in a reflective state . this morning, i rolled over and rose into a ripe new day as the sun stood tall outside of my window. all of my ligaments, in place. my mind, sane. my vision, clear. my ears, sound. my voice, i could speak. my healthy finger touched the light switch and the light, as expected, lit up my room and all of my belongings were still in place. nothing touched by foreign hands. nothing missing. all was there.
i walked out of my room and into the restroom to a toilet that flushed with, what appeared to be, clean water. turned the faucet to the right and water came rushing out. violently, heavily the water rushed out of its chambers, without charge. the water altered its temperature as i chose it to. warm, hot, cold. i had choices to choose from. i could choose what temperature i wanted to shower in. i finished sanitizing myself in clean water, warm water. stepped out. walked over to a sink with more of that clean water. brushed my teeth. dressed myself. prepared lunch for my day. and went to school. classes at a university. to heighten my education.
someone, somewhere ... rolled over this morning on a cemented bench. saw a light, not from a bulb, but from above. could be missing a leg, possibly both. maybe missing an arm. declared insane by physicians. eyes, out of sight - not able to see. eardrums blown out, possibly deaf. vocal cords cut off, could be mute. some of their belongings may have been touched. moved. stolen. missing. you know, everything we consider wrong in our lives, they consider normal.
someone sitting next to me, their stomach may groan not because they forgot to eat breakfast before they came to class. but because they have not eaten for days due to low income. stomach howling for a bite to nibble on just to make it through their day. body releasing fumes of an unpleasant fragrance not because they forgot to deodorize, but because they live in a place where they have to pay to shower and they didn't have the funds to meet their hygienic needs. this is someone who might be in the same vicinity as me. but i'd never know their story because they're a stranger to me.
i don't show much appreciation for my current state. i don't show much appreciation in my every day. but i do acknowledge the lives that i long to meet. those stories that i want my journals to keep and my lenses to hold. the stories that are untold. the people in this world that know what it means "to gain the whole world, and lose their soul".
we will never know the life of another unless they speak it to us. there is no point in sharing insults about another human being out of "innocent humor". it is senseless because it doesn't make sense. it is pointless because it doesn't have a point. cruel jokes simply do not build. every atom in our being experiences different encounters with life, none should be taken lightly. appreciate the lives that pass you. the lives that know you. the lives that have never met you. the lives that long to know you. you never know what their life might do in yours. we are no longer living for ourselves, but for our brothers and sisters walking this earth.
Jesus did not live, nor did He die for Himself. but for the sake of humanity, He lived, died, and resurrected that we may attain everlasting life.
