Читать книгу Unlearn - Humble the Poet - Страница 30

The world isn’t fair—never was, never will be.

To expect reciprocity for being a good person is like sticking your hand in the cage of a lioness and expecting her not to bite your arm off, because, after all, you wouldn’t do that to her.

If you want to be a good person, be a good person. If you want to be just, treat all fairly, and live in peace and harmony, go right ahead. However, please do not think that these lifestyle choices ensure or entitle you to the same in return.

Only in the movies do the good guys win; by that I mean only in the movies do we actually have good guys. In the real world, things cannot be simplified into good and bad so easily. Almost every privilege we have is the result of the exploitation of others. If the quality of life you are afforded—you being the person who has electricity and internet access—was provided to everyone on the planet, we would need a few extra planets. Our nature has become one of abundance and consumption, and that way of life, as fifteen thousand years of human history has shown, doesn’t come without a few cracked skulls.

The point I’m here to make isn’t one of pessimism but more of realism. Most of the problems the inhabitants of this planet are experiencing are caused by its inhabitants (well, not the bunny rabbits, or dolphins, or scorpions—mostly the humans). Before we start solving these problems, we have to stop causing them, thus no longer benefiting from them. Everyone is guided by self-interests, and on top of that, those interests are so different. Those interests not only overlap, but conflict with others, like those silly Iraqis who somehow stumbled upon OUR oil. Conflicting interests lead to conflict. Conflict can lead to death, and when humans are involved, death is the least of the creative things we concoct when dealing with individuals who stand in our way. Humans aren’t the only creatures that exhibit war and murderous behavior; we’ve just spent the most time perfecting that art.

Now, maybe we’re all just not praying hard enough, or sinning too much, and our endlessly loving lord is showing the errors of our ways through intense but love-filled acts of violence, famine, and other non-pleasantries. Maybe it’s the devil (who by most accounts is a fallen angel), or maybe we should pay a bit more attention when we watch the nature channel and see the baby antelope get eaten alive by a pack of lions, and see in them what we so greatly wish to ignore in ourselves.

Most of us are fortunate not to be in geographical locations or economic scenarios that land us on the front lines of humanity’s worst. That’s something I try not to forget, and it’s a point I’m grateful for.

Sikh heritage advocates that individuals stay armed and trained for combat at all times, regardless if they’re men, women, or children. In all combat, understanding your terrain is essential (word to Sun Tzu).

Folks like 50 Cent and the homey Ryan Blair were able to take their embedded understanding of the harsh terrain of street life and apply it to their business ventures. They both found success working with the challenges instead of against them. These are two individuals you won’t hear complain; instead you’ll witness them adapt until they conquer.

The strongest don’t survive; the most adaptable do. When life is viewed this way, nothing is seen as an obstruction, but merely an obstacle to overcome.

Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.

Empty your mind, be formless. Shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend. —Bruce Lee

The better our relationship is with reality, the better we can get along and live together. It may not be pretty, but it’s all we have.