Any Given Sunday

I’m not gonna lie, I’m feeling disappointed tonight. Born in Chicago, raised in a city that only knows Chicago for sports… today was a big game for our football division. I’ve seen six championships in basketball, celebrated a World Series pendant… but I really wanted this Vince Lombardi. In January of 1986, the Chicago Bears won the world championship in a domination of the league that I can’t remember. These Bears were a splitting imagine of those 85 ones. Everything seemed like it was going good, like this year was going to be the one. I’ve been holding off on this blog because if I released it earlier, it may have come off as spitting on Patriots. For the readers that aren’t into sports, look past the bright lights and see the underlying message. From the game of football, there are many lessons to be learned.

For Sean Payton, as much as I believe the Buccaneers will always be the best in the NFC South, you’ve given the gift of Faith to those Saints’ fans. For Reggie Bush, as much as that taunting is unnecessary, you are everything that hype said you would be. For Brian Urlacher, as much as you’re disappointed at this moment, this city commends your strength and devotion to this team… you’ll get your day. For Peyton Manning, as much as I’ve been upset with you, real players show up on Sunday.

In retrospect, we were outplayed today. It’s not something we did specifically wrong, we were beaten… we didn’t beat ourselves. Yeah sure, those turnovers I’d like to have back, but the Colts had just as many. If you want to blame it on Rex, sure you can, but maybe it was the Bob Sanders that picked that one out of the air… or Kelvin Hayden, who dreamt about it last night, and gets his time to shine. If you want to blame it on the rain, remember that they played on the same field.

Adversity is defined by the trials we go through and result at the end of the game. When its clutch, the real players (and fans, for that matter) show up. Sometimes I find myself asking if I have the strength to see my dreams through. Not many people know this, and I still am a bit hesitant to say it, but I was named after Carl Lewis… the four time gold medalist in the 1984 Olympics. A champion in his own right… I feel the pressure to perform every time my name is called. I find myself asking “Can I run this race?”

***

On the flipside of this season is another lesson. Tom Brady is a champion, that’s a fact, but against the Colts—he threw a pick to end his team’s season. Earlier in the year, the Bears beat the Cardinals on a Monday night finale that rewrote the history books… tonight; the Bears fell in a deficit they could not overcome. You can’t always pull it out in the end; I’ve learned this the hard way… (And no, not by watching football)

At the end of it all, there are always two things about football I love. One, real players show up when their number is called. Two, pulling it out at the end is a last resort (“Hail Mary’s” have the lowest percentage of completion in any coach’s playbook.)

Moment of Clarity

This isn’t an introduction from me; it’s not needed because I am who I am. Although, I believe an apology is in order. I’m sorry for not speaking what was in my head so that others my hear it. I apologize for that possible bit of knowledge that may have helped you and wasn’t there when you searched here because you may have thought I would’ve provided it; I will not try, but I will do better next time. I appreciate those that have read what I have written thus far and hope I will gain more audience as the time line is written.

Since my last post I have been searching, simply searching for the answers I may not be ready to handle. During rehabilitation, alcoholics experience a phenomenon referred to as a “moment of clarity.” A moment in which they see the picture in it’s entirely. The truth, and the grand scheme of all things. It is usually the realization of something that affects all aspects of their life, it usually causes them to change their ways and straighten their wavy path. They gain a sense of clarity and thank those that have given them so much. Some credit this to family, others to their friends, and some to God.

From the last posts, a series of events have happened. Those of which, the outcome [which is most important] is displayed here. Some say it is only the journey that matters, but I’d argue it is the journey of life that matters. How is this different? I solemnly believe life can be seen as one whole journey with one end, but also can be seen as many series of events with many conclusions to journeys and an ultimate end. Since the last time we met, I've reached the end of a series. A semester was completed, a year had ended, a birthday had passed, along with countless other things and what have I learned?

Every now and again, one must look from the outside of one’s self to see the whole picture.

Riding through life behind the steering wheel, one can only concentrate on what is in front. Seeing the world from a different perspective can result in a clearer understanding of surroundings. There are pilots and there are passengers, the world is different depending on view from one’s seat.

Now what if you were neither of those; perhaps a third party, the observer, so to speak. What is the view like then? I believe there is much benefit from this perspective. I am allowed to see myself, the people around me, and my environment and from that choose what I believe is the best path or way to proceed. If you agree, then the ultimate question is… how does one generate this view?

What are the questions that needed to be asked? What is the cognitive thought-process that needs to happen? How do we synthetically generate a moment in which we are able to see the truth and how it fits with the whole picture? Is it possible to make a moment of clarity? And if so, how?

Sometimes the answer isn’t where you’d expect it to be, it may not even been where you hoped it would be… sometimes you’ve known the answer all along, but it took something from outside to point it out to you.

Your Will Against...

It is in our general nature as creatures under one sun to be contentions. All animals, Homo sapiens and other, are inclined to conflict one another. For a numbers of years, this has regulated life on this planet. From class to class, race to race, battles (and even wars) have been fought for a number of different issues. The war between Human and insect has played out in many homes across the world. Alpha males have been victims of cannibalism, although primitive, but because of their status. These battles are often two sided, but what is for certain is there is always a test of will.

During the 20^th century, the race for the tallest building in the world was resolved in 1974 with the completion of the Sears Tower. [The next building to take the crown (with a bit of controversy) was Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur in 1998; 2004 saw the rise of the current title holder Taipei 101 in Taiwan]. In its simplest form, this is a battle to see who can build the tallest mound. Better yet, who is willing to test their limits? In retrospect, this is merely a human scuffle. On the business side of Architecture, the architect continually battles the contractor in a more intimate engagement. Their difficulty with one another is over the needs and wants of the owner. Human skirmishes can be seen all over; candidates crawling for votes, women crossing blades over a single man, and children throwing hand grenades over religion. You’ve heard it said before, winning isn’t everything. Was that saying always taken (or denied) without thought, ever stop to think about what that meant?

As I said at the beginning of this post, it is in our nature to conflict with one another. The wins and losses can be measured by who or what had the more will. Maybe before we throw our first punch, we should put armour on. Maybe before we shield ourselves, we should open our minds.

Plans Change

There’s got to be a way to do this… a way where I’m not posting every 3 weeks, but never mind that. Let’s just get right to it.

I've never claimed to know everything; in fact, I believe this blog is a breathing example of me wanting to know more—about everything. Personally, I don’t believe one should ever settle. I don’t believe it’s ever possible to be completely content in all areas of life—from matters of the heart to aspects of an occupation. I mean really, how can someone be completely content with everything? [There may be a contradiction in the next few lines, and I’m warning you now.] Following the same train of thought, I believe never to close all doors. It is a good thing to strive for what you believe is best, there are also times where what you think is the best isn’t at all what it should be. Remember, you could be wrong.

I see myself being asked, “How can you put so much faith when you’re not entirely sure if you’re correct?” You know what, I think someone did ask me this… if my memory serves me well. I don’t remember what my exact response was, [something like “you have to believe in something” rings a bell] but it was along the lines of “… if there is no belief in any thing, then there is no reason to strive for anything.” I suppose that answer is probably a truism, and probably one of those things people never know how to respond to.

Either way, “keeping an open mind” is what I’m trying to say. It’s difficult to be completely set on a single idea and not hear other possibilities. The same as it is in Architecture, what we once believed is absolute may end up being the worst possibility. Put effort and time in the things that you believe, live in honesty, love fully and faithfully… and always keep an open mind. [Someone’s supposed to ask “how is it possible to love fully and faithfully when keeping an open mind to other options,” but trust me, there’s a way] The only thing that is set in stone is the past. Our individual histories make us who we are, if everyone believes that then we’d be better off. Some people never want to take responsibility for their lives, it’s always someone else’s fault… although that may be true, time and weathering has made you who you are.

Never settle, never shut all doors, because sometimes…

Do Good

It’s been a while since I've written and I apologize for that, I've been staying pretty busy. I put down couple of concepts for movies and kicked off a few things. The start of school is just around the corner and I see that train coming when I close my eyes, the only thing I can do is knuckle up and prepare. So, consider this the calm before the storm, a little ode to education.

I read a quote today… well I read quotes everyday, but I’d like to share this one. “The eyes of the future are looking back at us and they are praying for us to see beyond our own time.” [Terry Tempest Williams] Take a moment to digest that… I should repeat it for good measure, but that’s not necessary. I kinda handicapped myself, because the point of a quote is to state your claim in one shot and not have to say anything else. But I vow never to be speechless so…

In whatever you choose to do in life, think about the future of this world. I was having a discussion with one of my friends… about something materialistic, commenting of the value of a product and the company it represents—it was about clothing, anti-sweatshops and buying genuine. And my other friend, not the one I was directly speaking to, says “Carl, you complain too much.” I’m aware of this, I know… but it’s because I see so much room for improvement, so much potential never actualized. It’s really quite depressing when I think about it, so maybe my defense mechanism is to complain. I ended up responding with “The world isn’t perfect.” And he quickly said “exactly!” I looked at him and said “how can you expect to change anything when you don’t know what’s wrong?” My choice of words may have been a bit off, perhaps “wrong” was not the right word to use. But that’s what I said and there was no conversation after that. And I chose not to follow through.

That choice… well let’s just say it’s lost potential. I wanted to look at him, like I was burning a hole past the innocently guilty, and beg for him to believe he can change the world. I’d never ask anyone to be on a mission alone, and this “change the world” is no exception.

At the Chicago Architecture Foundation, my 9-to-5, we took the internship high school students to the Apple Computer store on Michigan Ave [they intern at Architecture Firms, some pretty big names too]. They gave us a great lecture of business and design, how to integrate both. It was good for the students, to finally realize when a client approaches them with a design problem and how they convert that into Architecture. The presenter left us with a commercial and I’d like to share it with all of you. [Thanks for the great network of www.youtube.com for this one]



I’d like to highlight that last bit… “Because the people, who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.” Many wishfully look to the heavens and say “Save Me” [to the tune of Cartel’s song of the same name], but instead of waiting to be saved why can’t you be a saviour to the future, and the rest of this world.