December, 28th, 2006 Thursday

We always seem suprised when bad things happen to us. Maybe it's because we have within us a pre-programed reaction to adversity. Perhaps this reaction is what keeps mankind from extinction. In my estimation, without that built in reaction, we would already be atomic dust. I know on a personal level the need to fight through adversity is not something I observe from the sidelines. It is the very fabric of my existence. Many other people feel this way and some of them come to hate life for this reason.

At times it seems as though we are born only to be enslaved with strife and laborious toil. I submit that this is not our bond or imprisonment. It is our foundation and our legacy. Survival is the pinnacle of our acheivement. Again on a personal level, my survival is invariably linked to an instinct within me. To fight for every inch of territory though it is only dirt and rocks.

Around this time of year, I am compelled to look past the revelry and sentimentality we are bombarded with every minute of the day from all angles. I look on at the survivors of the war on humanity… Those who by our decadent standards are poor in wealth or material goods. Those who wear the struggle on their faces. You can see it in their eyes and in the way they move. They are cautious and evasive, but they are swift. They are shadows but I see them everywhere I look. I won’t name them but you know who they are, I'm sure you see them too.

The survivors know a nobility and honor most people will never feel. Take a lesson from them is what I learn… Learn from their strength and dignity. Do an extra thousand push-ups today in honor of the survivors. Do a few more sets and think of how some of us are lucky in a way to never have to be a survivor in the battle for humanity.