My new favorite coffee shop started a little art project thing called "What would you wish for?" Basically, they laid out wood plaques at the espresso bar with a pile of sharpies and markers and asked people to draw them up. Some of them are predictable (mo' money, mo' cash, mo' ... well, you get the idea ;) ), but some of them are quite profound (I wish my daughter would get off the meth and be sane again, I wish cancer would find something else to do), so I thought I'd share the photo albums that came from the art project.
So stop, take a look at the things in your life that you can be thankful for, and remember that it's really the small things that keep us going everyday.
(In case you're interested, this one and this one are mine.)
That is brilliant!
'I wish I could swim everywhere!'
:)
I wish I had the ability to heal with my hands. That said, I am thankful I have a good life, I'm not rich, money is tight, but I have a view of the stars over the river bluffs, veggies in the garden, there is lots of love, and my children are healthy and happy. Yep, I'm good.
Thank you Lilith for giving me the excuse to just stand and look out my window for a moment and see something other than my chore list.
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I wish I didn't have mental problems. (OK, I know what you're thinking. Something to the effect of: "this guy is either a.)b@!*!!%#ting me, b.)being sarcastic, or c.)being selfish." However, this is 100% authentic soul searching. I don't do this often, but...)
The reason for this is that when my depression hits, I tend to hurt people's feelings and cause lots of problems. If this didn't happen so often, it would make the lives of everyone I come into contact with just a little bit better.
I wish my mother hadn't died. At least, not so young, so she could had time to meet my wife and my son. She left us twelve years ago and there is no single day I don´t miss her.
daedel, el azote.
Alas, I wish I didn't feel the need to make everyone in the world feel better, I just can't stop myself, I feel personally responsible for everyone else's pain...Just... can't... stop, here it goes.
Shiny, wishing what you did is a big step in helping it to come true, your acknowledgement of the pain you feel you cause others will help you to heal that area of your life, just try to remember your wish whenever you feel your mental capacity slipping into the area you fear, and if your words do cause pain to others, let the others know how truly sorry you are and you are doing your best, good friends and those you love will understand you're trying. Oh, and catnip tea with a little chamomile, it has a very calming effect.
daedle, I understand what it is like to lose a dear loved one at such a young age. My little brother was taken from me 16 years ago, I so wish he could have met my husband and children.
I think about him everyday, and somedays are harder then others. Look for your mother in your son's eyes, she's there. I'm not sure where your beliefs lie, but I imagine my brother chortling over my silliness and crying with me in hard times while watching my antics from above. I love the saying, 'whenever you find a penny, it means someone in heaven is reminding you that they are with you.' pennies from heaven. It doesn't make the emptiness go away forever, but it fills the void for just a moment, and makes me smile.
I wish I had magic, I could kiss everyone's boo boos and make everything all better.
Sorry, I just can't stop myself, truly.
My favorite is "I wish I didn't have to hide my superpowers from the world"
I wish I had superpowers or went to Hogwarts or something. I've wished that for a really long time, becuase then making the world a brighter place would seem like a more attainable goal than it seems without superpowers. And they're cool.
Shiny, I've also suffered from depression for most of my life and can completely empathise with how it really messes things up. I've been in college for 2 years and have almost dropped out two or three times a semester. And now I'm getting a little bit of help, for which I am very thankful. If you can do it, I would heartily recommend that you visit a witch-doctor (or phsychiatrist :P)and start getting help, if you haven't. Part of fixing the problem is wanting to, which it seems to me that you do.
Love to you all!
Looking at those just reminded me of postSecret, but slightly more optimistic.
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I wish I knew what the future held, so I could stop making such terrible guesses.
In the spirit of Mr. Shiny's response... I wish I had been better made. I'm always fighting the compulsion to act and speak from fear, while those around me mistakenly believe me fearless. It's a lead albatross.
If my wish had magical heft to it I'd make some selfless wish for the good of the world that would bore you all to tears.
EDIT: I just now read what Lady Lena wrote to Shiny. Quite astute.
In the spirit of Mr. Shiny's response... I wish I had been better made. I'm always fighting the compulsion to act and speak from fear, while those around me mistakenly believe me fearless. It's a lead albatross.
Perhaps those around you don't think you are fearless, as much as they see you as brave. Continuing to act and speak regardless of the fear you feel is bravery at it's best.
(Oh good lord I absolutely have to leave this thread)
I wish Kentucky Fried Chicken didn't have so many calories...
Ultradan
I wish Kentucky Fried Chicken didn't have so many calories...
Ultradan
I wish you hadn't made coffee come out my nose when I read that!
I wish my mother hadn't died. At least, not so young, so she could had time to meet my wife and my son. She left us twelve years ago and there is no single day I don´t miss her.
daedel, el azote.
This is my most profound wish as well. And that I wouldn't have been the one to make the decision to turn the machines off. I pull back from the tears each day I consider this. I live this pain.
I wish I didn't have mental problems. (OK, I know what you're thinking. Something to the effect of: "this guy is either a.)b@@#~&#~ting me, b.)being sarcastic, or c.)being selfish." However, this is 100% authentic soul searching. I don't do this often, but...)
The reason for this is that when my depression hits, I tend to hurt people's feelings and cause lots of problems. If this didn't happen so often, it would make the lives of everyone I come into contact with just a little bit better.
Amazing... I have to check the general forum here more often. Shiny, I was just having this discussion with a long time friend of mine last night. I'm not sure if this will help you, but it can't hurt to try...
I suffer from Severe depression as well. And it took me a while to come to grips with this, but it helped me to know others out there are going through the same thing. It sucks, but every day is a struggle. I have to stop an look things over several times to be sure I'm not over-reacting or taking something the wrong way becuase of it. Sad thing is, I'm so used to being like this that at times it's like I don't know anything else.
When the "black mood" hits and I know I'm going to be a surly bastard, I warn people. Just tell them you're in a bad mood and you may say something stupid. Another thing that helps me is when I'm down, I stop and sit down. I relax andthink through why I'm depressed. When I do that I can tell if it's something legit or just a general thing. If it's something specific I deal with whatever it is. If it's my depression, I just work through it.
Hope this helps, even if it's just knowing you're not alone.
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Looking at those just reminded me of postSecret, but slightly more optimistic.
PostSecret is one of my favorite websites. I've been meaning to send stuff in, but I keep forgetting.
Every time I think my problems are bad, I go on PostSecret. That's when I am reminded of the fact that however bad my life is going, there are many other people going through the same (or worse) things.
I wish I was old enough to understand what was going on when my Grandma Irene died maybe I could have performed CPR and saved her instead of sitting there with a stupid look on my face.
I love you Grandma.
Rest in Peace.
My wish is selfish. I wish that I could make a living doing what I love to do (writing) and not have to have a job. I don't want to be rich or anything, I just want to be able to get up when I feel like it and spend my day working at what I want to do instead of working for the man. I've been working for 10 years now and I really hate it. It's never got easier. I'm not lazy, I'm just not the sort of person who can find fulfillment in a job that has no meaning for me.
And I've been trying to succeed at what I love on the side the whole time but because I've been working I'm moving soooo slowly. It makes me sad and is very disheartening. But I can't help it, I have to write, I have no choice. Nothing else makes me happy work-wise. My family and friends don't get it, they think I should give up. Only my girlfriend understands because she is a photographic artist and is in exactly the same boat.
However if I had to make a short wish to make the world better it would be this:
Make it illegal for private citizens to own cars. Public transport only.
PS Sorry about the whining above - I think it's just one of those days.
Seems it's been one of those days for a whole lot of people. But, I think Lilith wanted us to count our blessings and be thankful for the small things in life that keep us smiling.
I am thankful a gopher hasn't eaten my artichoke plant...yet.
True. I was talking to the cleaner at work yesterday when I was on a break and she said that in the office she worked at in China they worked monday to saturday with no breaks, eating lunch at their desks. She said it's better to be a cleaner in Australia than an office drone in Beijing. Put my whining into perspective that's for sure.
And it's a very nice day outside too...
It was rainy here, but...I'm thankful the rain watered my garden for me. I could get the hang of this,
I know it is a cliche but: I wish I knew back then what I know now.
When I first saw the first post, I instantly wanted to write something cute like "I wish my Green Lantern ring would really work!" or "I want my Dragon and Dungeon back!" or somesuch. But after the intense posts above and the events of the day, I have to say the only thing I really want are my friends to stop fighting.
To make a long story short, my future mother in law never made it to my wedding, as she passed two weeks ago due to cancer complications. My fiancee and I are playing catch as catch can with rent, bills, food and such. It hasnt' been easy, but it was the direction we were moving in, and we are learning to live together(which isn't nearly as easy as it sounds! Why didn't anyone warn us about this!)and get our lives back in order, for mom's sake if noone else's.
Then about a day and a half ago, another tragedy strikes. A friend of mine has a mild thyroid cancer- thankfully caught in time. She will have to have her thyroid out and need radiation iodine therapy and probably be on Synthroid for the rest of her life. She swears she's okay. We both know she isn't, but if we keep on saying it, it's true.
She had a VERY bad falling out with another close friend of mine a little over a year ago. I'm not going to go into details here, but it was quite personal and split our little group apart, leaving my friend with thyroid cancer by her lonesome(don't worry, she didn't have thyroid cancer at the time). It would seem that the twain would never meet, and that would be okay, if not for the anger, animosity and that built up towards my ill friend over the months. Full disclosure- she deserved, and still deserves, A WHOLE HELL OF A LOT OF IT! But cancer is cancer, and while she probably will survive and live to a ripe old age, for me, things won't be the same. But for everyone else, it seems to be rather inconsequential, and are still eager to lambast her over her (considerable) flaws. Maybe they're not ready to forgive. Maybe I'm being soft. But things are just so different now. Life is so fragile, so precious- and when someone can be here one day and gone the next on account of an infection noone noticed, it does make you re-think things. I'm not saying that we should all be shiny-happy-manger-babies-friends again, perhaps too much damage has been done for THAT to happen, but to give lip service to a life-threatening disease while raking someone over the coals perhaps deservedly but for the umpteenth time..well..makes you just as dumb as they are. There's hash to be settled. How it's settled is up to the parties involved, but at this point, I dont' care much if it's pistols at sunset, or a phone call at midnight. Anything is better than the stagnant mound of hostility that's being endured right now. I just want the fighting to stop and everyone to move on- together. But since we're tossing quarters into wells here, I wish we all could be friends again.
I wish you hadn't made coffee come out my nose when I read that!I wish Kentucky Fried Chicken didn't have so many calories...
Ultradan
Sorry my Lady... But that's my ONLY 'super-power'!
Ultradan
...We are learning to live together (which isn't nearly as easy as it sounds! Why didn't anyone warn us about this!)
LOL - Living together isn't as easy as it sounds. Just make sure you both have "your" areas where you can be you and do your thing in.
Example: The hubby (on the weekends) likes to wake up slowly, sit down in his recliner and listen to some music and drink a couple of cups of coffee before he does *anything*. I know this - it's his personal time and I give it to him.
Me, the hubby knows that when I'm sitting down at my art table, I want to do that - I don't like my concentration broken. He gives me my space.
So, you & your fiancee need to find a way to live together, but still have moments where you can be yourself. You may be thinking (and I'm speculating) that "I'm going to marry this person, why would I want to be away from her?" - trust me, everybody wants some alone time at some point. Make sure your together time and alone time balance out and all should be good. :D
Now that I've adviced myself out...Hope your friend gets better and you & your fiancee have a fantastic wedding that you'll remember for the rest of your life.
I'm thankful that what looked to be a root canal type problem yesterday wound up being a wisdom tooth extraction.
Couple shots o' Lidocaine and ThrrrPOP! Good as new.
If I had a wish it would be for a perfect, maintenance-free mouth with nanobots that would keep it the works looking shiny and new.
I'm thankful that what looked to be a root canal type problem yesterday wound up being a wisdom tooth extraction.
Couple shots o' Lidocaine and ThrrrPOP! Good as new.
If I had a wish it would be for a perfect, maintenance-free mouth with nanobots that would keep it the works looking shiny and new.
Oh, man, good for you. Root canals are the DEVIL!
Oh, man, good for you. Root canals are the DEVIL!If I had a wish it would be for a perfect, maintenance-free mouth with nanobots that would keep it the works looking shiny and new.
Thanks, Steve. Never had a root canal, but I've been warned. Finding out it was only a wisdom tooth felt like a lottery win. :)
Great thread, Lilith. Some of this stuff makes me want to cry.
Edit: To add my own, I wish that I hadn't wasted so many years of my life chasing after frivolous things before I started to pursue the things in life that bring me the most happines.
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Oh, man, good for you. Root canals are the DEVIL!
Thanks, Steve. Never had a root canal, but I've been warned. Finding out it was only a wisdom tooth felt like a lottery win. :)
Except, well, if you _had_ won the lottery, you could have bought Paizo, then installed yourself in an empty office where you could read all day and bug the Paizoites.
MIKE: “Ahh…can I help you?”
LOTTERY WINNER-TURNED CO-OWNER OF PAIZO: “No. Looking over you shoulder and interrupting your concentration all day kinda does it for me…hey…is that a Cappuccino maker... James! My man! What are you working on?...Can I help?...no?...ummm...ok...Vic! How's the code-writing, dude!?..."
...We are learning to live together (which isn't nearly as easy as it sounds! Why didn't anyone warn us about this!)LOL - Living together isn't as easy as it sounds. Just make sure you both have "your" areas where you can be you and do your thing in.
Example: The hubby (on the weekends) likes to wake up slowly, sit down in his recliner and listen to some music and drink a couple of cups of coffee before he does *anything*. I know this - it's his personal time and I give it to him.
Me, the hubby knows that when I'm sitting down at my art table, I want to do that - I don't like my concentration broken. He gives me my space.
So, you & your fiancee need to find a way to live together, but still have moments where you can be yourself. You may be thinking (and I'm speculating) that "I'm going to marry this person, why would I want to be away from her?" - trust me, everybody wants some alone time at some point. Make sure your together time and alone time balance out and all should be good. :D
Now that I've adviced myself out...Hope your friend gets better and you & your fiancee have a fantastic wedding that you'll remember for the rest of your life.
Thank you very much Lilith. As always, your posts both inspire and enlighten. :-D Right now I'm spending weekends over at her place and the weekdays at mine until the lease is up. We're learning more about each other than ever before, and as unpleasant as the circumstances are, that aspect of it is pretty fun. I find her arcane and mysterious. She finds me vaguely amusing and useful. We meet somewhere in the middle, usually over D&D or Star Trek reruns.
I hope my friend will be okay. I'm sure she will, in fact. It's how my other friends get along with her if she doesn't get better that worries me.
Except, well, if you _had_ won the lottery, you could have bought Paizo, then installed yourself in an empty office where you could read all day and bug the Paizoites.
MIKE: “Ahh…can I help you?”
LOTTERY WINNER-TURNED CO-OWNER OF PAIZO: “No. Looking over you shoulder and interrupting your concentration all day kinda does it for me…hey…is that a Cappuccino maker... James! My man! What are you working on?...Can I help?...no?...ummm...ok...Vic! How's the code-writing, dude!?..."
Well not all lottery wins are equal. I wouldn't mind at all being a co-owner of Paizo. There'd be raises all around! (Then maybe Vic would let me into that colossally amazing entertainment center of his once... just once...)
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I always think of the Lottery in two near-simultaneous images:
• Being stoned to death
• A gazillia-millia-bujiliion smackeroos and me wiling away my days on a yacht in the South Seas…ahhh…
The second bullet is much preferable to the first, but Shirley Jackson’s is more likely to happen to me…
...wait a minute--I think I'm threadjacking again...
If I won the lotto, I would buy an island and make it an RPG resort - all games, all the time...Travel to the island would be on an actual sailing vessel (I'm fond of junks)...and then we could make Fakey's dream a reality!
However, I'll have to be happy with turning my garage into a gaming den/library, setting up the office for some techno geekin' love, and putting up all my artwork on my walls this weekend.
When I win the lotto (note, I say when) I will send my alien child to the best college avaliable. I will also fly everyone on these boards to Seattle for a huge Paizo party. Oh, and I'll buy a truck in a girly color so my hubby couldn't drive it.