We Are Not Created Equal

DISCLAIMER:
I am not judging myself compared to anyone else. I'm not saying you're smart. I'm not saying you're stupid. If it comes to my mind while I'm writing this, it's more than likely going to be said. If you know my personally, you know that I am the last person to talk someone down, especially about intelligence.

For the most part, I tell people I don't have an imagination. This is untrue. I have quite the imagination, I just feel as though I utilize mine differently than most. Similar to typical imagination standards, my imagination entertains me. On the other hand, my imagination travels a different path than most. I don't have the kind of imagination that can dream up a masterpiece film like The Big Lebowski, or Pulp Fiction, or even Dazed and Confused. My kind of entertainment comes from pondering the "what ifs" in life. What if I won the lottery? What would I do? What if Jade Helm were to be everything the conspiracists make of it? (Definitely not buying into this, just using it as an example) I find it satisfying to play through these scenarios in my head, to see what I come up with, or to discover a point of view I've never seen before. I crave the feeling of seeing every angle. I even over analyze at times.

This imagination is most likely due to the amount of intelligence I have. I would say its no better or worse than anyone else's, but lets be real, we need to quit telling everyone that were all on the same level. We're not. There are ridiculously intelligent people, and there are ridiculously stupid people out there. For that matter, there are outrageously athletic people, and there are outrageously non-athletic people out there. So quit holding yourself or others to standards of others. Quit giving out the idiotic participation trophies to kids who are awful at sports or spelling bees. Don't reward people for coming up short. Rewards portrays a since of accomplishment, but what was actually accomplished? Let the individual fail. There's no greater motivation than failure, just ask Thomas Edison or Nikola Tesla. They didn't receive participation trophies. If they were the worst, they were the worst. They had to dust their ass off, work harder, dream bigger and make it happen. It's like training a puppy. You don't reward a dog for almost learning a trick. So why reward people for almost being the best? We as society need to realize that not everyone is going to be the best. Teaching children that they can be the best at something when it is clearly not true is even more horrible than telling them that it's not in the cards. Am I capable of being the president? Yes. Am I going to be the president even if I try my best? Maybe. The chances are beyond slim. So slim that I would even go on to say that no, I can't be the president.

This is where things get tricky, and I think this is where we, as society, get it all wrong. We overcompensate. We don't want children to become polluted, thinking they will never amount to their dreams, so we give them bullshit participation trophies that say, at least you tried.

These accolades are working against that theory. People become self satisfied with the graces they receive, even from just competing or participating. They are praised for their efforts even when their efforts don't take them to the end goal. We are allowing people to become complacent with failure. We are teaching children it's ok to lose. Is it ok to lose? Of course. That doesn't mean to give them a reward, it means to teach them to work harder. Teach them to reach even higher heights and they can EARN the trophy. If everyone gets a reward, why try? (Unless you're trying to stroke your ego)

If there isn't a trophy to run for, why are we running?

All that being said, I return to my original point. Imagination. My imagination took me for a spin tonight as I lay in bed. In the whirlwind of thoughts, scenarios, and possibilities, the phrase "No child left behind" stuck out. I started to try to diffuse the intention behind it. I understand the point. Give children all the same opportunities. The only difference is, we are forcing nature's hand. It is natural for there to be winners and losers. That being said if we don't allow there to be losers, we are, in turn, destroying the system. If there are no losers, then what is a winner?

We all have our place. Smart people, dumb people. Fat people, skinny people. Tall people, short people. Does the guy out back shoveling crap belong in the lab studying different strains of viruses with scientists? No. The same goes for the opposite scenario. We all have our place.

I know that we have the ability to change the course of our life. The only difference is, the chances of you going from the "ditch digging" type to the "T. Boone Pickens" type are slim to none. That doesn't mean don't try. I means do the best with what you have. If you come up short, keep trying. Then try until you don't want to try anymore. It is ok to not accomplish your goals as long as you have tried your hardest. Like I've been saying, some people aren't meant to hit the top.

The trick is being happy with the cards you're dealt. I would have liked to have been successful at sports like my dad. Did I accomplish that? Not even close. My dad was unanimous All-District MVP at basketball. I struggled to compete at the varsity level. Am I bitter about it? Absolutely not. I enjoyed the time I had playing sports, I don't regret one minute and I know I wasn't meant to be outstanding at basketball. I'm content with the cards I've been dealt.

Happiness is a choice. If you want to be bitter and bitch and moan about how life isn't going your way or how you want this and want that to change in your life, I pity you. Your life truly sucks, and until you can learn to be happy, I'm sorry you're going through that. I hope you choose to see the positives in your life, and choose to be happy. I know I'm going to be happy no matter what. Why not be if we have the opportunity?


DISCLAIMER 2:
If this post seemed to be all over the place with topics I am truly sorry. I started off compelled to write about one thing and it seemed to go down hill from there. Like I said, my brain functions fairly odd compared to others. Hopefully it made sense and if not, ask me about it. I'll try to clarify the best I can. Comments and debate are always appreciated.

It's a Choice. What Will You Decide?

As I lie here in bed, grinning ear to ear, knowing I get to write another post for all of you; I can't help but be outrageously happy. Which is hilarious, because for one, I dislike writing. Only because of how monotonous and time consuming it is if you want to be grammatically correct and spell every word right. Secondly, I've never been the type of person to put myself out there, knowing that people will read this and judge me. I have always been this way, even since I was a young boy. Its just in my nature I guess. Regardless, I am happy. I'm happy to share the thoughts in my head, my ideas, perspectives and experiences with you. Which brings me back here, to you all, on this blog, to share with you the latest catch from the churning water that is my mind.

(For the record, this blog will not be written with proper form, if there is such a thing for a blog. I write this from the perspective of my mind. I say every word in my head before I type it. Almost as though I am dictating to you all. Therefore, I will make a slight effort to be proper in my techniques (OCD- I can't help it) but if you don't like it, I'm sorry and you're missing the point. And you can cram my improper grammar up your butt.)

I believe happiness is a thing most people seek out in life. Whether that be through achievement, or money, or basically anything you think can make you happy. We as people are designed that way. Happiness is the symbolic comfort blanket to our lives. We want to be wrapped up in it and feel secure, which is perfectly normal and acceptable. We just need to make sure we get our happiness from the right sources.

In my latest post, I shared with you that I love people that have treated me wrong or who may have given me reasons not to love them. On that same basis, that is how my happiness works as well. I feel as though happiness is a state of mind. A choice, if you will. In the sense that we can take any situation we come to in life and make it positive. Find that silver lining that makes your heart smile. Chose to be happy because being unhappy sucks. Even when it's tough, you have to realize that The Big Homeboy in the Sky only gives us at most 100 some odd years to live. Why waste it away being unhappy? Dwelling on the past or stressing about the future. As a dear friend and mentor in my life would say, "Get the refrigerator off your back!" Shed that jumpsuit of unhappiness and dance in the wonderful nakedness that is happiness. Have you ever seen someone dance naked that was unhappy? (Strippers don't count) We have been blessed by the Creator with these lives that we don't get back.

Opportunity lies at your door, and dear God, it's ringing the doorbell so much it should drive us crazy.  Get in your car, drive to your favorite place, listen to your favorite song, take your favorite people and live. Bask in the immensity that is happiness. Our God made our world endless for a reason. You can't ever be too happy. Tell that girl or that guy how you feel. Tell people you love them. If nothing else say hi to someone you don't know. It might just possibly make their day, or make them smile or feel a feeling they wouldn't have felt otherwise.

If you don't think you can do it, that's ok. Step back and look back at what you have in your life. Even the most downtrodden person can still step back and say that they're alive. That means they have possibility. And guess what my friends, possibility is endless. You can make something out of nothing. You can turn the simple act of understanding that you're alive and that your heart is beating, and then you can't help but be happy. You're God's greatest creation. You want to put life into perspective? You could have been a grain of sand, or a mustard seed. Heck you could have been the dingleberry on a goats butt, but you're not. You're getting the grandest opportunity of all... being a human. Don't throw it away. Carpe Diem. You owe it to yourself and the people around you, people who care about you, to be happy.

So I challenge you to take inventory of your life and find your happiness. Then, take the bad things in life and create happiness. Find that silver lining, and convert the bad in your life to happiness fuel. Those bad things may seem terrible, but they are lessons learned. They are mountains climbed. Its all pushing you forward and upward in life. You just have to see it.

Your life is full of choices. One of the most important choices is how we are going to perceive our lives. What viewpoint are we gonna take? I'll tell you one thing baby, mine is going to be happy and positive just like The Dude in the Sky intended.

"And the greatest of these..."

So many things about this life are beautiful. 

Life is a one of those things I believe is too good for words. Words can't relay the way we are blessed, the way that we've been given such a chance. What are we doing with it? Now this post can go in so many directions at this point. I could write multitudes of different entries that I would be happy with but there is a specific journey for which I want you to accompany me. 

Emotion is another thing thats beautiful. Life is exponentially affected one way or another by emotion. Emotion makes you feel special, or feel like something is missing. It gives our life not so much meaning, yet it gives us so much to look forward to and enjoy right now. Just look at someone in your life, that person is a complete different being, who is coincidentally (for the sake of perspective) living their own independent life, yet the two lives are intertwined. Chances are, the person you thought of is a person that you love. Its absolutely break-taking, the idea of our existence being so gorgeous. Whether we realize it or not those people mean the world to us. If you think to the basis of us being on earth, God put people on this earth to tackle the ways of the world with us. So we as individuals don't have to be alone. 

I have so many people in my life that affect my life. Saying I love all of them would be ill advised. Whenever you say the word all, you're saying everything, the whole lot. You're are at the end of the spectrum and that something hard to be confident in. That being said, I feel as though I love everyone in my life. I feel confident in saying that. Not because I'm saying I'm better than you, because if you know anything about me, that is the last thing I would say to anyone. I'm saying this because its the way I feel. There isn't one person that has a part in my life that I don't love. Even people who have done me wrong or have given me every reason not to love them. I can't help the way my heart is. I love them. 

I feel like the reason I am the way I am is due to the fact of my perspective on everything. I know that even the people that hurt us, make us better people. They have their role in our lives. If we take that hurt and know and understand that it can be positive, I think it's impossible not to love the person that hurt you. They made you a better person. They are strengthening you, battle hardening you and making life that much better for you. 

If thats not beautiful, maybe I am losing my mind. I just can't be so naive as to believe that bad things happen to us without there being any silver lining. Perspective is everything. The right perspective makes life brighter, makes everything happier. The bottom line is love. The most amazing and beautiful of all the emotions. And thats loving people who made life hard, who wronged us. If thats beauty, there's no end to how beautiful loving people who care for you as well can be. 

"Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love." 1 Corinthians 13:13

Like I said, so many things about life are beautiful.....  "...and the greatest of these is love."

DISCLAIMER:

This blog is for me just as much or more than it is for you. I hope that my words and thoughts may help you one day, nothing would make me happier, but this blog is therapy for me. My mind runs circles and wrestles with things, sometimes its helpful to get them set in stone in writing. That being said, my posts may make no sense, it may be outrageous ramblings, but smile for the fact that if nothing else, I am getting something out of it. I'm progressing as an adult, growing, trying to be the best me possible. I find comfort in that fact, whether I'm on your side of this blog or mine. Anyone growing to be a better person, trying to reach their potential is lovely. 

DISCLAIMER 2:

My blogs are simple. I'm speaking from the heart, I'm 100% giving you my full perspective and beliefs on everything. With that in mind, the last thing I want is my ideas to be turned and made to seem as though I am preaching to you. I'm 23 years old, I have nothing to preach. I just have my theories and beliefs on life, and I want them to be readily available to you. So I will share them with you. One of my biggest fears in life is to offend someone, or to make them feel belittled. I have come to the realization that I word things that can be taken as though I think I'm better than others. I'm not better than anyone. I'm Johnnie Everett Casey III (Trey). I'm the best at being me and thats all I'm going to try to do. More than likely, if you ask me, ill find 100 ways that you're a better person than me because you're all beautiful and I love you all. 

Answers in Unexpected Places

This post doesn't belong on this blog.


Let me fill your ears, and eyes, and brains with someone and something very special to me.

When I think to myself, the wonders of this world.. this life, I think about how I want to live it. I think about how I want to leave my stamp on the map that is history. Sure, I catch myself day dreaming of winning the lottery, buying myself and family and friends so many cool things and how life would be simpler. I think about the lives I can change, the things I could do that would make me happy. Mostly I think about making the people I care about proud.

Tonight, lying in my bed, pondering the immensity that is life. It hit me. I don't need money, I don't need unrealistic things to he happy, or to leave my mark, or to make everyone proud. I have everything I need to do that now. I have the man you see at the top of this page. He's set the example for me, he's given me everything I could want and more. He's the role model every child grows up dreaming about, and he's brought it to fruition right in front of me. Its etched into my mind like a pen to paper or the composition of the very words of this blog on my screen.

This man has wisdom, and he has strength. He has more courage and love and grace in his little finger than I could ever imagine having in my lifetime. Above all else, this man has God in his heart. What more of a role model could I ask for? I day dream so many days about what I would do if I were to win the lottery. The funny thing is, I'm wasting those days away. I'm so naive! I won the lottery 23 years ago when he and my gorgeous mother had me. And I'm not talking about a Weekly Grand... The lottery I won is unimaginable. It's inconceivable. I was given the greatest man in my life.

Not only does he help me with life and with the struggles of the world; he keeps me in check. He makes sure the one thing I keep at my forefront is God. He always reminds me that our simplistic problems, our "agony" of modern day, doesn't blur the fact that my relationship with God is the most important thing. I believe he has set the bar pretty high himself when I sit back and look at his life. He doesn't have to preach it, he LIVES it.

His words and advice are so comforting, and consoling, yet it's the way he lives that screams at me. He could never had said a word to me my entire life and I would still have the best example of a man.

He's even proud of me enough to stick his thumb up and support me at a school that's ridiculed and the tail end of every joke. I hope to be a minuscule speck of the man he is today, because if that were true, I know I will be a great man.

The very first sentence of this post says, "This post doesn't belong on this blog." It's true. This blog is titled The Search for Answers. Sometimes answers don't come from asking questions. Sometimes answers don't come from the typical means of everyday life. Sometimes answers show up even though we were sure there wasn't an answer, because we weren't looking for one.

My answer came from a simple day dream about winning the lottery, only for me to snap out of my daze and realize I have won the lottery, and it's still paying off after 23 years.

Love you Pops

The Beauty of Film

Recently, I have indulged in a new Netflix series that has caught my attention. I have uncovered something amazing, and there is a good chance it has nothing to do with the actual show.

Over my 23 years on this earth, I have always looked to TV or movies as strictly entertainment. This being said, I feel as though I have wasted 23 years of possibilities. Film isn't just about entertainment, thought that is usually the end goal. Film has a way to speak to you, to open your mind and make you question things you never have before.

I have discovered a show that, for me, evokes emotion. Watching this series isn't just a hobby, or a way to pass the time. It makes me question life, and love. It makes me question people and their choices. It encourages me to search for the reasons why. I don't know if it is just this particular show that does it, or if I've reached some sort of enlightenment in my life where I am going to look deeper than just the outward meaning of a film. No certain film is the same for everyone, film is dynamic. Either way film is no slouch when it comes to meaning. Contrary to popular belief, the same depth and meaning you get from a book can also come from film.

All this being said, I need to make something clear. Writing this post has made me question my sanity. Seriously, I am writing a blog about One Tree Hill(OTH). I've gone out of my way to basically invade your life with a blog about me watching some "chick show." I know I haven't lost my mind, its just funny to think that I'm writing this blog about something so insignificant as a TV series. but its not insignificant. Insignificance is a choice. If you allow something to be significant, it will be. Just as I've done with this show.

Let me just tell you now, that its not about the show. Its about the way the show makes you feel. OTH is an old soap opera-esque film about high school students that aired during the 2000's on the CW. To put this in perspective, the main character is Chad Michael Murray, and he was clearly in his hay-day.

**I grew up with a sister close to the same age as myself, therefore I know all the heart-throb actors and actresses, and for that matter I have watched hours of "chick flick" materials. Thanks Cheyenne, haha. To date, these chick flick movies have had more meaning and intellectual depth than most movies made in my opinion.

SO!

Let this post open your eyes, and let it open your perspective. There is so much more to life and film than entertainment. Find a silver lining, a deeper meaning, or a life lesson in film. More than likely the film was made for the deeper purpose rather than spending millions of dollars on a movie or tv show to just entertain you.

Stop being naive and ignoring the fact that there is more to life. Life is what you make it. Ive chosen to let film influence me to see the world from a new perspective. You can chose the same or you can continue to live your life the way you are. Thank God for free will; am I right?

Puzzling Thoughts

Long time no see.

It has been over 2 years since my last post. I'm not surprised at myself for the lack of effort. I have questioned this blog many times in the few years I have had it. I am no writer. I actually have a great dislike for literature or writing in general. It never came easily to me. Sure I can bullshit a paper, but then again, I am in college.

This blog from now on will be a release, or an outlet of sorts, for me to get ideas out in the open. My brain works overtime and its usually trying to solve all the worlds, and my own for that matter. This blog will be where I lay it all out, and try to make sense of it all. (Hopefully with the help of friends and family, or any responses)

So sit back, warm up your brain, open your mind up to the possibilities and every perspective and delve into deep thought with me. I certainly hope you enjoy it.

JECIII

Thoughts on life (in a sense).

Where has the time gone?! It's been almost a year since I last sat down and put thoughts on paper (or the Internet.. whatevs) I remembered tonight that I had this and thought I should write a bit. Tonight shpeal will prolly be short though.

Seems like lately I've been doing a lot of thinking.. Thinking about my future, thinking about the past, and more importantly thinking about the present. I always catch myself, when I'm analyzing my life, saying that it's ok.. I'm just a kid. Then I began to question myself, when does that cop out quit working? Hell, I'm a 21 year old person. I can hardly keep using the excuse of my age. Fact is I'm an adult trying to run away from the responsibility if being an adult.

It's so easy to let the way people treat you to affect the way you see yourself. I feel like some people treat me as an adult but some treat me as a child because it's more convenient for themselves. Seems a little twisted to me, then again I act like a child in my mind a lot of the times. So who's right?! Do people need to treat me more like an adult or should I make it known I'm an adult? Seems puzzling to me, then again I may just be over thinking as I do most of the time.

Another thing I think about is spiritual responsibility. I find myself wondering if the things in my life that I think aren't happening the way I want them too, are due to the fact that I don't have my priorities in line. Seems like I don't put God first enough in my life so he's holding me back as a wake up call of sorts. A subtle way of showing me I need to fix a few things.

All of this has been on my brain for months, and this seems like the perfect outlet. If you have any comments or suggestions I'd love to hear 'em. I love to see all sides of a situation and I love to have the input of people I trust so lemme know!

Danka