man's search for meaning

why do i often blog in the early hours of the morning? maybe it's because i am a college student. maybe it's because i need a break from my paper that i am writing {yes, its due tomorrow}. maybe it's because it's when my best thoughts come to me. or maybe it's because this is the only time my internet will work in my apartment complex {frustration beyond belief is behind that statement}.

whatever the reason... i enjoy the time i get to reflect.

so i just finished the book "A Man's Search for Meaning" and if you haven't read it... i suggest you get on that. it will make you ponder & think about the true meaning of your existence & what drives you to do the things that you do. it's written by this psychiatrist Viktor Frankl that survives four concentration camps and shares his psychological views & experiences within the camp. let me just give you some of my favorite quotes of the book to give you an idea on how deep & inspiring it truly is.

• "We who lived in the concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms-to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way."
• "If there is meaning in life at all, then there must be meaning in suffering... without suffering and death human life cannot be complete"
• "But there is no need to be ashamed of tears; for tears bore witness that a man had the greatest of courage, courage to suffer."
• "Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life to carry out a concrete assignment which demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated."
• "Love is the only way to grasp another human being in the innermost core of his personality. No one can become fully aware of the very essence of another human being unless he loves him."
• "He who has a Why to live for can bear almost any How."

and to think... those are just a couple. really makes you think doesn't it? i've found the meaning for my life... 

have you?

december first

this day is quite significant i suppose. it means one more month has come and gone. its the start of the month where we celebrate the birth of our lord & savoir, jesus christ. it is the month where my best friend & roommate leaves to serve a mission in chile. it marks four months down for steven. exactly twenty more months to go {this means 608 days left}. & it is the very last month of the year 2012.

this is the last month where everything will be the same. starting in january, my life is going to change dramatically. i won't have my three very best friends to turn to whenever i need them. one will be in the mtc. one will be back home in chicago. & thank goodness one of them will only be thirty minutes away but still its not the same as just a holler across the apartment hallway. i want to savor every moment that i have with them. its the last time we will all be together for at least 22 months. sometimes i can't help but to be overwhelmed with sadness. & feel as though i'm being left behind... i just have to remind myself i have important work to do here too. {plus: who can be sad in december? it might very well be my favorite month}

so in this month i will be... making memories and cherishing the old. saying "see you later" to my best friend. celebrating the eternal marriage of my brother. enjoying spending time with my lovingly family. rejoicing in the birth of my christ. & counting down to a brand new year with unknown adventures on the horizon.