Courage and Love on a Little Blue Planet

By Austin T. Murphy

Photo Credit: Fletcher Krawczuk

**The musical themes for this post are "Island" by Coheed & Cambria and "In Your Time" by Bob Seger.**

Blind faith is a tricky concept to tackle. I've never been a devoutly religious person, so far be it from me to try to tell you how you should or shouldn't live your life or what to believe. That's for you to decide in your own time.

What I can tell you -- with no doubt in mind -- is that the most important thing you can and should believe in is yourself.

Just consider the actual unlikelihood that you are living your life today with whatever privileges you are afforded. We are all human, and though some are in "better" positions given class structures, just consider the abysmal probability that you -- out of billions of people -- are able to wake up on a given day and exist.

Not just that you exist, but that you also have the power to choose how you respond to external stimuli. It's all about your attitude: you can either embrace your obstacles and overcome them, or you can shrink from them and allow them to rule your life.

This is a fact in all walks of life. Too many people, today and historically, have been paralyzed by the fear of failure...when in reality the only thing to fear is the shame of never trying.

So I'm eliciting a challenge to you on this warm, sunny Saturday: try to do something new today. Try to do something you've never done before.

This is especially important because of how easily we can trap ourselves in routines in an attempt to blind ourselves from the excitement of a spontaneous, unpredictable life. Obviously a semblance of a routine is critical to our survival in an advanced civilization, but that doesn't mean you must (or should) repeat the exact same actions day after day after day after day....

The most successful people in the world don't allow themselves to live in an enclosed circle; they establish circles everywhere they go, and they break free of them whenever they recognize the time has come to do so.

The most successful people are more than aware that their every move isn't going to be perfect, nor do they need to be precise in every calculation. And most importantly, they recognize obstacles for what they are: opportunities to improve as a person.

As for me, I'm choosing to embrace my obstacles. I enjoy surprising myself with my own strength.

So I suppose it also comes down to a choice on your behalf. You can either be someone's obstacle, or you can be their ally. For better or for worse, your actions will always have an impact -- sometimes small and sometimes big -- on other people.

If you choose to be my ally, then we can strive to achieve the impossible and accomplish what has never been done before.

If you choose to be my obstacle, then I feel sorry for you. We weren't put on this planet to fight each other; we were put on this planet to help one another and mend our broken parts.