My family has just as much influence on the characters in my novel, as they do on my life (to some degree). Everyone that knows me understands that the person that I am today is comprised of the foundational ingredients made up of members of my family. Character, strength, faith, humor, even the seemingly not-so-good elements have made for a great learning experience for me and great story for my characters. With that said, it is a combination of what we determine to be the good, the bad, and the ugly that makes for the creation of a something unique and amazing in humanity and in prose. The important part is how we ultimately choose to end each chapter of our life story or our fictional one. Are we learning from mistakes made? Are we taking something negative and turning it into a positive? Are we continuing to build, no matter what our obstacles may be, or are we in a cycle of building and demolishing?
I was reading a book my sister gave me and it made me think about how we view events in our lives and the interconnectedness of them and the mental labels of "good" and "bad". Here's an example:
A wise man won an expensive car in a lottery. His family and friends were very happy for him and came to celebrate. "Isn't it great!" they said. "You are so lucky." The man smiled and said, "Maybe." For a few weeks he enjoyed driving the car. Then one day a drunken driver crashed into his new car at an intersection and he ended up in the hospital, with multiple injuries. His family and friends came to see him and said, "That was really unfortunate." Again, the man smiled and said, "Maybe." While he was still in the hospital, one night there was a landslide and his house fell into the sea. Again, his friends came the next day and said, "Weren't you lucky to have been here in the hospital." Again, he said, "Maybe."
The wise man's "maybe" signifies a refusal to judge anything that happens. Instead of judging what is, he accepts it and so enters into conscious alignment with the higher order. He knows that often it is impossible for the mind to understand what place or purpose a seemingly random event has in the tapestry of the whole.
I was reading a book my sister gave me and it made me think about how we view events in our lives and the interconnectedness of them and the mental labels of "good" and "bad". Here's an example:
A wise man won an expensive car in a lottery. His family and friends were very happy for him and came to celebrate. "Isn't it great!" they said. "You are so lucky." The man smiled and said, "Maybe." For a few weeks he enjoyed driving the car. Then one day a drunken driver crashed into his new car at an intersection and he ended up in the hospital, with multiple injuries. His family and friends came to see him and said, "That was really unfortunate." Again, the man smiled and said, "Maybe." While he was still in the hospital, one night there was a landslide and his house fell into the sea. Again, his friends came the next day and said, "Weren't you lucky to have been here in the hospital." Again, he said, "Maybe."
The wise man's "maybe" signifies a refusal to judge anything that happens. Instead of judging what is, he accepts it and so enters into conscious alignment with the higher order. He knows that often it is impossible for the mind to understand what place or purpose a seemingly random event has in the tapestry of the whole.
-Eckhart Tolle, A New Earth
Friends, we don't know how seemingly isolated events that occur in our lives - good, bad, or ugly - will fit into the whole picture of our lives. I am seeing this so clearly as I write my novel...the connection of all things, people, places, events. Through knowing this, I have discovered that I can create order out of chaos, gain clarity in moments of cloudiness, and paint an incredible picture through the streaming of words and events that will make me a best selling author!
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