ALL ABOUT LIFE

This essay was written while I was attending a Professional Education class and submitted as a requirement for essay writing. It just so happen that I have found the draft so I decided to share it here in my blog.

Ah, life. What a simple word but embodies everything about existence. Defining the word per se is easy but the meaning behind the definition is so complicated we could not really digest its real essence. Even Mr. Webster’s does not have concrete definition about life because he defines it in many ways and in different manner that would apply to its meaning. If one is questioned how he views his life, you will discover that there are many answers to the question. Every individual has their own meaning according to their own perception, understanding and experiences. They would say life is a circus, an everyday struggle to improve, a mixture of happiness and sorrow; it is like a river with so many obstacles to pass through, and a very complicated journey towards success.
However, we could not really explain why we have to exist and have to experience all the difficulties and the sufferings of living so we can understand it. That question had puzzled people for a thousand years. We have this inner desire to find the meaning of our own existence. Somehow, we could only understand life if we look beyond ourselves and try to realize our worth; our role, our mission and our calling. The only basis of life still boils down from the concept of creation and it is that idea that somehow we could find answers. However, we feel knowing the concept of creation is not enough to satisfy our personal query. Still we cling to what the Church taught for it somehow gives us more perspectives. We do not just exist accidentally because God planned everything for us. He gave us the qualities that would make us unique from others. Therefore, life has more than to offer.
The Colossians 1: 16 tell us that, “For everything, absolutely everything, above and below, visible and invincible…everything got started in Him and finds its purpose in Him”. Even if God created every individual the way He wants us to be, God gave us the freedom to make choices and lead our own lives. God showed his glory through his creations including us. Moreover, we as his creation have a mission: to value our life and make it worthwhile through the preservation of our faith. We have the responsibility to treasure what God has given us and that to live to serve His purpose. Though he wants us to glorify Him, God wants our worship to be motivated by love, thanksgiving and delight.
Life is a test and how anyone would evaluate an individual’s capacity to face the test of life. We are faced with challenges everyday with all the problems we encounter. But in the end, we are able to adapt to life because life itself is survival. We must struggle to meet the demands of it. Problems are challenges; maybe even a test of faith for having faith is the cure of all sufferings of our spirit, our emotions and our thoughts. God did not create us to suffer but to teach us how to value our lives with the adversities we face everyday. He does not give us problems we cannot solve. Beautiful lives don’t just happen. It is made. We make it. From all the good and bad experiences that life could offer, we are able to learn and develop our own values in life. The values where in we could really define ourselves, to be thankful, to respect others as well us ourselves, to live harmoniously with other people, to be kind and understanding, to cherish and value dignity, to strengthen our faith and most importantly, to give love. Through hardships, we learn to struggle. With working, we learn to value duty and responsibility.
We do not live in this world alone. As they say, “no man is an island”. We have to deal with the environment, to everything around us. Life is sharing. We could only discover that if we form good relationships with other people. Life with other people is necessary because how can we survive if we live alone? God gave our parents as our nurturers. Without them we don’t exist. They are our guide in our journey throughout life. Our siblings, friends and relatives are our support to make our life valuable and satisfy our need for belongingness. We feel important of their presence. We gain support from them, we feel happy with them and we learn to give what people around us can give. Therefore, life indeed is a continuous learning and adjustment.
Indeed, life is a complicated journey. Whatever life we have now is not just an accident, it has a purpose. The hardships and the problems are just part of it but it does not just end there. How we begin in life is as how we reach the end. The most important thing is we live life; we nourish and value it for the glory God.

WE ARE HOW WE EAT

In the book Back to Eden by Jethro Kloss, food is defined as “a substitute which when absorbed by the bloodstream will nourish, repair and furnish life force and heat to the body.” However when taken improperly, the life giving elements are taken away, it cannot furnish life force, but will clog the functional activity of the body and mind and will result in many disorders.
What poor habits of eating cause mental debility and mental weakness?
1. Indulgence of appetite. Indulgence of appetite is gluttony. The man who indulges in perverted appetite is an idolater. He loves to eat a great variety of food often taken at one meal. The indulgent eater creates a disordered stomach and a disorder temper.

2. Irregular of time for eating. Irregular hours for eating or sleeping can sap the brain forces. Hard work and study do not wear out or breakdown the mind as often as eating improper food at improper time.
3. Overeating. Overeating, even of the most wholesome food, is to be avoided. Overeating causes forgetfulness and loss of memory. It blunts the emotion. Nature can use no more than it is required for building up the various organs of the body. Any excess clogs the system. Overcrowding of the stomach wearies the body and weakens the mind.
4. Poor choice and variety. We are to guard against eating a great variety of food at one time. Choose food that agrees only with your digestion rather than with your taste. Erroneous eating leads to erroneous thinking. If the stomach is not properly cared for, the formation of an upright, moral character will be hindered. This is because the brain and nerves are in sympathy with the stomach. Too much meat in our diet will diminish intellectual activity. Too much sugar is not good for the stomach. It causes fermentation and this cloud the brain and brings peevishness into the disposition. Flesh meat would create disease and insubordination. A dyspeptic stomach always leads to irritability, and a sour stomach leads to a sour temper.
5. Too much thought about food.

Giving too much thought about the food to be eaten by weighing its quantity and counting the calories carefully and worrying unnecessarily about it allows the mind to become self-centered. Thus we make a god of our stomach. The rule is, eat plain, nourishing food; eat slowly; masticate the food thoroughly. Do not put heavy weight as to the quantity or quality of food that are best adapted to nourish the system.

Finally, let us eat only according to our best judgment; and when we have asked the Lord to bless the food for the strengthening of our body, let us believe that He hears and be at best!

“The highest reward for man’s toil is not what he gets for it but what he becomes by it” Ruskin