Monthly Sparks 2008 Archives
Each of us has a spark of life inside us,
and our highest endeavor ought to be to
set off that spark in one another.
~ Kenny Ausubel 
December 2008
The Pursuit of Happiness
by Kevin Constance
Over the Thanksgiving holiday we watched the movie The Pursuit of Happyness. In the course of the movie the character of Chris Gardner makes reference to the fact that Thomas Jefferson uses the word happiness twice in the Declaration of Independence. The first instance of the word happiness occurs in the following statement from the Declaration: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
I don't know how many times I have heard, or read, that statement and just sort of glossed over the last phrase. Life and Liberty seem pretty weighty subjects to include in the list of unalienable rights. But the pursuit of Happiness, with a capital H no less? It prompts me to wonder just exactly what was on Jefferson's mind when this was penned. What did the word "happiness" mean to Jefferson and the other signers of the Declaration?
In some ways the word happiness almost seems trite. The question "What would make you happy?" would illicit responses as varied as the individuals who answer. In many cases the answer would change over time, possibly even moment to moment, depending upon current circumstances of the individual and even the individual's interpretation of what happiness is. Was Jefferson really saying that it is an unalienable right to pursue trivial and fleeting pleasurable experiences?
As I reflect on these things I can only ascertain that Jefferson and the colonists had something of greater import in mind than the seemingly simplistic way that we (or at least I) have tended to view happiness.
As if all of that wasn't enough to tax my sanity, another thought imposed itself into this thread of reasoning. Perhaps it is simply a matter of semantics, but the thought crossed my mind that Jefferson did not say "the attaining of Happiness", but rather "the pursuit of Happiness."
Along these lines I began thinking that happiness is probably never really attained, for once we achieve that which we sought to make us happy, we find that the bar has been raised and happiness has moved to another place. There are a lot of "pat" answers available through various philosophical and religious teachings regarding achieving happiness, and most center around contentment. But there also lies a quandary, for if content, what would drive us to pursue a greater good?
Pardon my brief spiral into things philosophical (did I mention that all this stretched my sanity), but it occurred to me that happiness comes not from attaining, but rather from the pursuit itself! It would seem that happiness stems from the freedom to pursue it.
The Declaration of Independence was birthed from a group of people who were subject to a ruler who attempted to oppress and suppress them (the offences are listed in the body of the Declaration), in essence, a ruler who wished to prevent them from pursuing happiness. I guess that is why the likes of Thomas Jefferson and the colonists would include the pursuit of Happiness among such weighty topics as Life and Liberty. It seems that any single one of these unalienable rights is inextricable from the others.
Ultimately, happiness is not the end, or something to be attained, rather happiness lies in the journey and pursuit thereof.
“The danger of ancient liberty was that men, exclusively concerned with securing their share of social power, might attach too little value to individual rights and enjoyments. The danger of modern liberty is that, absorbed in the enjoyment of our private independence, and in the pursuit of our particular interests, we should surrender our right to share in political power too easily. The holders of authority are only too anxious to encourage us to do so. They are so ready to spare us all sort of troubles, except those of obeying and paying! They will say to us: what, in the end, is the aim of your efforts, the motive of your labours, the object of all your hopes? Is it not happiness? Well, leave this happiness to us and we shall give it to you. No, Sirs, we must not leave it to them. No matter how touching such a tender commitment may be, let us ask the authorities to keep within their limits. Let them confine themselves to being just. We shall assume the responsibility of being happy for ourselves.”
~ Benjamin Constant
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November 2008 |
Change
by Kevin Constance
In the movie National Treasure, there is a point where Benjamin Gates' father tells him, "Keep the status quo." Of course, later in the plot he states that, "The status quo has changed." Change is inevitable. As much as we would like to maintain the status quo, sooner or later it is going to change.
It seems that our family has been in an almost constant state of transition or change for the past four or five years, the most recent significant change has been our son Alex's entry into the US Air Force. We knew that there would be some big changes in store for Alex, but I don't know that we realized just how much of an impact it would have on the rest of us. Of course, one of the changes that Patience and I have had to come to terms with is the lack of communication. Those of you who are aquainted with the Basic Military Training (BMT) experience know what we mean. We were really looking forward to Alex's first phone call home at the end of week one, but that phone call ended up being a three minute call were Alex read from a script, stating that he was okay, not to send any guns or weapons through the mail, and the address to which we could mail correspondence. That call left Patience in tears and saying, "Pray that I got the address right because it was a very bad connection!"
We have heard that while someone is in BMT, no news is good news and that it is the unexpected phone call that you have to be worried about. Well, we got one of those unexpected phone calls Tuesday night. Alex was in the medical ward and there was talk of tuberculosis. I can't begin to tell you the concern we experienced (that statement doesn't begin to touch the surface of what we were going through!) with our son being hundreds of miles away and there was no way for us to even visit him, and again it was one of those "pay phone" connections where it was difficult to communicate. We did get some good news Wednesday morning when we found out that Alex was simply suffering from a "severe cold", but one that put him in the medical ward none the less. Perhaps the most disappointing part now is that he is going to be a week behind in his BMT and will be recycled into a different "flight" meaning that he will have to establish new connections and that his BMT graduation will be a week later than planned.
Hmm, change.
There has been a lot of talk about change in the political arena of late, especially with the election just days away. An economic "crisis" (I find it intriguing when it all of the sudden becomes a crisis when some poorly-managed banking institutions go belly-up and the media bashes the public with the "fear factor" creating even more havoc on Wall Street, etc.) and a health care "crisis", and a housing "crisis", and about any other kind of "crisis" you can put a label on.
Yes things need to, and will, change, regardless of which candidate wins the election, but anyone who is expecting an imediate change will be sadly disappointed. Just one case in point is the economy. In elections past there seemed to be a lot of talk about how the stock markets responded to whomever was leading in election polls. I haven't heard any such implications this time around. I wonder why that is. In addition, the economy is not something that you simply give a shot in the arm and all of the sudden it is fixed. An example is the rebate checks mailed out earlier this year. Banks still failed and the stock market still took a dive. It takes years for the economy to respond to political policies. The economic situation today is actually the result of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac loosening lending guidelines during the Clinton administration a decade ago!
Forgive my ramblings. I'm not a political activist, and some may take issue with my viewpoint. That's okay. I guess my question is,"Are you really ready for change and all that it entails?" We often think we are, but when change actually comes it often shows up in a form that we weren't expecting and presents us with obstacles AND opportunities for which we were unprepared.
The universe is change; our life is what our thoughts make it.
~ Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
~ Marcus Aurelius Antoninus
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October 2008 |
Keep to the Code
by Kevin Constance
In the Pirates of the Caribbean movies there are multiple references to "The Code". Interestingly enough, there actually was a pirate code that was set down by the pirates Morgan and Bartholomew that standardized such things as how the plunder would be divided among the crew, or how "disability benefits" would be paid out, stating how much a crewman would receive in compensation for the loss of an eye, hand, arm, or leg in combat, or if they were permanently disabled and could no longer participate in pirating.
Throughout the movies we find various characters who hold differing views on The Code. To some they are "more like guidelines than actual rules", to others "the code's the law", and of course, you have to be a pirate for the code to actually apply to you.
You may be thinking, "Well, that's all very interesting, but what does it have to do with anything?" The point is, we all have a code that we live by. Some people call these our set of values, others may refer to them as a code of ethics. Most, if not all of us, actually have two codes that we live by. The first of these two codes are those values that are negotiable; things that we are willing to give up some ground on occasionally. The second code is "The Code" or "The Law", these are values that we are willing to fight for. They are our Core Values.
In The Curse of the Black Pearl, as Jack is leaving the ship, Mr. Gibbs asks what they should do if something should go wrong, to which Jack replies, "Keep to The Code." Later, Will asks what code it is that the crew is to keep to and Jack replies, "The Pirate's Code. Any man who falls behind, is left behind." To which Will replies, "No heroes amongst thieves, eh." The Pirate's Code didn't make sense to Will, he wasn't a pirate, at least not yet.
We often times expect others to share the same Core Values we do, which can lead to misunderstandings, disappointment, and frustration. Not everyone needs to know our Core Values, but when we are participating together in any kind of group, team or organization, including our families, the Core Values of the group must be stated in order to avoid misunderstandings, disappointments, and frustration. When our Core Values don't line up with a group that we are involved in, it could be likened to the cliché of a train wreck waiting to happen. We may think that the Core Values should be evident and assumed, but those assumptions lead to failure. Even the pirates had a code that was stated, not assumed.
Is a specific set of Core Values right or wrong? That is a matter of perspective. While the pirates were outlaws (and still are, for piracy is still alive and well, though I doubt that the Pirate's Code is still applicable) they did have their own code that governed their behavior. Their code, however, did not override the law of the land. Piracy was punishable by death, code or no code.
In closing, here are a few thoughts, or questions, to leave you with:
- What are your Core Values, those things that are non-negotiable?
- What are the Core Values of groups or organizations you are a part of?
- Could you tell someone within your groups or organizations "Keep to The Code" and there would be no misunderstandings?
- Are there any conflicts of Core Values in your life that leave you disappointed or frustrated?
- Could you tell someone within your groups or organizations "Keep to The Code" and there would be no misunderstandings?
Oh how sweet it is to hear one's own convictions from another's lips. ____________________
~ Johann von Goethe
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September 2008 |
Life Compass
by Kevin Constance
In the movie Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Captain Jack Sparrow is sailing the Black Pearl through a violent storm en route to the Isla De Muerta. As the waves wash over the deck and batter the crew, Will Turner turns to Mr. Gibbs and says, ”How can we sail to an island that nobody can find, with a compass that doesn’t work?” Mr. Gibbs replies over the tempest, “Aye, the compass doesn’t point north, but we’re not trying to find north are we?”
I don't know why, but it seems that people are always asking me for directions. What makes this so humorous is that it has happened when I was filling my vehicle, that had Colorado license plates, at gas stations in places like New Orleans, LA or Memphis, TN or St. Louis, MO. My wife and I joke and laugh about it but for some reason people seem to think I know where I am or where I'm going. What makes it even funnier to me is I have seen some of these people walk right past others who are driving vehicles with local state license plates to ask me directions. Perhaps the most amazing part is that I have usually spent enough time studying my route that I have many times actually been able to direct these individuals to their destinations or at least point them in the right direction.
The first part of Proverbs 29:18 says, "Where there is no vision, the people perish...." Vision is like a compass, it gives us a sense of direction and helps to keep us on track. Without vision we can end up wandering aimlessly and "perish". Sometimes though, our vision can end up seeming to be "a compass that doesn't work". I know I have found myself in that place at times. I thought I had it all figured out, or at least knew enough about the "terrain" I was passing through that I had a pretty good idea of where I was heading, only to have those dreams shattered like broken glass. I have to confess I have been in one of those places even recently and have wondered if my "compass" is broken. But as someone has pointed out, in not so many words, maybe the compass isn't broken, it just doesn't point north. In a later Pirates of the Caribbean movie we find out that Jack's compass doesn't point north because it points to the thing that the holder wants most.
Just because the compass doesn't point north, or the way we, or someone else, think it should be pointing, doesn't mean that the compass, or vision, is broken, it may be that we will have to take another route to get there! After all, you can't find a place that can't be found with a compass that points north anyway!
Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is simply passing the time. Action with Vision is making a positive difference.
~ Joel Barker
Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is simply passing the time. Action with Vision is making a positive difference.
~ Joel Barker
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August 2008 |
The Rules of Life
by Kevin Constance
The Pirates of the Caribbean movies are very likely my favorite movies for a number of reasons. Though I enjoy them for the mix of adventure and comedy, one of the things I most like about these movies is that in the midst of all the action and humor, seemingly right out of the blue, there come some truly great life lessons. One of the first of these life lessons that captured my attention occurs in The Curse of the Black Pearl, after Captain Jack Sparrow and Will Turner have commandeered the Interceptor, and have set out to reclaim the Black Pearl, or save Elizabeth Swann, depending on who's point of view you are taking.
During the course of their journey to pick up a crew, a debate over their earlier sword duel erupts with Will stating that in a fair fight he would surely have won. Jack deftly makes a course correction which leaves Will holding onto a boom, dangling over the side of the ship, at which point Jack makes this profound statement:
"The only rules that really matter are these. What a man can do and what a man can't do."
Life is full of things that seem unfair or skewed. Things will happen to us that we can do nothing to prevent. When these things happen we have a choice to make. We can sit back, cry foul, and complain about how unfair life is. Or, we can take a good look at what has happened, or is happening, and figure out exactly what it is we can do with our current circumstances. Another way of putting it is that life is not about what happens to us, but what we do with what happens. We can focus on obstacles or look for opportunities.
I feel almost foolish in writing about what a person can do versus what a person can't do. I have to admit that I have had a very blessed life. I have never had to look one of my children in the eye and tell them that I don't know why they have cancer, or why they can't walk. I have never personally had to face the challenges of maneuvering a wheelchair through buildings or areas of access that were not designed with those needs in mind. But with all that being said, I do know what it is to look at a seemingly impossible situation and feel overwhelmed. In that moment all that really matters is what a man can do and what a man can't do.
Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
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July 2008 |
Sparks
by Kevin Constance
Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.
~ James
Sparks are interesting things. They are inanimate, yet they live because they can die. They can warm a home, or burn down a house. They can illuminate those in darkness, or make vision dim for staring on them too long. They can immediately ignite the driest tinder, or be put out with but a drop of water. They can make a boy dance with joy, or make a man hop with pain. They can burn hotter for the wind, or be blown out by a gust. They burn briefly, yet their effects may be seen for a lifetime. They burn singly, but must be shared or they die.
Ideas, like sparks, can be fragile things. Yet they carry in them the power to move people and change the future. Ideas in our children can be nurtured to grow or be doused by an unkind word. Ideas from our friends or loved ones can be fanned into impassioned inspiration or extinguished by rebuke. An idea, when shared, will live on in another, hoarded it will die.
Since this is the first monthly spark that I have written for the express intent of being posted on this website, I just wanted to share a few thoughts on sparks and give you a little insight on why we chose Sparks for Life as a website we wanted to publish.
Burn brightly, for we know not how long we may burn.
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