Search for Beauty 2017

Lord of the Rings is one my favorite novels ever written. It is J. R. Tolkiens works that I have an immense fondness for. There are many allegorical connotations that derive from biblical accounts. The story of Christ for one as the "returning king" represented by Aarogron son of Arathorn. The one that would become king. It is truly an inspiring novel that speaks to the heart. My heart was moved by the strong friendships that journeys in life takes upon people (particularly Samwise and Frodo). The elemental plots that made the story even greater involved the characterizations of antagonist characters such as Gollum. Gollum was quintessential in the LOTR universe, for without him, the world would have plunged into darkness. The beauty in this ideology is that we need antagonist characters because they develop our own characters. They force us to grow when we do not want to. Often times opposition is what forces one to grow because it becomes the realization of the necessity to...

Boot camp... I hated it. Simply put it was probably one of the most trying trials in my entire life. It was difficult being away from family because I have never left home for that long period of time. The first 3 weeks were the most difficult. The army designs its training to strip away one's civilian identity from anything recognizable. They train soldiers, not entitled civilians. The difficulty was not the physical aspect of army training, but it was with the mental portion of it. If your mentality was not placed in the right mindset, you would fail at everything. Also emotional contentions were high. Emotional stability was just as important. To survive Basic Training, follow orders, and don't talk back. Accept one's fate whilst in the army. Granted, the army cannot take all aspects of your civilian side away, but the important part in training was not to lose oneself.

Nancy is a girl I'm seeing. She's difficult to handle at times, but underneath she has a genuine heart. The difficulty lies in the fact that she has had a trying life, but ultimately, what amazes me is the fact that she is able to persevere admits difficulties. She has resiliency. More than what Ive ever come across. The beauty in that is that no matter what happens, she is able to persevere. She is stronger than she lets on, but she still believes that she is not. She is intriguing in that she is not the type to let people trample on her. She is strong, but strong can be a defense mechanism. Granted, no one's perfect, but she's trying. The beauty lies in the fact that she is trying not to prove to people who she is, but that she is doing it for herself. Nothing else will stand in her way of success. Her resiliency inspires me, and my training that I've received from the military. She is my form of reinforcement.

I was in an escape room today. It was thrilling because there was no distinct answer to be given. Granted, we were given the option of 3 hints, but still it was difficult. The difficulty was in grouping together. The group consisted of young adults that all believed that their theories were right. It was difficult because it was a conditions based games. The riddles were confusing because they followed an anagram and numbering system that was difficult to crack. Although it was difficult we solved the riddle in the end. The concept was based on the "con-artist" who stole an original piece from the Lourve Museum in Paris. The goal was to figure out where he hid the piece. The clues themselves were difficult because they only utilized a system in which required minds to think, but also cooperate. Cooperation was the most difficult part because there were too many people thinking aloud at once, which makes concentration so difficult. But we put aside our differences and theories...

The beauty of the beautiful is that it is not confined in just one particular field. There are many fields in which beauty can be characterized as. In particular, beauty in personalities. The personality of each individual evolves through time or characterized in ways that it matures. The beauty in personalities is that it is not confined to one thing. It is a numerous conditions in which personalities drive intentions.

How do you find beauty in the mundane? The mundane is dull and not interesting at all. The difficulty lies in not the lack of beauty, but the absence of wanting beauty. The beauty in the mundane is that it is not trying. That is beauty because its not making an effort to be beautiful. It is authentic in its own right. It is not the attempt of seeking beauty because it does conform to the standard of which it makes something beautiful. Aesthetically, it is beauty in its own right.

Aristotle believed that art is imitation, and that it is a good thing. It pertains to humanity in ways that connects humanity. Imitation to Aristotle is relational in that humans learn from such as children. Even artistic values such as tragedies (mimesis) help to fosters an emotional connection to humankind. For Aristotle, a good tragedy produces Kartharis. Which is essentially, purification through pity and fear. The notion of imitation as a good thing, falls relatively short in that imitation is the reproduction or copy of something else. Whether it is a good copy or not, it derives from non original conditions.

Plato disliked the idea that art was real, rather it was imitation. It is imitation because it does not represent the reality we're in. This was because Plato, ultimately believed that the world was represented in shapes and forms. This idea referred back to Plato's Allegory of the Cave. The philosopher essentially is the one freed from the confines of the cave, and is able to free themselves from the cave thusly, seeing the bigger picture. Art serves as imitation to things that are reality. Imitation falls under copying, and Plato dislikes that notion. I disagree. Art is not imitation, it's initiation. It initiates in the form of starting something that had no beginning. Initiation drives creativity, and establishes context.

According to Van Der Leeuw, music stands closest to religion. This is because it closely relates to Catholic ideologies concerning Mass and Requiem. This ideology incorporates a form of worship. The ideology of tonal music is that it is insufficient. Music does not just seek the higher, rather it is its preconditions. The opposite of music resides in the form of silence. Silence can be argued that it perpetuates power in of itself. It grows in that silence destroys the notion of sound. It is is just as powerful as sounds because it perpetuates that absence of sound. It is therefore, powerful in its own right.

According to Van Der Leeuw, word is not just instant inspiration. It takes practice, reflection, and conscious consideration. Word comes not when it is needed to be expected, but when it is unexpected. The powers of the word derive from the primitiveness of man, but also drives home the ability to do more. A poet is the mouthpiece of inspiration. Granted, not all great things can be spoken with instant success. It does take time to think out. I agree with Van Der Leeuw in that instant success is not given all the time, rather, like most things in the world, earned. To yearn for something is to seek after it. But this is what instills passion and the desire to want that which can be attained through time. Beauty in this sense, is the ability to accept and adhere to inspiration when it strikes, not just the constant need to attain it.

On November 29th, my life basically changed. I had the privilege on seeing the infamous Mayhem, all the way from Norway, in concert in a tiny personal venue known as Shaka's at the VB oceanfront. They were supported by Black Anvil and Immolation. Let's get into it. First up were the guys from Black Anvil from New York. They were... interesting, to say the least. Their sound was a mixture of black metal with rock and roll. I'm still not sure how I feel about it. They started off with some cool, evil-sounding guitar riffs but they quickly went into clean singing and basic rock and roll beats. I'm not trying to disrespect rock and roll; I like rock quite a bit. But they, in my not so humble opinion, did not blend the two styles well. Next up was Immolation. These guys have been pumping out quality death metal albums since the early nineties, and they are fan favorites. They came onto the tiny stage, started playing, and immediately the stage started to shake due to t...

12/15 Mandalas are some of my favorite pieces of art and I have one tattooed on my shoulder. It is a symbol of your journey through life, how you start from the very beginning, small and simple, and as you grow, you have different phases and experiences and life is constantly changing. It ends up being a big beautiful masterpiece. It is also a symbol of peace. When you look at it, you almost get lost in all the beautiful chaos and it calms you. It is artwork of Hindu and Buddhist religions. Van der leeuw talks about art being representational and awe-inspiring. Mandalas do just this. They represent life and religion. They cause people to be in awe of their beauty. Life is a mess but once you step back and look at the whole thing, it is a gorgeous piece of art. That is the message the mandala is trying to send.

12/15 This is a snippet from the poem, "Story Telling" by Edgar Guest. New stories every night they ask. And that is not an easy task; I have to be so many things, The frog that croaks, the lark that sings, The cunning fox, the frightened hen; But just last night they stumped me, when They wanted me to twist and squirm And imitate an angle worm. The poem is about children wanting to hear bedtime stories. Although this part in the poem is about bedtime stories, it could be about reading a poem and this part just made me think of van der leeuws part where he talks about the poet. He says that they carry power with words they read and must portray these words. The parent in the story has to portray all these different animals to his child. He is creating "a living image." I liked this poem because it is almost a poem within a poem. To the child, the dad is moving her with these stories. The dad is the poet.

12/15 The first snow is always so magical. They talk about the calm before the storm but I don't think there's anything more calm than the way it feels outside when it's about it snow or starts to snow. Everyone goes home and bundles up. It has that power to make almost everyone stop their crazy lives and just relax with their friends and families. Each snowflake is unique and beautiful in its own way. The snowflakes move and dance as they fall from the sky. "Movement reaches out and overpowers all things, until the stars, the clouds, and the flowers join the dance and become a roundelay which includes the entire world." Van der leeuw says this about dancing and movement which perfectly signifies the movement of snow. The movement of the spiritual world extends to our environment and causes it to move and dance also. The snow is just a dance and floating rhythm. I think this is why it is so calming and has the power to bring about peace to people.

12/15 I went and saw my friends one act she had to put on for her senior year thesis. The play was about these 2 mayflies that had come home from a party, trying to hook up with each other. While they are watching animal planet on tv, they accidentally learn that mayflies only live for a day. They begin to panic and wonder how they are going to spend the rest of the time they have left. Although the play is lighthearted and funny, it makes you think about your own life and what you are going to do with your time here on earth. Drama is a very important composition of art. Van der leeuw talks about drama being a representation of the cycle of life: birth, death, and everything in between. This play shows the struggle of coping with death and how we always have it at the back of our minds. In the play, they attempt to distract themselves by talking or watching more tv. This made me think about how Buber says we avoid silence because when we are silent we start to think and ...

12/14 Bassnectar is a dj that produces bass music. A lot of his songs are melodic and transport you to another place. It feels like you are no longer in your body and it can be seen almost as a spiritual experience. Everyone has one artist or song that does this to them and Bassnectar does this for me. I truly believe that it is art in the most pure form. Music has been there from the beginning of time and it vital to life and happiness. Van Der Leeuw talks about rhythm being the most important part of music and how the drum is the original instrument and how it holds power and meaning from war, love, dance, and sacrifice. Bassnectar's music is bass which stems from the drums. His songs have powerful meanings behind them, especially his song "Empathy," where one line in the song says, "To a higher zone, you are not alone." It just shows that there are unexplainable things out there like a higher deity and we do not have to fear that we are alone in this wor...

Last night I went outside and laid on the roof of the parking garage waiting to see "shooting stars." It was midnight and my roommate and her study buddy started layering up in warm clothes and asked me if I wanted to go out and watch a meteor shower with them. I was tired, but I didn't want to miss the show. As soon as I got outside, I knew I was going to be too cold. I didn't bother to layer up, but it was worth it. I got to see two shooting stars clearly. They were gorgeous. When the one big meteor shot across the sky, it felt like the whole world stopped for a moment. Everything was peaceful for that one moment.

For me, driving is one of my favorite things to do. I find peace, relaxation and almost a sort of therapy that comes with it. Some don't like to drive and that is okay for me, for it allows me to do it even more ;). Being as obsessed with music as I am, I attribute a lot of my love for driving because of my speakers. There is something truly amazing about plugging your phone in, jamming out (max volume always) to a variety of music as you drive. As the scenery changes, so does the music and a lot of times for me this is when I get a chance to truly think and self-reflect about anything and everything that is going on in my mind.  Driving allows me to escape my worries in life, freeing me of my problems for the time I am driving and hopefully, I arrive to my destination safely. Driving is not loved by everyone but, I am surely a proponent of its beauty. 

The world has so much natural beauty. In the fall, the earth changes not just in color but also in weather and movement. I remember at the beginning of the semester when we watched a movie clip where the man found so much beauty in piece of trash at the mercy of the wind. It danced so freely and it had so much beauty. Recently, I have felt the same awe for the leaves dancing as the man felt for the bag dancing. Beauty that people see is often that which stands out as something aesthetically pleasing or something magnificent. But often, the beauty that is unseen can be the most calming. Watching the leaves move is something so simple, yet also so magnificent because it is done independent of human action.

One of my favorite songs is called The Ends of The Earth  who is by Michigan based band, Lord Huron. The song begins with  a rustled guitar strum and a pile of flyaway harmonies; a minute in, the song pivots, exploding into a towering vocal line that'd catch even the most passionate  Fleet Foxes fan wondering if they missed a demo. The chiming hollow body guitar tone, the backing percussions; to me this is a song of adventure and love.  I believe the song in its entirety is about being young and in love, excited about exploring the world and wanting desperately to do it with that person. You ask them if they would follow you to the ends of the earth, but deep down you know the answer will be no. They are stuck living in the "life [they] were given", not ready to face the unknown and embark on this adventurous journey with you, leaving you to try it alone.  Heartbreaking and truly inspirational at the same time, this song for me shows that there are...