Reflection

Who am I?

Some people are born with the gift of knowing who they really are, who they want to become, and they have the chance to make their dreams come true. These are probably the lucky few.

Most people, however, either do not know who they really are, or who they want to become, or they do know but they are just not born in the right condition to let them shine. Whatever the reason is we choose to give ourselves, if we dig deep enough, it is usually our emotions that is taking over our mind and controlling over our life.

Have you ever wanted something so bad you are willing to give up anything and everything to get it? As adults, we would probably smile and say that only a child would be as foolish as to throwaway everything he already has in order to pursue something that is uncertain in all ways. Perhaps we would end up living a hell throughout the remaining years in our lives. Perhaps we would succeed and become a notable person in history. People are often bogged down by fear of losing it all.

As a child, you have probably had dreams far beyond imagination. You want to become an astronaut to go see the moon and stars up close. You would probably have built space ships with empty bottles and put a cape on your back to pretend that you can fly to infinity. These are beautiful times when there is nothing to worry about in life. You probably have peers having the same thinking as you do. You form discussion groups and work on projects to make your dreams a reality. You are creative.

What happened to the child in you? What happened to your fearless self?

Over the years, while growing up, you probably have encountered elders telling you of things you should leave behind. Back then, your dreams are important. Somehow, along the way, you need to come back to reality. Your dreams are a total setback and you have kept them locked in the deepest part of you, in a chest with such a huge bolt, it is impossible to unlock it anymore.

You become who you should be. You go to school. You get good results in examinations. You come out to society and you start to work your way up the corporate ladder. You excel in your job. You get promotions all the way up. You find your life partner. You get married and have children of your own. You have a mortgage to pay up. You have your children to bring up. But your dreams have been buried, so deep you can no longer uncover it.

Now your children have all grown to become adults. You are already in your golden years. Your children have children of their own. They are walking your footsteps, to become the person they adore most, you. Perhaps they are living the life of their dreams, perhaps not. Somehow, it does not seem important to have a dream after all. You have your grandchildren to love and show you love. You should be fulfilled.

As age catches up, health declines. You are not in the hospital bed. You have all the time to flash back in your younger days. You talk about those days a lot. You suddenly realize that there is something missing. Despite the happy and smooth life that you have had, there is still a void within. What is that? Why are you feeling emptiness inside when you already have what others say as a complete life?

It is your dreams.

You have been living the perfect life in the eyes of everyone but you are not living the life of your own. You look in the mirror, you see your face but you do not see the truth inside of you.
You look in the mirror, you see your body but you do not see the life you lead.
You look in the mirror, you see everything down to the acne but you cannot see through your soul.
You are you, nobody can change that. Have you been true to yourself? Or are you just merely being someone you are not?

Who is the person you see in the reflection?
Who is the person you really are?

 

Why is my reflection someone I don’t know?

Hua Mulan (花木蘭), Female warrior from the Northern and Southern dynasties era

Intelligent

What is the purpose of life?

Every single being on earth is here for a special reason. If we are talking about this scientifically as a whole, we know that the air composition is as such so that we can all breathe. Plants exist to provide vital needs of life. Animals exist to provide comfort. Humans exist to provide intelligence.

Have we, as human beings, done our part in providing the intelligence that the entire world needs? What is the proof that we have done our part as dwellers of this earth we call home?

Over the past centuries, since the first civilization of men, we have made history in many ways. Great people have created many things for a noble cause. Somehow along the way, we as descendants stray from the initial course of our ancestors. We have our own mindset.

Paper and ink were created for a noble cause. It is to document knowledge and wisdom. In the modern society, paper is used in very much the same ways but we have made it more comprehensive. The human minds have developed in a complicated way. Paper is a must in law, accounting, and also business. Has anyone ever realized that the filing of papers for all purposes have put a burden on the environment?

While everyone is busy having a set of documents of their own, trees are being cut down to produce the paper that each of us need. Then when the documents become irrelevant or overdue, we just throw them out in the trash. Environmentalists are promoting recycling of papers. This is also for a noble cause. How many people are really segregating their trash into separate bins?

Many people keep the papers to use as placemats. Perhaps it is for convenience sake. While this saves them money to buy a real placemats, and saves them time to have to clean up the table after every meal, it is really putting a huge stress on the environment. Soiled papers are usually just thrown in the trash together with leftover foods and plastic containers.

People may start to argue on this matter as paper is biodegradable. Do you really know how paper is made? Is it really that biodegradable? Have you tested it out yourself instead of just believing what others want you to believe? Raw papers are biodegradable over a period of time. But the white sheets of papers that we use in our documentations are not exactly that biodegradable. They are all bleached and most are coated for easy adherence of ink. What is the environmental impact of bleach, coating, and ink from paper that we throw out?

The human minds are always working towards correction of past mistakes. We know that overusing of paper is not the way to go for the future.

Computer and the World Wide Web is created for a noble cause to ease communication and reduce use of old technology. This really is the greatest creation. Just take it this way, there is always pros and cons to every decision we make. We just have to weigh between the two to take action accordingly.

People who are not in the semiconductor industry probably do not know that all electronics have a trace amount of certain hazardous substances that we do not want leaked out into our soil and water. Everyone is talking about lead-free. How many people know that lead-free is just a term used to say that lead is not present over the threshold (limits set by regulatory bodies for safe usage of humans)? It does not literally mean lead is not present. Sometimes, it is just not detected by the laboratory instruments.

We are responsible for the safe usage and handling of all electronic items that we use until the end of its life. Always empty out the data inside and send them for recycling in proper facilities. This may sound like a huge hassle but it is the only right thing to do. One mouse or keyboard may not make a difference in the dump but if everyone just continue throwing out their electronics as regular trash, heavy metals can easily seep in to the soil and contaminate everything from agriculture to fishery. What is safe to eat then?

Humans are the most intelligent species on earth. It is our duty to protect our home and all that live in it.

 

An intelligent hell would be better than a stupid paradise.

Victor Marie Hugo, French poet and dramatist, 1802-1885