because I bow to this man's words.

Some memorable blurbs from Mr Geiman:

“You don't have to test everything to destruction just to see if you made it right."

"Remember: that giants sleep too soundly; that witches are often betrayed by their appetites; dragons have one soft spot, somewhere, always; hearts can be well-hidden, and you can betray them with your tongue. "
- taken from Instructions 

“I miss you', he admitted. 
'I'm here', she said. 
'That's when I miss you most. When you're here. When you aren't here, when you're just a ghost of the past or a dream from another life, it's easier then.” 
― taken from American Gods

“I hope that in this year to come, you make mistakes. Because if you are making mistakes, then you are making new things, trying new things, learning, living, pushing yourself, changing yourself, changing your world. You're doing things you've never done before, and more importantly, you're Doing Something.

So that's my wish for you, and all of us, and my wish for myself. Make New Mistakes. Make glorious, amazing mistakes. Make mistakes nobody's ever made before. Don't freeze, don't stop, don't worry that it isn't good enough, or it isn't perfect, whatever it is: art, or love, or work or family or life.

Whatever it is you're scared of doing, Do it.

Make your mistakes, next year and forever.” 

And my favorite one so far:

“May your coming year be filled with magic and dreams and good madness. I hope you read some fine books and kiss someone who thinks you're wonderful, and don't forget to make some art -- write or draw or build or sing or live as only you can. And I hope, somewhere in the next year, you surprise yourself.” 

just saying.

I have a thing for words.

And people.

And especially --especially, people who are good with words. 

Mmmm. 

"you're my crutch when my legs stop moving."

I have been wondering endlessly about why I've been so jittery and restless this past few weeks - aside from the fact that I am finally, finally, bidding farewell to my working place for the past four years; my second home. And I realized that maybe it's because I haven't had a chance to pour it all out here. 

I don't know any routine other than getting up early, get on the train/car and head into my office, turn on my computer, chitchat with my friends while it hums to life, check my emails, go over my to do list, then head down/upstairs to grab breakfast with them. I don't know any other routine than to have hectic mornings, cut off by a lunch session where all of us go upstairs to crack jokes, fuss and curse about clients, and go back to work blasting out 8Tracks in my cubicle until 5 p.m, followed by coffee/desserts break only to hear about the continued part of those absurd, out-of-this world jokes and curses made by my friends. I don't know how it will feel tomorrow knowing that there won't be any familiar voice yelling dinner orders. I don't know how I can ever get used to turning left or right without seeing my friends there. I used to know the place inch by inch; even with my eyes closed. Come Monday, I will be placed in a completely new, strange environment with unfamiliar surroundings; back to square one. Back to zero.

Notice how I wrote 'friends', instead of 'colleagues'?

Because that's how they feel to me. This love-and-hate relationship between all of us is something I've always treasured deep inside. The non-bullshit way we treat one another and the fact that no matter how hard we tried to disguise it, the sincerity to back up each other and help one another out always manages to show. I will miss each of these unique characters, types of people whom I would never have thought I'd get along with if I hadn't met them there. It's surreal how different yet how alike we all are. 

It has been one heck of a ride, and I will never forget the moments leading up to my last day there. Good or bad, I think I learned a hell lot in that place both personally and professionally. It makes me smile, frown, laugh, shake my had in disbelief to think about how naive I was and how I should've been smarter in picking which issues I needed to respond to and which to ignore. And these past few months in particular have been utterly indescribable. I've gone down roads I have never even thought to touch before, allowed myself to feel things I never thought I'd feel before, made decisions I never thought I'd have the guts to make, and said words that surprised even me - in a good way. It's been amazing. Maybe this whole growing up process wasn't a bad idea after all. 

(If you knew how much papers and stuff tend to build mountains on my desk, then you know how this pic tells a million words.)

So I guess this is it; on to the next, then. Can't wait to see what other surprises life has in store for me in my next chapter. Looking at how things have been going recently, all I can say is - bring it on, Universe. 

:)

says Comfort one night,

"Checkmate."

The Wall, in all of its rock-solid glory, looks down shamefully and retreats back in to the corner, feeling a thunderous rumble coming in the distance that will soon make the fort collapse.

And the Universe; the Universe is smiling somewhere, leaning back at his seat with a happy, satisfied sigh.

(to be continued)

2013 Lesson #2,7964

Learn to keep your mouth shut.

Just because it's in your head, doesn't mean you should say it out loud. Just because you're easily restless and thus always feel the need to let out how your mood is or how you feel, doesn't mean you can't sink back to your shells and clam up. Permanently.

It's a freaking fun method, bottling up. Try it. Of course it's not your usual trait; but maybe that's always been the problem. You were right to zip your lips and hide behind the walls. 

PS: You have to be brave.

How do you fall in love?

You don’t fall in love like you fall in a hole. You fall like falling through space. It’s like you jump off your own private planet to visit someone else’s planet. And when you get there it all looks different: the flowers, the animals, the colours people wear. It is a big surprise falling in love because you thought you had everything just right on your own planet, and that was true, in a way, but then somebody signalled to you across space and the only way you could visit was to take a giant jump. 

Away you go, falling into someone else’s orbit and after a while you might decide to pull your two planets together and call it home. And you can bring your dog. Or your cat. Your goldfish, hamster, collection of stones, all your odd socks. (The ones you lost, including the holes, are on the new planet you found.)

And you can bring your friends to visit. And read your favourite stories to each other. And the falling was really the big jump that you had to make to be with someone you don’t want to be without. 

That’s it.

PS: You have to be brave.


(Jeanette Winterson in Big Questions from Little People & Simple Answers from Great Minds)

2013 Lesson: #34

Spend more time with Mom and Dad. 

And then enjoy their sincere, pleased smile when you propose it.