “repairing the world” through human actions. Humanity’s responsibility to change, improve, and fix its earthly surroundings is powerful. It implies that each person has a hand in working towards the betterment of his or her own existence as well as the lives of future generations. Tikkun olam forces people to take ownership of their world. It is them, not G-d, who will bring the world back to its original state of holiness. More simply, it is important [to] participate in repairing the world by participating in tzedakah (justice and righteousness) and g’milut hasadim (acts of loving kindness). Without their stake in the improvement of their environment, injustice and evil will continue to exist.” (x)
It does not mean silence in the face of prejudice, it does not mean understanding towards violence or oppression. It does mean uplifting the hurting, it does mean hearing and defending the oppressed. It is not a relinquishing of anger, it is, as another comment above says, defiance, an action that cuts through the harms and the apathy and the weights the world can wield or lay upon us. It is an active choice, to know that we stand on a precipice, to look into and witness the dark, and to love relentlessly anyway, to be kind anyway, to light a candle that pushes back against it, to illuminate and warm whatever space you can, to exhibit tenderness, to raise your voice, to embrace the bright and all too ephemeral beauty and sweetness that can exist in the life (all types of life) around us. (love can ignite the stars. love cannot be killed or swept aside. have courage and be kind.)
The work is never finished. It never will be. We are not obligated to complete it, but we are not free to abandon it – choosing to move in love, in kindness, even with all our pain and fury, is an unwavering strength. The power is in our hands, our words, lives in the remnants of the stardust that traces our bones.
Reblogging for the sentiment but mostly the shades.
New life mantra.
superkamigodespurrdragonofmars:
Nothing tops @dril’s “face god and walk backwards into hell” in terms of iconic phrases with absurd sources, but @clickholeofficial recently gave us “don’t squander this opportunity! God may have closed a door, but what that stupid motherfucker hasn’t realized is that he left a window open for you to wriggle right through!” And damn if that isn’t the most motivational thing I’ve read all week.
8yrs:
my head is hurting because i thought about my future for 0.3 seconds
you can get a headache from looking at something that bright
This is the most inspiring thing I’ve seen on tumblr.
Steel Phoenix Studios 