Post-Christmas Update

It's been a hot minute since I posted here. I've been concerned with final exams, traveling to my grandmother's house, and spending time with family during the Christmas season.

There's something wonderful about spending time with family during Christmas. I don't get to see my family together very often, so the past week I've had a good time talking and hanging out with them.

Christmas is a special time for me. I've always associated it with good feelings, charity, and real happiness. It's something that I almost can't describe, because everybody seems to know it who celebrates Christmas. For the first time this year, I got presents for my grandma and my dad. I got my grandma a green glass vase and my father some loose black tea and a teapot. They seemed to genuinely appreciate their gifts. My dad made tea and my grandma put her new vase by some of her plants, above her kitchen sink. It felt really nice to give them gifts; I finally had enough money to afford some small gifts. :-)

I plan on going back to school on Sunday the 5th of January, since classes resume on the 6th. My grades were all As and Bs: my lowest grade, in Beginning Classical Greek, was a B-, which means I managed to get my grades up to snuff. I haven't been emailed anything regarding my academic probation status, but I have not been informed of any dismissal, so I assume I'm going back to finish school. I have already ordered my textbooks and I really look forward to attending classes next semester.

In general, I have a lot of hope for how 2020 will turn out. It's the start of a new year as well as a new decade. I hope that I succeed in all the endeavors I set out to accomplish.

In case I don't make a post before the end of 2019, I will close out the year with these lines from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem, Ulysses:

"Come, my friends,

'T is not too late to seek a newer world.

Push off, and sitting well in order smite

The sounding furrows; for my purpose holds

To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths

Of all the western stars, until I die.

It may be that the gulfs will wash us down:

It may be we shall touch the Happy Isles,

And see the great Achilles, whom we knew.

Tho' much is taken, much abides; and tho'

We are not now that strength which in old days

Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are;

One equal temper of heroic hearts,

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield."

Some Thoughts on Liberty

I came across this quote earlier this evening, and I've been ruminating on it a little:

"I do not choose to be a common man. It is my right to be uncommon. I seek to develop whatever talents God gave me—not security. I do not wish to be a kept citizen, humbled and dulled by having the state look after me. I want to take the calculated risk; to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed. I refuse to barter incentive for a dole. I prefer the challenges of life to the guaranteed existence; the thrill of fulfillment to the stale calm of utopia. I will not trade freedom for beneficence nor my dignity for a handout. I will never cower before any earthly master nor bend to any threat. It is my heritage to stand erect, proud and unafraid; to think and act myself, enjoy the benefit of my creations and to face the world boldly and say – 'This, with God's help, I have done.' All this is what it means to be an American."

It was written in the 1950s by a man called Dean Alfange. Born in Constantinople but raised in Utica, he served as a politician for multiple political parties in the state of New York for the majority of his life. He served in World War I, and was active in helping Jews escape Nazi persecution during the Holocaust. 

When I read this quote, it occurred to me that, in our age of hyper-luxury and over-refinement, many people, both in the United States and around the world, have forsaken or forgotten Liberty. It simply holds no meaning for so many because of how ubiquitous it is. People now have forgotten what their ancestors fought for all those years ago, in so many wars and other violent conflicts, because now we think of Liberty as ancillary to Luxury. We are all too often "free", but it is not a fitting freedom which we now possess. We are "free" from things our culture deems "offensive" or "boring" or "complicated," be that a foreign opinion, alternate perspective, or provocative work of literature or art. We are too often driven to be yet another interchangeable economic unit, of entirely the same worth or respect as our brethren, no matter whether that worth or respect was rightly earned or wrongly taken from another. Too many people receive assistance who merely steal, while too few people receive any proper benefits or charity who need it most. Too many people place undying faith in utopia, while too few people strike out on their own. Too many people are afraid of failure, while too few people are hopeful for success. What the exact causes of these symptoms are, I cannot say with any real certainty; yet I may propose a solution of sorts. As the Bible says, he who has ears, let him hear. 

My solution is that which is embodied in Alfange's statement. Namely, that Americans (and peoples all over the world) should once again embrace Liberty as a guiding principle by which to live and organize their existences and their societies. The only shackles which bind a person in this case are those which an individual fashions for himself. If you are bothered by any external thing or circumstances, as the Stoics say, it is your judgment of the thing that makes you react negatively, and it is this which you have the power to revoke or change at any time. With this in mind, a person can hope to properly strike out for himself, neither afraid of failure nor overly hopeful for success. 

Supposing you do strike out and come to hardships, you must keep your head unbowed though it be bloodied, and your body strong though it be bruised, and your mind clear though you be pricked from outside with crowns of thorns or the scorns of others. Ignore those who insult you and try to trip you up. They are merely the victims of their own mentality, and there is always a chance that by your example you may lead them to the same path which you now walk--the path of the individual living a free life unencumbered by any external injury, the path of the responsible citizen, the path of the man who seeks Liberty as his guiding principle.

I may perhaps write more on this quote by Alfange. It is a marvelous encapsulation of that creed by which I have attempted to live, the creed of Liberty and Virtue, and the same creed which I attempt to put into practice so that I may lead by example (though I will admit that I fall short very often, as is the case with being human.) I may write more of a formal essay on it and post that here. For the time being, I would appreciate any comments or thoughts that you, reader, might have on the quote. It is certainly thought-provoking, at least.

Pax vobiscum. :-)

Post-Thanksgiving Update

Thanksgiving has come and gone yet again. Mine was spent at my grandmother's house, and it was just the two of us. Very comfortable and cozy; I spent the day itself eating turkey and watching Looney Tunes (AKA, the perfect way to spend a cold November day.)

As of now, I'm back at college, but not for very long. Right now we're in "dead week", the week before final exams when clubs and extracurriculars generally don't meet so that students can study and whatnot. Tabletop club, of which I am a proud member, shall be meeting, though. We have to wrap up the first part of our massive homebrew Pathfinder campaign before Christmas break sets in following the Friday of finals week--the 13th, as Lady Luck would have it. ;-) I think that I have finally gotten my grades up enough to get out of academic probation. My grandmother is so proud of me, and I am proud of myself, too. I can't get too prideful, however, lest I lose track in the coming week and a half. I need to focus on my finals, pull all the way through, and git gud, as the internet likes to say.

In other news, my dad has ordered me a new laptop for Christmas. My old one finally gave up the ghost (or its screen did) and for the last month or so I've been writing papers and blogging on school computers (thankfully, they're free to use and open 24/7.) I am awaiting with baited breath my new Acer Aspire 1. It's a budget laptop, to be sure, but at least it's no Chromebook; Chromebooks are absolutely wretched, if my six years' experience with one is anything to go by. I may make a post about my new laptop when it arrives, but I also want to spend Christmas with my family and with lots of books. I want to spend less time online and more time at the library. I remembered the library in my hometown does D&D campaigns every Saturday morning, so I may start with that (or introduce people to the game of Toon, a fun little RPG that's like a much simpler version of D&D crossed with Looney Tunes!)

In short, I'm looking forward to Christmas break and to passing my classes with As and Bs for once! Things are looking up, up, up! I may not be out of the race after all, and I may exceed my own expectations. I just need to keep a clear head and do my duty. Cheers!