'Selma'

In some form or other, Life's sense of humor falls upon us all. This is especially true in the case of those who are sensitive to detail and strive to be attentive toward self and other. This personification of Life is NOT accidental. It is inspired and borrowed from the wisdom of Kahlil Gibran: the artist, philosopher, and poet whose works changed my life.

Gibran once told a story of his coming across an ethereal woman named Selma Karamy in one of his Arabic works titled, The Broken Wings. Selma embodied a beauty and quiet dignity that can only be truly understood by way of the heart. This woman's quintessential enchantment left the young Kahlil Gibran a little older, a little more of a man. After all, there is an epiphany of sorts that comes with the coming across of such loveliness; it alters the course of man's heart and mind. It makes poetry out of what once appeared to be bland, and sheds light upon the details of things which we once thought to be plain.

I suppose in most cases, these instances do not occur while we await them; they occur while we are not. It is usually when we have imagined our personal brink, and begin to talk ourselves into a fate we deem not to be desirable, but inevitable. It is in those moments that one's 'Selma' appears. It is in those moments, that Life mocks and ridicules our plans for ourselves...

A Fleeting Glimpse

Perhaps it is true when they say that, "we ourselves are our own worst enemies"...

Often times, we give birth to ideas that can potentially altar the course of humanity as we know it. However, it is a culmination of our laziness and lack of determination that hinders these potential wonders from coming to pass. Inspiration comes in those brief moments; those moments where confusion ceases to be while a crazy cool mixed with clarity settles in. That clarity is so deceiving, because it is fleeting. At that moment, it appears as if it is here to stay and that the revelation is so great that we believe it to be impossible to forget. So we don't write it down and we don't cease the moment. Although others do not know it, we are aware of the fact that all too often we quit at most games we should have played.

It is the life-long goal of a thinker, a writer, or an artist of any realm to contribute to the works that humanity defines itself by. It is those insights that lead us a step closer toward understanding, appreciation, and evolution. It is that new step to further distance ourselves from ignorance.

I have come to realize that it is a careless act toward humanity to not pounce upon these brief instances of clarity. They are gifts that can become either a permanent marker of our progression or the unclaimed cause of our self-inflicted oppression. Too many unsung heros never come to be...