Struggling for ourselves

Creativity, as natural as it may seem at first, is a science. People can be born with talent, but expertise is developed over time. Writers and painters who are sometimes percieved as being gifted with certain talents have to still develop that talent into expertise before they begin to harness any benefits from it.

If someone decides at 20 decides today that he wants to be a full time writer, he is looking at first the development of the language skills and the effectiveness of his narration. He is looking at a life where he has to look for stories and make them. He has to devote time and attention to improve which is a slow process. And he may not be able to make another profession because of this one. That is not easy.

A contemporary artist in today's world of technology and tools has to not only know the methods of the past but should also understand and be adept at the possibilities of the tools of today. The choices that he has to make are not made in one night that he wants to be a painter. But the contemplation of a long time that he can't be nothing else.

We are who we are and even the obstructions in the path that is our's are our own. We love them like we love the path like we love our destiny. Admitting our love for the things we love and believing in it is a major foundation of individuality. I am.

Subconscious Settings

Conscious, sub-conscious, super-conscious, etc. seem to be rather complicated terms as such. But it is really quite simple if we try to understand these terms. Knowing what we are doing, how, why, etc is our consciousness. Reacting naturally, and not realizing our concepts about our actions is sub-conscious behavior. Knowing not just our own but about many things beyond ourselves and realizing their interconnection and interactions is super-consciousness.

We dont always realize how a certain incident has effected our way of handling things: why and when we stop trusting or start believing. We think we are like what we have always been. But the truth is that we are as constantly changing as change can be. Every new incident, interaction, conversation and emotion, brings with it a new change in our perception of the world around us. Only when we look closely enough do we realize how people who we thought used us gave something invaluable in return which they didn't know or didn't even intend to. Value is not only what can be categorized. We like it or not. We know it or not, we change. All the time.

Are you all GIVE or just TAKE?

Here is a fantastic piece from The Sunday Times that i suggest you read:
A healthy give and take attitude is the basis for a steady relationship. It’s when you realise you are getting nothing in return that a partnership is in jeopardy. Every relationship charts out its own gives and takes. That’s what relationships are all about — from a tie as pure as a mother and child to one forged for business alone, give and take is an innate part of every relationship. You cannot hope to just keep taking and expect the tie to last. Even the most philanthropic amongst us wouldn’t want to spend a lifetime giving; at some point there is bound to be the concern, “What did I get out of this?” After all, even charity is doled out in the hope of raking in some returns for ourselves, be they material, physical or spiritual. Give and take isn’t necessarily a bad word. Nor is it limited to business deals. However it is certainly something that can either be elevated to a lofty status or be relegated to something demeaning and lowly, depending on people involved and intentions. Quite often we wonder what makes certain relationships tick. As an outsider you may not be able to fathom how two seemingly mismatched people are pulling along in a relationship, but rest assured, there is almost always a reason. There is equal compensation both ways. Sometimes a very strong person who has everything going for him may hook up with an ordinary partner and the world may keep wondering what he gets from her. Difficult to say, but rest assured there will always be some vulnerability in the strong person that is complemented through the partner’s personality. And, the other person accrues the obvious benefits. So the give and take works both ways. And till it keeps working, the balance keeps the relationship steady and going. It is when one partner starts feeling that he or she has nothing more to gain from the other that the relationship is in jeopardy. Once you start feeling that there are only debits in a partnership, instinctively you try and get out of the situation. It may all sound very greedy and selfcentred, but it isn’t really so. Because the give and take is not really a monetary transaction; more a compensation for what the other person needs or misses in his or her life — physical, spiritual or emotional, And yes, even if one person gives just materially, it could make for a workable relationship so long as there is mutual respect. A partner who draws spiritual solace from someone, may be giving material comforts in return. That’s fine, so long as both benefit and the relationship is symbiotic. The point is caring enough to give the other what he or she needs.Some people are very selfish and stingy when it comes to giving anything of themselves to a partner. In their shortsightedness, they attack the very foundation of a relationship. A relationship with such a person would be self-destructive. However, if not being a giver is a problem, being just a giver without ever taking anything from anyone also disturbs the balance of nature. A story in psychotherapist Brian Weiss’s book, Through Time into Healing, comes to mind. A daughter, distraught at her mother's being rendered totally inactive after a paralytic attack, questions God why he has struck helpless a woman who did nothing but give throughout her life. The answer she receives is that by giving her mother two years of dependence on the daughter, God has saved her a lifetime of begging and accepting in another birth. Because it is critical for the mother to understand it’s as important to receive as it is to give. “It is well to give when asked, but it is better to give unasked, through understanding; And to the open-handed the search for one who shall receive is joy greater than giving And is there aught you would withhold? All you have shall someday be given … See first that you yourself deserve to be a giver, and an instrument of giving.” — Kahlil Gibran

Great men talk about ideas. Second-handers talk about people.

That precisely, is the deadliness of second-handers. They have no concern for facts, ideas, work. They're concerned only with people. They don't ask: 'Is this true?' They ask: 'Is this what others think is true?' Not to judge, but to repeat. Not to do, but to give the impression of doing. Not creation, but show. Not ability, but friendship. Not merit, but pull.
And isn't that the root of every despicable action? Not selfishness, but precisely the absence of a self. The man who cheats and lies, but preserves a respectable front. He knows himself to be dishonest, but others think he is honest and he derives his self-respect from that, second-hand. Greatness - in other people's eyes. Fame, admiration, envy - all that whice comes from others. Not wanting to be great, but wanting to be thought as great. That is actual selflessness. Its their ego they have betrayed and given up. And such people are called selfish.
Its what I couldn't understand about people for a long time. They have no self. They live second-hand.