Decentralize

I was inspired to write this post after reading an essay published by Kevin Love, NBA player of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Before reading the rest of this post, I recommend you read his essay first here : https://www.theplayerstribune.com/kevin-love-everyone-is-going-through-something/ It shows no one is immune to mental health challenges, irrespective of your income, profession, or other social labels. --- There is nothing more isolating than dealing with a mental health issue on your own. You may have friends and other people in your life you can share with, but sharing does not come easily. Not everyone has the emotional intelligence to listen to another person's, sometimes rational and sometimes irrational, hardships. Furthermore, helping one to deal with issues is an entirely different ball game. "Forget about it" or "Don't think about it" are commonly prescribed solutions within the circle of friends & family. If only it were that simple.. I suffered...

Yesterday evening, I made an impromptu trip to the movie theater to catch the film, Black Panther. Initially, I had no plans on seeing the movie, as I am skeptical of movies that are highly recommended to me. Additionally, my knowledge of the super hero Black Panther, pales in comparison to my knowledge of other Marvel Heroes such as Spiderman. However, once I saw headlines of the movie's director and cast making its way to LinkedIn, I thought twice. I am glad I did, as it was a beautifully made movie touching on important social and political issues. These issues covered everywhere from colonial Africa to modern-day Oakland. Issues, in no specific order: Military involvement in other nations Colonization and reverse colonization Racial oppression Women empowerment (in strength, leadership, and technology) People of color empowerment (in strength, leadership, and technology) Refugee Immigration Environmental Resources Cultural outreach vs. Isolation Am I missing anything? If you ha...

I discovered that the hip hop music I grew up listening to was not good for my ego. I would relate the messages from the music to my life, but the reality is my life is not what they are singing about. And while I can imagine myself having the life in which they sing about in their songs, it is not healthy for someone of my personality type to have those type of visions. When I have visions, I believe they are truly possible to achieve. But not all visions and thoughts are worth pursuit. Don't get me wrong, I believe some songs do have good messages, but the reality is, the majority I listened to do not. Perhaps I can treat listening to hip hop music to consumption of alcohol; good in occasional moderation, but not good to do on a routine basis. Some of them are quite comical, like "Mans not hot" by Big Shaq. But again, not great for the human ego. Naturally, I have been exploring new music that I think are having positive effects for me. I started out with the Beatles be...

The first month of 2018 flew by. I feel a bit hopeful for the future although there are still many unanswered questions, just like you may have in your own life. There are many topics I can choose to talk about. Today, as I have an hour before I head to the gym for my weekly basketball session, I will write about how I find sports, particularly basketball, to be a highly motivating part of my life. 1. Sports is about action. You can talk as much trash as you want on the court, field, whatever, but if you do not have action to back it up, you are considered to be a joke. If you do not play hard, you can lose the respect of your teammates who are playing hard. Playing in a way which garners the respect of your teammates and elevates their own play is admirable. That is leadership in a nutshell. 2. Sports brings out the competitor in you . Sometimes, many have told me, I can get quite competitive. And honestly speaking, I would agree with that assessment. It is an essential part of who I...

Hello, and welcome to 2018. The past 3 months to wrap up 2017 have been quite a struggle for me. It is no coincidence that I have not updated the blog in sometime. The transitioning darkness into the Finnish winter has brought out my deep-rooted problems and dark thoughts. It was not something I wanted or planned for, but it is something I have chosen to take in stride. Isolating myself in a new country, I pondered things I have never thought about before. My past failures with certain relationships in my life made me ask "Why?" and "What If"? I was obsessed with the heteronormative culture our society has produced and asked, why? I asked myself the deep questions of what my purpose in life after not being academically stimulated by the nature of some of the courses I have taken. I think after hitting rock bottom, it occurred to me what type of life I want to live. I want to live a life in which I question and challenge the existing ways of doing things. I want to l...

Moi, Thank you for the birthday wishes last week. This past month while I have been silent in terms of the blog, I have been actively gaining life experiences. A couple of individuals have put me in positions to challenge existing schools of thought, which I thank them for. For those that understand my personality type (ENTP in the myers-briggs), I respect and welcome those who challenge me . Just know, I may challenge back :) As I reflect on whether in my 25th year that I would be in the position I am now, I can't say that being here in Finland was a lifelong plan. I have organically built my life by taking the situations of today to influence the life of tomorrow. My life is not one big plan, but rather a series of small plans. One of my favorite characters in literature is Chauncey "Chance" Gardener of Jerzy Koziński's "Being There". Chance does not force his beliefs onto others. Rather, to use a basketball analogy, he lets "the game come to him....

"Back to school." I remember these words fondly while growing up. It seemed as if every retailer at the time used those three words in advertisements and sales promotions to target kids and their parents prior to the start of the school season. "Back to school" has a different meaning for me this time around. It not only marks a transition from working life in the United States to international student life in Finland. I think I have a slightly different perspective of school than what I had growing up, as I saw school more so as a means to an end. Do well in school, you will get a career and do well in life. Didn't understand why that was the case. Now, when I think about doing well in school, I am not thinking about maximizing myself in an arbitrary grading system that may have various degrees of objectivity here and there. I am thinking about what am I learning by acknowledging facts and challenging accepted points of view. ---- My post today will be separate...