Thursday, October 05, 2006
Think before you eat.
Think before you eat. The last time you had a steak, a sandwich, or even a glass to water to quench your thirst, have you thought about the hundreds of millions of people who don't have it as easy as "Let's go to Outback, let's go to Panera, or even as simple as let's find a water fountain"? Now this isn't a plea to finish your food for the starving children in India; because let's face it, those starving children aren't going to get full even if you did finish your food. This is however a plea to take a step back and humble yourself. I feel like sometimes we get so caught up about getting ahead in this plastic, materialistic world, that we forget that everything we have is a privledge.
I'm not trying to be on a pedistal, and hey, if you're reading this you're asking for my opinion, but this is in the spirit of Ramadan. After you fast all day, all you want is the simple things you've missed all day. Water has never felt so good. I get to stop fighting the envy but also annoyance of those who sit there and talk about what they had for lunch and how hungry they still were. I get to gain a whole new perspective each and everyday I am able to make it through a day when I can fight temptation and cowardess to take the easy way out. To know that I can continue to do this each and every day is a source of empowerment and humility, a reminder of strength and desire, a neverending reminder of faith and appreciation.
For all those who chose to ignorantly watch FOX news, here's the latest. THIS IS THE TRUEST FORM OF JIHAD! That's right, I am waging war...on the weaknesses of my very own temptations, enticement, and ultimately traps. Why is it that we want to do the wrong thing so badly, but once we do it we feel horribly? Why can't we just be strong enough to just not do it in the first place? I am by no means suggesting that I am in that place where I can easily not do the wrong thing, but I am working to be in that place. I will be working to be in that place, God willing, until the day I die. For a country so willing to fight "evil," this is one war that Americans should be a part of, it is definitely one I can support.
I'm not trying to be on a pedistal, and hey, if you're reading this you're asking for my opinion, but this is in the spirit of Ramadan. After you fast all day, all you want is the simple things you've missed all day. Water has never felt so good. I get to stop fighting the envy but also annoyance of those who sit there and talk about what they had for lunch and how hungry they still were. I get to gain a whole new perspective each and everyday I am able to make it through a day when I can fight temptation and cowardess to take the easy way out. To know that I can continue to do this each and every day is a source of empowerment and humility, a reminder of strength and desire, a neverending reminder of faith and appreciation.
For all those who chose to ignorantly watch FOX news, here's the latest. THIS IS THE TRUEST FORM OF JIHAD! That's right, I am waging war...on the weaknesses of my very own temptations, enticement, and ultimately traps. Why is it that we want to do the wrong thing so badly, but once we do it we feel horribly? Why can't we just be strong enough to just not do it in the first place? I am by no means suggesting that I am in that place where I can easily not do the wrong thing, but I am working to be in that place. I will be working to be in that place, God willing, until the day I die. For a country so willing to fight "evil," this is one war that Americans should be a part of, it is definitely one I can support.
