Life Lessons from Butters

Life is NOT a Reality Show

So stop trying to live like it is.

Reality shows are not reality. Reality shows brings out the worst in other at the expense of drama. Reality shows don’t want normal or good people looking for and bringing out the best in people. Reality shows don’t want to see people become grow and become better people. That’s not “good TV.”

I can not tell you how much my heart hurts when I see people on Facebook or Twitter kicking up all kinds of hell just because something didn’t go their way. It hurts even more when I see it happen in real life. People who are living so selfishly, that they can not see past what is right in front of them.

Life should be about conflict resolution, not cultivating conflict. Life should be about reconciliation, not hold grudges. Life should be about helping others, not being selfish.

Life is not a Reality Show! Stop trying to live like it is!

Tapestry

“There are many parts of my youth I’m not proud of. There were loose threads, untidy parts of me that I would like to remove.

But when I pulled on one of those threads, it unraveled the tapestry of my life.”

This was a line from Captain Picard on an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. This episode was very much like “It’s a Wonderful Life” where Picard can see what his life would be like if he made a different decision in his youth. But what he found was that despite his bad decision, several things happened in his life wouldn’t have happened if he didn’t make that decision. In fact, the very essence of who he was had changed when he changed that one decision.

This episode strikes a chord in my heart, because there was a time in my life where I really struggled with decisions I made (or didn’t make) in my past. I dwelled on these things and it became an unhealthy.

Part of it was because in a very short time once in college, I really changed as a person (read: grew up!) and all I really wanted was to go back with the new found attitude on life that I had. But as things started happening in life, GREAT THINGS, the more I started to see that if I done things differently earlier in my life, these great things, these great people I was meeting, might not have ever happened.

In fact, if I had done things differently when I was younger I wouldn’t even be the same person. Which is scary, because I like the person I’ve become and despite some decisions I wish I did or didn’t make in my past, I wouldn’t change any of it because the person who I’ve become because of those decisions is much more important than some thing I wish I had done.

BJ Neblett famously said, “We are the sum total of our experiences. Those experiences – be they positive or negative – make us the person we are, at any given point in our lives. And, like a flowing river, those same experiences, and those yet to come, continue to influence and reshape the person we are, and the person we become. None of us are the same as we were yesterday, nor will be tomorrow.”

I find peace in that quote. I find peace in that because no matter what I do, I will learn and grow from my experiences and try use that to help others grow from their experiences as well. We are giving one life to live, we shouldn’t waste it wishing we had done something different.

Frank Underwood and Jesus

A show I love and am currently binging on is House of Cards. Yes it’s dark and has very adult themes, but it is a show I can’t stop watching. Great writing. Great acting. Great cinematography. It’s such a well made show.

There was something that happened this season (no spoilers) where Frank decided he wanted to talk to the local Bishop in DC about Justice. The Bishop was written very well, his theology was very sound and he shared the gospel in a very real way, sharing that the two most important commandments – love God, and love others.

Then Frank asked for some privacy so he could “pray.” But he started at the statue of Jesus and said something that shocked me.

“If love is what you’re selling, then I’m not buying.”

A scary quote and shocking because that is something I never even considered people would feel. I guess I should feel fortunate enough that love is something that is valued by the people in my circle, but my heart hurts that they are so closed off. Not only to God, but to people.

I know that the Holy Spirit draws people near and some people are farther from God and have a longer journey, but to deny something that I believe in deeply ingrained in human nature is hard for me to grasp.

Honestly I haven’t fully collected my thoughts, this was something that really impacted me though and wanted to share. Do any of you have thought on how to share the gospel to people with hardened hearts like this? I’d love to hear what you have to say.

Go to shows for laughs

Greg the Bunny was a very short lived TV show on FOX that followed the lives of the cast and crew of a children’s show “Sweet Knuckle Junction.” It featured both humans and puppets! Yup, puppets. Tardy was my favorite.

Second is Dumb and Dumber. It is so silly and so stupid with a dash of slapstick, it will always make me laugh. In addition it is very quotable and I sometimes quote it in everyday life!

What is your go-to show when you want to laugh?

Happy Birthday Sesame Street

Today is the 43rd anniversary of the first episode of Sesame Street. I loved Sesame Street growing up and I love that it’s still going strong and one day I hope that my kids will grow up watching Sesame Street.

Thank you Sesame Street for being the greatest children’s show. EVER. Thank you for not only teaching children basic skills, but teaching good values, morals, and diversity. Thank for teaching children to be compassionate and learn to have healthy relationships. I would hate to see a world without Sesame Street.

I think J.D. from the TV show Scrubs put it best:
“In a way you can learn everything you need to know from watching it as a kid.
Like always play nice.
Always try your hardest.
And even, it’s okay to cry.”

Classic Simpsons

0:39-1:01 is probably the best Simpsons bit…. ever.