Luck or..Bad Luck..

On a recent school trip (Week Without Walls) to Morocco we experiences what many would call a trail of "bad luck." Everywhere we went, something bad, which was also kinda exciting happened. Upon arrival in Casablanca airport, two Indian friends were set aside simply for being Indian. They were immediately sent to the police station, which was, surprisingly, filled with other Indians. Luckily, one of them spoke fluid French, and was able to sweet-talk both of their ways out of the station and onto Moroccan soil. There is no doubt that Morocco is an amazing country, we just happened to be riding alongside the wrong side of luck. On the second day, on a skiing adventure, one person almost completely tumbled down an eighty degree angled slope of a fairly gargantuan mountain. Surprisingly, she escaped with minor bruises and cuts, but still; as an intermediate skier otherwise, tumbling down a mountain isn't exactly a mundane occurrence. Furthermore, whilst eating lunch nearby the skiing location, a propane truck decided that it would like to back up into our nice cozy little bus, with all of our belongings still inside it.

This, however, led to a so-called "bonding session" amongst travelers which was great, but we sat in a random hotel lobby for four hours waiting for the insurance to clear all the issues related to the accident. As time went on we ran into other minor, and major problems. We ended up in a horrible blizzard, with close to no visibility. We had to turn around due to this one blizzard and spend the night in an extremely loud, and unsanitary hotel. And furthermore, when we arrived in Fez, to visit the Medina, it decided to rain and create a nice little irrigation system along the alleys that compose that transport system in the Medina itself. On the flight back home, our flight was delayed taking off and landing. As you can see, our trip suffered a bad trail of luck, but all in all, it turned out to conjure a trip of laughter packed, fun soaked adventures. Skiing amongst people who would rather use each other as brakes rather than their actual skiis was an interesting experience, and one that I will not soon forget.

The point I am trying to make, however, is that sometimes, even in the worst cases, when everything seems horrible and doesn't seem like it's going to improve anytime soon, it will. It's up to you what happens in your life, it's your decision to accept or reject the occurrences, and it's in your view that anything will be a good experience or bad experience. It is but a matter of perception. As the adage goes, or the gist of the adage, it depends on the perspective of a glass filled to its halfpoint with water. Is it half full or half empty? The trip to Morocco may have been half empty at certain times, but in total, I can say its overflowing. Look past the recent events, the future lies ahead, the past behind. Live in the present.

Taking things for granted...

There are many things in this world that we all take for granted. We never think about the fact that everything we have right now, in any single aspect of our life, can be taken away at any second, whenever, by whoever. We go to sleep every night, taking for granted the fact that we will wake up the next morning. We enter the bathroom to take a shower, taking for granted the chance of falling and breaking your head off the toilet seat. We take for granted the fact that we can afford to buy clothes, when in one day, all the money and possessions in your household could be withheld. We take ourselves fro granted, always limiting ourselves to that we have always done, never willing to strive for the further, take the risk, or the dive, as others say. The things we take for granted are not necessarily good or bad, but by remembering them once in a while, one can learn to appreciate everything that is around us. There are so many things in this world that we pass, but never actually focus on, so many things that we just slide by, without grabbing the opportunity. Taking chances is something you lack when you take things for granted. Life is only so short. Live it.