The Lotus Flower

Two years ago I did not follow a particular religion. One night I decided to make a list of characteristics to construct my own religion. I am not sure where the list is located today, but I recall my religion as having a peaceful and positive outlook towards self, society, and life. I did research to find a religion similar to the one I created on my own. The most similar religion I found was Buddhism.

I have never spoken with a practicing Buddhist and I have never visited a Buddhist temple. My knowledge of the religion came from the books I have read and websites I have visited. At one point I became passionate about the religion and wanted to learn as much as I could. Manhattanville College offers a variety of religion courses. I decided to enroll in the Religions of India course.

I would not define myself as a Buddhist any longer, but I do have a lot of respect for the religion. I look at it as a lifestyle. Many religions center faith on God. Buddhists on the other hand do not believe in God. Buddhists find strength, peace, and wisdom through self-mediation.

There are many well-known symbols of Buddhism. My favorite symbol is the lotus flower. I have a tattoo of the words lotus flower written in Sanskrit on the inside of my wrist. The lotus flower symbolizes the struggle of life, rising above bad situations, personal growth, and beauty.

A Complaint Free World

One of my favorite books is A Complaint Free World. It is a great book and I believe everyone should read it. The book challenges the reader to go twenty one days without complaining or gossiping. If you break the challenge you start back at day one. It further discusses the ways in which complaining or not complaining changes your way of thinking, speaking, mood, and relationships. The book urges the reader to take action and change unsatisfying situations instead of complaining to someone that most likely does not care or cannot help. One of the interesting points I found in the book is the amount of relationships that are based on complaining and gossiping with one another.

In the book there were stories from previous people that completed the challenge. Many of the people that completed the challenge lost a few friends. This is because their conversations were based on complaining and/or gossiping.

There were stories of how being complaint free changed lives for the better. In order to become consciously aware of the things we say, we must first change the way we think. If we train ourselves to think positively, then there will be positive effects in all areas of our lives. Basically, once the bad habit of complaining is dropped our lives will be great!

This book caught my attention because of the different types of people I spend time with. When I think of this book I think of two of my friends in particular. Almost every sentence out of one of their mouths is a complaint or the latest gossip. The other friend is the complete opposite. I enjoy talking to my friend that does not complain a lot. The conversation is much richer and meaningful for both of us.

No Modifers.. I think

VH1 Save The Music Foundation

I take the train twice a week. I take the train to go to a city. In the city there are buildings. People work in some of the buildings. I have an internship at one of them. My internship does not pay me. I arrive at the office at 10:00 am. There is work for me to do when I arrive in the office. I complete the tasks given to me. I take a break for one hour. When the break is over, I get back to work. I have seen two performances while I was in the office. The artists created sound that I heard while I sat at my desk. I have gone to the city twice for my internship. One day I put letters in envelopes, put stickers on the envelopes, and created a spreadsheet in excel. On my second day, I attended a meeting, created a spreadsheet, and ran errands.

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