Sometimes we have to go back and learn from the things we may have over looked. Maybe we didn’t understand or let them go away because the world was moving too fast at the time. Either way, at some point we must recognize what the great people of the world were trying to tell us.

We must be able to learn some important things on our own. But take the lessons others have taught and use them to our advantage. Sometimes this can be hard to do because the world is a rapidly changing place. It will be difficult to tell what is best to just accept and what to see for yourself, and you may not actually know until you have chosen the wrong path.

Life is about trial and error. Everyone has to be tested in some way or another. Just be sure not to let the test of life defeat you. Allow yourself to accept defeat only so that you can win the next time. And always remember what others have told you; whether you listen or not you will certainly learn from them. <3 Chris

Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

by Dr. Seuss
Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You’re off to Great Places!
You’re off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You’re on your own.  And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who’ll decide where to go.

You’ll look up and down streets.  Look ‘em over with care.
About some you will say, “I don’t choose to go there.”
With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,
you’re too smart to go down any not-so-good street.

And you may not find any
you’ll want to go down.
In that case, of course,
you’ll head straight out of town.

It’s opener there
in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.

And when things start to happen,
don’t worry.  Don’t stew.
Just go right along.
You’ll start happening too.

OH!
THE PLACES YOU’LL GO!

You’ll be on your way up!
You’ll be seeing great sights!
You’ll join the high fliers
who soar to high heights.

You won’t lag behind, because you’ll have the speed.
You’ll pass the whole gang and you’ll soon take the lead.
Wherever you fly, you’ll be the best of the best.
Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don’t
Because, sometimes, you won’t.

I’m sorry to say so
but, sadly, it’s true
and Hang-ups
can happen to you.

You can get all hung up
in a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on.
You’ll be left in a Lurch.

You’ll come down from the Lurch
with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,
that you’ll be in a Slump.

And when you’re in a Slump,
you’re not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself
is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted.  But mostly they’re darked.
A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!
Do you dare to stay out?  Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And IF you go in, should you turn left or right…
or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite?
Or go around back and sneak in from behind?
Simple it’s not, I’m afraid you will find,
for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.

You can get so confused
that you’ll start in to race
down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace
and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space,
headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.
The Waiting Place…

…for people just waiting.
Waiting for a train to go
or a bus to come, or a plane to go
or the mail to come, or the rain to go
or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow
or waiting around for a Yes or a No
or waiting for their hair to grow.
Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite
or waiting for wind to fly a kite
or waiting around for Friday night
or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake
or a pot to boil, or a Better Break
or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants
or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.
Everyone is just waiting.

NO!
That’s not for you!

Somehow you’ll escape
all that waiting and staying.
You’ll find the bright places
where Boom Bands are playing.

With banner flip-flapping,
once more you’ll ride high!
Ready for anything under the sky.
Ready because you’re that kind of a guy!

Oh, the places you’ll go! There is fun to be done!
There are points to be scored.  there are games to be won.
And the magical things you can do with that ball
will make you the winning-est winner of all.
Fame!  You’ll be famous as famous can be,
with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.

Except when they don’t.
Because, sometimes, they won’t.

I’m afraid that some times
you’ll play lonely games too.
Games you can’t win
’cause you’ll play against you.

All Alone!
Whether you like it or not,
Alone will be something
you’ll be quite a lot.

And when you’re alone, there’s a very good chance
you’ll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.
There are some, down the road between hither and yon,
that can scare you so much you won’t want to go on.

But on you will go
though the weather be foul
On you will go
though your enemies prowl
On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl
Onward up many
a frightening creek,
though your arms may get sore
and your sneakers may leak.

On and on you will hike
and I know you’ll hike far
and face up to your problems
whatever they are.

You’ll get mixed up, of course,
as you already know.
You’ll get mixed up
with many strange birds as you go.
So be sure when you step.
Step with care and great tact
and remember that Life’s
a Great Balancing Act.
Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.
And never mix up your right foot with your left.

And will you succeed?
Yes! You will, indeed!
(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU’LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

So…
be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O’Shea,
you’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So…get on your way!

The accolades were great for boosting my self confidence but I didn’t see anything too remarkable in those. After all, the complements could have been because the particular cut of jean I was wearing made my ass look phenomenal, or simply because it was Friday and everyone was ready for the freakin’ weeken’ (lol). Either way I didn’t care about WHAT people were saying to me, it was HOW they said it. Everyone I ran into saw me smiling and in turn smiled back, they had no choice but to say something good because my energy made them feel good.

I felt Powerful, even a little manipulative…Bwahaha. My Positive Energy bestowed itself on to innocent victims leaving them with nothing but a cheery disposition! I kid, but seriously the truly remarkable part of it all was the reaction I got from the Haters of the office, the women who seemingly are always in a bad mood for no reason and you dare not bump into because they will bring you all the way down( beware they are everywhere!). Even they couldn’t resist the energy that radiated from inside me and I realized Positivity is contagious.

Psychologically people are affected by one another through emotion. If someone is sitting around bashing the entire Universe and gives you a grim look, of course you’re going to be in a bad mood afterward. Not only that, you might even cause someone else to be in a bad mood when you walk in the next room talking about how ugly Sally was in the break room and how she “better not mess with you” because you “got those hands for her” (lol).  Negativity is just as contagious as Positivity the only difference is the outcome.

I understand we can’t walk around everyday like we just won a Sweepstakes but we can try to start our days off with something positive that will last all day. If positivity is beyond your realm of imagination I suggest you try thinking about your favorite song, or just smile at a random person. You might make someone’s day or better yet you might even make your own day.

<3 Chris

** If you really wanna feel good all day you should get yourself a bottle of the AberrantMuse Fragrance. Not only will you feel good but others will think you smell good (who doesn’t like a person that smells good?!). And if smelling good isn’t enough, you’ll be elated to know that 100% of the proceeds go to the AberrantMuse Organization. That’s what I call a win-win situation! **

I couldn’t grasp reality… between what was happening in real life and obsessively replaying events in my mind, I lost myself and I lost time.  It was November and I never actually stopped to recognize the Positive things that happened to me this year: I graduated Albany State University with my B.A. in Psychology, I got a full-time salary paying job with benefits, I got a new car, My brother moved to GA with me and was able to spend more time with him, I let go of an emotional roller-coaster relationship, I was granted a seat on the Board of Directors of the L.E.A.D Foundation, I was cast as an extra in a J.Lo movie, I took acting classes, I auditioned for the American Musical and Dramatic Academy and not only got in but was offered a generous Scholarship, I started my first website and I met some wonderful people along the way.

Before I had this outer-body experience and realized the bigger picture of things I was sitting in solitude one day wondering why I was so unhappy and so unsuccessful, scanning my memory to a time when I was happy and excited about the future and I remembered reading this  book called The Ten Ancient Scrolls For Success by Og Mandino. I remembered I was about Thirteen or Fourteen when my Grandfather gave it to me to read. I remember that it was small and blue,the front cover was blank, had no more than 50 pages and I read it over and over again for about a week before I gave it back to my Grandfather.  I looked for the book at the library but I couldn’t find it so I went to Google and found just the Ten Scrolls and that was all I needed to unlock the things I learned from it years ago. I now have this printed on my desk at work to remind me everyday how important I am:

• Scroll I – Today I begin a new life.
• Scroll II – I will greet this day with love in my heart.
• Scroll III – I will persist until I succeed.
• Scroll IV – I am nature’s greatest miracle.
• Scroll V – I will live this day as if it is my last.
• Scroll VI – Today I will be master of my emotions.
• Scroll VII – I will laugh at the world (Keep perspective)
• Scroll VIII – Today I will multiply my value a hundredfold.
• Scroll IX – I will act now, I will act now, I will act now.
• Scroll X – I will pray for guidance.

I recommend all of my fellow AberrantMuses to read The Ten Ancient Scrolls For Success: From The Greatest Salesman In The World by Og Mandino if for nothing more than a little bit of inspiration.

♥Chris

About Og Mandino:

Mandino’s main philosophical message is that every person on earth is a miracle and should choose to direct their life with confidence and congruent to the laws that govern abundance. He wrote in Scroll I, “I will not fail as the others, for in my hands I now hold the charts (the Ten Scrolls) which will guide me through perilous waters to shores which only yesterday seemed but a dream.” Og was also a proponent of taking action now. In Scroll IX, the phrase I will act now is written 18 times. He recognized that all successful people take on their own lives by “charting” or consciously choosing both the desired destination and the path to reach it. Mandino’s philosophical messages have Christian undertones. They are encouragements to build good habits, to live according to the laws that govern abundance and to find a vigor and joy in life as we learn to stand at the helm of our ship charting its course into the safety of the harbor instead of just waiting for someone else to bring it in.

Aberrant- deviating from the ordinary, usual, or normal type; exceptional; abnormal

Muse-to cogitate, ruminate, think; dream.

I decided on that name because I woke up one day and realized that people are trending more and more to abandon true and intricate deep thoughts, people seem to become less inspired and more reliant on the developments/ideas of others, but what happens when all the thinkers die? Underachievement and less than spectacular efforts have been rewarded and a hard working self reliant person is often overworked and under-appreciated.

It has been easier to give up because our standards have gone down. People are becoming so ignorant and against hard work  that we have only been taught to do the bare minimum. Time and time again we are rewarded for foolishness and if a behavior is rewarded with positive reinforcement then that behavior will become learned.

My idea is to change that behavior, that notion of just getting by, and turn it into something that is positive, encouraging, socially acceptable and easy to do. We do not have to be ignorant anymore. We should test our limits, we should be eccentric, we should be exceptionally intelligent and we all can be an AberrantMuse.