Life is Sold:

Appreciate the fact that your alive.
Stop wasting time with lies.

Ignite a flame of forgiveness.
Start a fire of compassion.

Appearences

Hung from a branch of Pity.
Surrounded by a crowd
of worthless pawns.

Staring in silence; their eyes swell.
Heads and thoughts weaving
with my dangeling body.

Witnessess share and embrace
my struggle for survival.

This rope of addiction is so tight;
the end is soon.

Branch snaps and cracks.
Everyone backs up and holds their breath.

Standing tall, lighting up a square.
Come on, I'm not that weak.

Absorbing

Slowly absorbing the words of the past.
These words, these passion filled words.

Hope for logic was alive than and is now.
But hope can't stop the past from repeating.

Looking back at our country's mistakes, I wonder how any of them could
happen again.
Than i call my friend and slowly absorb the words from a distraught mother.

Theses words, these pain filled words.

Respect and Positive Outlooks

Respect is a virtue that Marcus Aurelius mentions in his book. Respect for himself, nature, and other people. I agree with his outlooks on how important respect is and how it is important to respect yourself. Marcus also believes that respect has to start from within; thus happiness starts when you start respecting yourself (Marcus, Book 2, p.13). I agree with Marcus that one should live every day as if it were your last. Not only live every day that way, but performing every action as if it was the last time(Marcus, Book 2, p.13). Recently, I have questioned how important every day of my life is. After reading only a small portion of Marcus, I am able to use his views and beliefs and incorporate them into my mind to make sense of the chaos and confusion that makes up every human’s existence.

Although Marcus wrote his thoughts many, many years ago, I ask myself the same questions he did about my surroundings. Two different worlds, in a matter of speaking, yet the same mental struggles. To me, this shows the importance of ones philosophy of life. Also, it shows that no matter where you live or how you live, everyone is human and everyone struggles with how to handle the depressing thoughts that enter our minds. Death should be accepted and not contemplated. It is natural to think about how your going to die or when, but obsessing about it and trying to figure it out is a waste of time. It is impossible to find the answer. Marcus, I believe, respects death and does not try to understand it. He, instead, focuses on what he knows to be true. Every human will die and when one does, you will be going back to where you were created. Back into the universe and elements that created you (Marcus Book 4, p.28). Respect for death can ease your mind. Since I respect death I do not fear it. Fear can poison one’s mind with many other negative thoughts such as doubt, anger, and hate. Which, in turn, can cause much mental and sometimes physical suffering.

Respecting nature is not always easy to do, however, one should at least make an attempt and be aware of how important our surroundings are to the overall existence of man. I believe that respecting nature and all of the creatures in nature makes for better living conditions and improves the quality of life for every living thing. It also shows character, maturity, and intelligence when someone respects nature. Human society does not respect nature. Our people destroy natural habitats to build roads, parking lots, fast food establishments, and many other structures. All of this is to improve the lives of humans, not animals or nature. Every single person pollutes the air and ground on a daily basis. I am no better, but I had no say in how things are. I was born into this mess. It must have been much easier to respect nature in Marcus’s time. Marcus had a great deal of respect for nature. He thanks nature for his existence and appreciates everything nature is composed of (Marcus Book 5, p.38). He realizes how much he uses nature to keep himself alive and to keep him feeling well. Therefore, he respects the ways and conditions of nature. I would be interested to know what Marcus would think about how our society is set up and how much pollution occurs. Honestly, I think he would have a heart attack. I completely agree with Marcus in that nature is our reason for being here and surviving here. I try to take care of it as much as I possibly can.

Many people have the philosophy: live every day as if it were your last. I admit, there is some controversy with that statement simply because if everyone lived each day as if it were there last, no one would go to work, school, etc. Marcus tells us to live each day as if it were our last and to partake in each even as if it was the last time we would be able to(Marcus, Book 2, p.13). I believed this before I even read Marcus, but reading it reinforced the idea inside my head. I think that Marcus is telling us to appreciate and enjoy the simple components of life. A flock of birds flying, a ray of sunshine, or even a simple smile from someone should be enough to make you feel good inside. Marcus talks about how he notices the cracks in a loaf of bread and how they are unintended but make each loaf unique( Marcus, Book 3,p.18). Appreciation for small things can make life glorious. Of course we can not act like it is our last day everyday because we still have to eat, make money, and have a home. However, we can let simple pleasures prevent depression and sadness. One should not be afraid to let a simple ice cream cone create a smile or overwhelming happiness inside. I believe Marcus wanted to stress that life is too short to be worrying about the wrong things. I think we should focus on the positive things no matter how big or small. Also, we can treat people with the respect they deserve and take pride in our relationships we have with people. Very often do I let the unimportant events in life consume my time and mind which results in me neglecting the people I am living for. The people that we love should be honored and treated as such.

The people we love and care about can be gone tomorrow. It is important to remember that unfortunate truth. I hate it when I say to myself: “ I don’t have time for that.” Sometimes I am talking about calling my mother or dropping off my girlfriend lunch. The concept of time is a creation of man. Animals are not concerned with time. However, the way our society functions, we have to be concerned about time. I personally wish I could have been born in Marcus’s day. Sure I might not have lived as long but I believe I would be more free and have less restrictions. Marcus talks about how time is a river of things that become and how quickly one thing is swept away by the current for good and another thing replaces it (Marcus, Book 4, p.34). I believe that one should make time for the important things in life. For me, I try to conform as little as possible. I will be late if my friend needs a favor. I will miss work if my father needs someone to go to the lions game with since no one else can stand watching them lose. I try not to be consumed by material things and I am trying not to become a corporate conformist. I realize there are things I do need to do. I am a part of nature and every being has its niche. Marcus does not believe in laziness but he understands it. He gives advice on what to do when you do not want to get up in the morning ( Marcus, Book 5, p.37). He tells us to remember that we all have our niche and responsibility to the world. Like a bee or a bird, we have roles or actions we are supposed to fulfill.

Overall, respect and outlooks on life are connected. If you have respect for something, you can appreciate it instead of fearing it or disregarding it. There are so many good things in the world that go unnoticed everyday. We are all guilty of being consumed by our jobs or school at one point in time. I try to get rid of all the fear inside me and replace it with a simple pleasure or a positive memory. Respect for one self, nature, and others is imperative to a positive existence. I believe it is necessary to live a fulfilling and enjoyable life. The outlook of the world and the events which happen are very important too. If you do not understand something, try to, but if you can not, don’t bust your head over it. Maybe you are not meant to understand it. Just accept things, respect them, and have a positive outlook and life will be fulfilling.

Go back

There are many reasons I want to go back.

Back to when imagination was a source of pleasure and excitement.

Now my imagination is infected with sorrowful woes and greedy intentions.

I’ll go back.

Back to when girls were Ohio State fans and I was the starting quarterback at Michigan.

I was smarter than; stuck with my teammates.

Now girls surround me like a hazy stream of smoke around a pothead’s skull.

Let’s go back.

Back to when God was real, Santa clause paid me visits, and summers involved diving for golf balls, riding bikes, and the occasional, very tactical, water gun fight.

Now God’s existence is questionable, no more Santa under the Christmas tree, and summers are spent with the pizza hut family.

What happened?

My childhood is my heaven.

The future looks like my hell.

I can’t go back.

Random Thoughts

Bombarded by addictive substances; yet i feel no pain.

Id be lieing if i said i tried hard to avoid em.
I stand, staring like a deer in headlights, and let these mind altering substances explode all around me.

Everyone keeps saying its bad for me; all this smoking and drinking. I feel no pain.

Am i a victim of marketing? these companies drown my eyes with images of beautiful people enjoying nicotine and alcohol than turn around and say i shouldnt do it.

Whats real and whats fake?

I'm just sayin, this country we live in is so hippocritical it turns my mind into jelly trying to figure it out. And the only thing that makes my mind cool off are substances that i can get locked up like an animal for.

Everything is about money. Therefore, im takin what money i got, gettin me a 40, a dime bag, and a pack of smokes. The american way.

Same shit. Different Day.

Lee Dell Walker

Lee Dell Walker Press Conference

The family of Lee Dell Walker is suing the state of Michigan for 1 million dollars. Walker spent 18 years in prison and was released on September 20, 1990. Shortly after his release, Walker died from nemonia. According to Shelly Howder, attorney for the family of Lee Dell Walker, Walker was wrongfully convicted and became ill while serving his time in prison. Therefore, Howder wants compensation for the family of Walker since his wrongful time in prison resulted in his death.

Murder was the charge Walker was convicted of. In fact, Walker admitted to the crime and signed a confession according to attorney for the governor, Jerry Johnson. Johnson stated that the written confession by Walker was legitimate when it was submitted to court. Johnson also stated how there were no signs of abuse. Howder claims that the confession Walker signed was forced out of him by acts of violence from the police officers that arrested Walker. Howder also states that Walker feared for his life and signed a false confession because he feared for his life. Johnson did not comment on the beatings of Walker, however Johnson did state that a signed confession to a crime would cause any judge to put Walker behind bars.

When Walker was released, he was given $10,000 and sent on his way. According to the attorney for the police department, Corey Reiter, Walker has already been compensated. Howder states that $10,000 is in no way, shape, or form compensation. She goes on to say how $10,000 averages out to $555 for each year Walker spent in prison. Since Howder claims that Walker was an innocent man, she wants more than $555 for each year he spent behind bars.

Reiter states that Walker was a murder suspect and that he was treated like one. When Walker came into the police station, he was out of control, according to Reiter. Therefore, the police had to use necessary force to get Walker under control. In regards to the beatings, Reiter insisted that the local police department has been cleaned up since the Walker incident occurred. He went on about how this incident occurred two decades ago and that the officers responsible were punished accordingly and stated that “It will never happen again”.

Aaron Freund, a 20 year old college student, said “The whole situation was handled wrong.” Freund found it to be unfortunate that Walker’s family lost him and that they were more than entitled to the money they were asking for. Chris Ogdei, a 21 year old college student, said “Mr. Walker’s family should get the money since the police department admitted it.” Ogdei found it odd that the police would give Walker $10,000 if they hadn’t made a mistake. Jessica Becker, also a 21 year old college student, said “The police should have done more research.” Becker would like to see the family receive more than a million dollars.