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The Mind of God

In response to Inc.'s "How to Rewire our Brain for Success"

Neuro Newsflash (turned Nhu's Flash, hah): The Mind of God

Counter intuitively, memory recall is not like a video playback, but really like video editing--or scientifically--the rewiring of our brain between neurons, changing the brain structure, or "connectivity." Imagine the old school telephone service where we first reach the operator who re-connects/directs the phone line to reach the desired contact.

So with every memory re-call, we're re-creating (or changing) and re-memorizing. Therefore, the "memory" is subject to change every time we remember it. Like when we call a person, our understanding of that person may change as the two may introduce new topics of discussion.

It's scientifically shown that we may intentionally revise traumatic memories, as we do with video editing, to disassociate the negative emotions that accompany them--which is a new therapeutic treatment being explored in PTSD clinical care. Like if we and our friend are discussing some he-said-she-said drama, introducing a fresh perspective from which to interpret the said offensive action may clarify a misunderstanding by over-riding the previous interpretation and resolve the hard feelings from that offense.

Therefore, we can see how our memories [and how we interpret them] have a profound influence on our attitude and behaviors, which proves the efficacy of rewiring our brain connectivity to lead better and more successful lives by editing our memories to strengthen the good ones and weaken the bad ones through methodologies briefly discussed in the article.

The research driving this understanding is also the reason why it has come to our attention to think about the integrity of eye-witnesses and their memory-re-call-based-testimonies. Think about the socio-economic spectrum and their complementary educational backgrounds that witnesses come from compared to the more focused intellectual backgrounds attorneys, especially good ones, come from--not to mention the dark side of having a high emotional quotient (http://theatln.tc/1lCMx9h).

Now this whole meditation and positivity (& MUSIC!) lifestyle makes sense, doesn't it? Reliable research has shown that meditation improves health outcomes (http://huff.to/1eu3fd8). And all this really reminds me of what my dad and I discussed a few nights ago about theological methodologies, which can be simply summarized in 4 steps:

1) To lead followers to Believe in posited end game and the power of prayer 2) To teach the followers to Learn the prescribed ideal lifestyle through scripture 3) To align follower's life/style with scripture by Doing what the Prophet does 4) To achieve said end game (heaven, salvation, destiny, etc) -- TO BE.

For those who follow my thoughts (http://bit.ly/1vZ9BH1), you know that I differentiate between "Belief" vs "Faith", and now, I also would like to share how I differentiate between "Religion" and "Spirituality".

Religion is Believing in someone else's experience towards Truth. Spirituality is having Faith in one's own experience towards Truth.

And I think I'll stop here for today... but welcome to a slimmer of my inner world.

99% of the time when I read, I don't bother writing anything down--usually I just think about it, more efficient and practical. This is the other 1% of the time.

Originally, I began to write about this article to help increase my number of neuronal connectivity on this subject to better understand and remember it to apply it--that's why I added the phone operator example.

As I continued to write, more things came to my mind, so I applied my knowledge of my meta-cognition, and am left in awe of how amazing our intelligently designed our Brains are and how it can so quickly and independently evolve.

I mean, I read an article that sparked by curiosity and my brain naturally associates it with selected articles of the many, many that I've read before, and naturally makes new connections (literally and metaphorically, ha!), synthesizing new perspectives and enriching my understanding of said topic. And here it goes again, back to what I learned in my high school English classes on how to read (http://bit.ly/1s6GMEJ) to write Thesis papers: Read, Analyze, Synthesize. And that there--the previous sentence--is allowing my stream of consciousness to flow--a literary style I learned reading The House on Mango Street in 9th grade with Mr. Stein--at which age (13), I had difficulty grasping the utility of such a style, but have come to increasingly appreciate over the years.

Our Brain and the space it creates to hold our ever evolving Mind is utterly amazing! Just incredible. Magical. And I believe that this is me being able to experience a slimmer of the mind of God.

25 x 25 to live by, as for twenty-six, come what may..

Tonight, it's just me letting my thoughts flow, a few days before the first anniversary of being twenty-five. Yes, I'm in denial. I'll admit that much. Twenty-Five has been a tough year for me. These past few years have been hard. Learning to live Authentically is challenging, but it's also been a blessing that is excruciatingly rewarding.

As 21st century homo sapiens, not too shortly after we're potty trained and can speak, we start our process of conformity that is pre-school, maybe even earlier than that, in daycare, where we start to "learn." Now let's think about that because for the next 12+ years of our lives, that's what we spend the majority of our time doing.

What exactly do we learn in all those 12+ years?

(I'm a product of the public school system and lucky enough to have been able to continue that public education streak through college, so that's the lens I speak from.)

Through my years in school, I've found that the most fulfilling lessons I've learned have always been outside of the classroom. Many of us probably feel the same way. I mean, come on, how much life can we learn being held captive inside blank adjacent walls? No wonder there's an increase in attention deficit; there's minimal mental stimulation. Maybe there are some who can really make use of monotonous lectures all day, everyday--I’m not of those lucky few.

For me, to learn, I need to feel. To feel, I need to see. To see, I need to live.

So with all that time our education system mandates for "learning," how much time was dedicated to "living"? In all those years of higher education, how much was dedicated to learning about yourself? The main character of this life--of YOUR LIFE? How prepared did those years of schooling actually helped you live your life with intent and be internally balanced--to be truly happy?

That's why these past few years have been quite a ride for me, but now I'm able to write my first iteration of the dissertation of my inner mechanism--my inner world, my own reality--and I am excited.

For the first time in my life, I am me--just me. I am living authentically. I am happy. I am Free.

Why'd it take me so long? That's kind of a no brainer. Expectations, ladies and gentlemen. Expectations from those who may have nothing but your best interest in mind--but without having to be you--from the media, from never having the opportunity to tune into who we truly are.. the list goes on.

One day, I was fed up and wanted to do me for a change.

To live authentically, I had to be vulnerable (Brene Brown, the power of vulnerability, google it) to myself, first and foremost. And I had to question myself down to my inner most core, face my deepest demons, and let the damn light in.

Let me tell you--it can get messy. It is scary. It is crazy. And it is amazing.

Today, I am me.

So Twenty-Six, you startle me because you nudge me that much closer to 30 than 20, but I have plans for you and I am ready.

Twenty-Six, Come What May.

With that, I'll leave you with my list of 25x25 that I try to live by, in no particular order:

READ. Be selective with what you expose your subconscious to; read only what will add value to your life--whatever you decide that to be. While reading, take the time to re-absorb those lines that beautifully capture the truths you're discovering for yourself. Apply what was read. The old adage holds true here too: quality over quantity. Better to read 1 book and truly know it than 10 books and forget about it.

DISCOVER YOUR OWN TRUTHS & BE YOUR TRUTHS. Make your own 10(+) Commandments! Why not? If you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything. This is your life, take control of it! Develop a strong moral compass and let it guide you.

BE KIND. Everyone's struggling, even the ones with money or seem to be happy. You're not going to like everyone you come across. You may not even like most (they probably won’t like you either), but live in a way that makes them respect you even if they hate you. Now that is power.

LISTEN TO YOUR GUT/INSTINCTS/INTUITION/SUBCONSCIOUS/VOICE IN YOUR HEAD. It's all the same and it's powerful. How is this done? Everyone's got their own way, but you can start by blocking out everyone else's BS. Maybe look into some meditation practices or mindful living tactics. Neither of which can ever hurt you.

LISTEN TO YOUR BODY aka PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES. Believe it or not, the stresses of life do manifest into physical symptoms and ailments. Listen to them. Take care of yourself. Prioritize yourself. No one else is going to do it. If you use and abuse it, so will others. Respect yourself and others will follow or leave. Let the quitters leave!

EAT RIGHT (DRINK WATER) & EXERCISE. Doing these things right can naturally increase your energy, protect you from depression, and keep you looking and feeling young, healthy, and full of life.

HAVE GOOD POSTURE/POWER STANCES. You don't want to look like the hunchback of Notre Dame, do you? Or be diagnosed with carpal tunnel before 30? Yeah.. it happens. You can prevent it. Plus, having good posture is classy and can increase your confidence! Amy Cuddy's TED Talk, google it.

STRIVE FOR EXCELLENCE. Work smarter. Manage productivity by being in tune with your body’s optimal energy cycles.

HAVE RESPECT FOR TIME. Time is the one resource that once lost, cannot be made back; be punctual. How you handle time reflects a lot about your character. And keep in mind the timing of our lives--“life” is seldom early, but never late.

HAVE FAITH IN A HIGHER POWER. I have faith in God, you may not, and that is OK. But have faith in some kind of higher power at play beyond yourself. It could be your boss or board or whatever--so long as you have faith in something bigger than you. Life itself is crazy, so if you don't have faith in a higher power, it'll drive you crazy. Some things are just not in your control, be OK with that--sorry, but you really don’t have a choice here.

BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. There's a difference between "to believe in" vs "to have faith in". To believe in something is to have confidence with expectations of a certain end game. To have faith is to have confidence without expectations or even knowing what that end game is. Believe in yourself so you're not existing aimlessly; have faith in things you cannot control so it does not control or paralyze you.

PRIORITIZE TIME IN SOLITUDE. How are your going to get to know yourself if you don't hang out with yourself? Don't be afraid of being alone; it won't be lonely.

LOVE DEEPLY LIKE YOU'VE NEVER BEEN HURT. Or else, you're selling your relationship short. Why would you rip yourself off? You'll get as much as you give, so give yourself fully. Maybe it won't work the first few times and it will hurt. I've been there. Allow yourself to process and heal before loving again and love fully when you do. Then choose to love every single day. Love is a choice, it is an action; it is not passive or indecisive.

FIND YOUR CREATIVE OUTLET & DO IT. Is it writing? Drawing? Painting? Cooking? Knitting? Singing? Dancing? Crafting? Scrapbooking? Photography? Whatever it is--find it & do it, unapologetically. Be Free--express your creativity. It's awesome because you are! It's also therapeutic.

STAY CONNECTED WITH LOVED ONES. We’re not meant to exist alone. Life is unpredictable; to live without regrets we must be present with intent.

HAVE YOUR GO-TO FEEL-GOOD TUNES. We can manipulate our physiology to feel better when we feel like crap. Goes back to power poses (Amy Cuddy TEDtalk). When you feel at rock bottom, rock out. It’ll help.

BE ONE WITH MOTHER NATURE. Keep her healthy because she keeps you alive.

SMILE & THE UNIVERSE WILL SMILE BACK. Radiate the abundance of Love that comes from within you! There’s always something to be thankful for, to be happy about, always.

STAY CURIOUS. Intrinsic curiosity will keep life lively. Be curious about life, about your lover, about everything. The guarantee here is that others will never have a dull moment with you! Seriously.

KNOW YOUR WORTH, RESPECT YOUR BOUNDARIES. To respect your boundaries, you need to start with some. What are your non-negotiables in all the hard situations in life? Have you thought about them? Better get to it, or be seduced by temptation. You have been warned.

BE ADAPTABLE. Darwin said it best, “It’s not the strongest, nor the most intelligent organisms that survive the test of time, it is the most adaptable.” Don’t want to lose or die? Then be prepared to adapt. Stay ready to be ready.

MAKE TIME. We will never have enough time, we make time for the people and activities we deem worthwhile. If you don’t make time for others, don’t expect them to make time for you. Simple. So if someone is “too busy” for you, they just don’t want you in their life--move on. They’re not worth your irreplaceable resources.

NOTHING WORTHWHILE COMES EASY. Be prepared to work for it. I mean, if it were easy, then we inherently don’t give it much value aka we take it for granted. Works the other way too, if something is “hard to get,” and we give up on it, then we don’t want it enough in the first place. When there’s a will, there is a way. Don’t make excuses and don’t take excuses.

PUT IT IN BLACK ON WHITE. Writing down your dreams, your beliefs, your anything will help make it concrete and become a reality. Write it down and post it up all around you to hold yourself accountable!

IT’S NEVER THE END, JUST ANOTHER BEGINNING. Be thankful for what was part of your life’s journey. It’s never the end so long as your soul is conscious.

IS Iraq Murders Women's Rights Activists.

In response to the NYTime's "Women's Rights Activists Executed by Islamic State in Iraq"

Heartbreaking. They deeply fear educated, professional Women because they know we can bring change from the inside out--whoever we are, wherever we are around the world in whatever situation. They reject a truly better future for their region when they kill educated, loving mothers/mothers-to-be who can think for themselves and raise children who will become less vulnerable to their extremism. They kill all those who aren't afraid to say No and challenge their status quo. That's why they're killing these strong women's rights activists. Or they traumatized the young girls so much that these girls are led to believe that there is no hope left for them. No God would call for that, ever. That's blasphemy of their own God by any definition.

And how can anyone who've been able to experience a life where women are more respected than where IS has terrorized and want to join their cause? I can't even imagine.

I mourn the loss of these everyday heroines who intently choose to speak up about equality and humanity knowing what kind of world is at their doors. The way they chose to live gives hope to women everywhere. As a woman, I won't fear IS because they killed women, I simply think them cowards for their acts. They need them some TuPac.

"And since we all came from a woman, got our name from a woman, and our game from a woman, I wonder why we take from our woman, why we rape our women, why do we hate our women? I think it's time to kill for our women, time to heal our women, be real to our women. And if we don't we'll have a race of babies that will hate the ladies, that make the babies. And since a man can't make one, he has no right to tell a woman when and where to create one. So will the real men get up. I know you're fed up ladies, but you gotta keep your head up."

photo courtesy of: dailymail.co.uk

#IS Iraq WomensRights

Daddy's Daily Dinner Discussion.

the show we were watching was discussing the potential loss of history if the situation in the middle east--our cradle of civilization--flattens out its rich landscape, which led dad to talk about Lebanon. as usual, he starts off by describing the country's geographical location, probably bc he questions my mastery of geography being american educated and all. then he zones in on his favorite Lebanese writer, Khalil Gibran. in my head, i was thinking "whoa, dad knows Khalil Gibran," and said, "yeah, i like him!" then dad said, "oh you know Khalil Gibran?" mom laughs. dad continues to school me on his favorite book by Gibran, The Prophet. he describes how beautifully it's written with such spiritual meat. much was said, too much to recall. just google "The Prophet quotes" and you'll see what i mean. then dad goes east to India and quotes Rabindranath Tagore, 1913 Nobel Laureate in Literature, about how "the highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence." and highlights that an education can be rendered useless if all one does is absorb it or collect it--like the mere act of eating food. it is only when you apply your education that it becomes powerful through creativity and innovation--as it is only when food is used/metabolized by the body that it becomes energy and manifests its nutritional value for the body. don't just collect stuff to regurgitate. do something with it. create. innovate. dad doesn't stop there. he moves on. this time to Jiddu Krishnamurti to drive his point home. to be educated doesn't mean having a collection of diplomas. no. "there is no need to education. it is not that you read a book, pass an examination, and finish with education. the whole of life, from the moment you are born to the moment you die, is a process of learning." education is cultivated by truly living. which led him to talk about religion.. a lot was said on religion. basically, trust no one, trust no doctrine, trust nothing unless you've experienced it, researched it, and have come to a conclusion for yourself. all doctrines, canons, or tenets have been written by men--fallible men. find your truths & be your truths. and with that dad ends tonight's discussion with his favorite lines from the bible. he asks me, "when external things enter your body, do they sully you?" me, "yes?" (thinking about toxins and stuff). dad repeats himself, "when external things enter your body, do they sully you?" understanding that him repeating himself means i'm off track, i stay quiet this time, ready to listen. dad continues, "nothing outside a man can make him 'unclean' by going into him. rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him 'unclean.'... Don't you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him 'unclean'? For it doesn't go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body... What comes out of man is what makes him 'unclean.' For from within, out of men's hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immortality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and make a man 'unclean.' " dad says in english: it's in the "New Statement." (how cute!), i respond in english, "Bo, i think it's the New Testament. Testament. not statement." dad looks at me and continues to brush his teeth. mom laughs.

mom says, "you're all philosophers in this home aren't you." me: "i'm in first grade in terms of philosophy. mom, what grade are you in?" mom: "none." and as i post my DDDD post on my FB, mom posts Bob Marley lyrics on hers..

"You say you love rain, but you use an umbrella to walk under it. You say you love sun, but you seek shelter when it is shining. You say you love wind, but when it comes you close your windows. So that's why I'm scared when you say you love me."

---- i translated dad's quoted quotes with the help of google as he read and said everything in Vietnamese. dad led the discussion--quoting all his favorite authors, including the bible--with only his brain. dad waits for no one. his philosophy: can't keep up? then catch up.... i'm trying?... i'm usually left dumbfounded by dad. that's why i write about it shortly after.. to crystallize dad's teachings.. because this is how my dad shows his love.. and in turn, this is how much i love dad. ‪#‎writetoeverremember‬

In response to The Economist's "Will the Internet Eat your Brain?"

Given our reality, it's wise to be aware of Greenfield's research & perspective. But she seems to approach these issues from a fear-driven perspective. That's where I disagree. We cannot fear the future technology brings. We must own it. It's true that the brain is highly adaptive. That's why we must cultivate a lifestyle that'll allow our brains' plasticity to work in our favor. Comes down to mental discipline; the stuff we don't do. It builds character. Shielding our youth from the digital world hurts them in the long run because they'd have less time honing their navigational skills through all the trash that's on the Internet to get to the treasures. Goes back to a classic tenet of educating: teaching kids how to think vs. telling kids what to think. The digital world exists between the two extremes of providing entertainment and education. We must foster a healthy and dynamic space to help our youth develop their virtue that lies between these two extremes so they can utilize the digital world as a source of empowerment. Each generation will have their challenges. It's inevitable like death and taxes. But these generational industry changes that bring said challenges are necessary to accommodate our ever growing world economies. If we stay stagnant, we become unsustainable. As Antigone would say, "Come what may." Then just handle it.

image courtesty of: national geographic

#internet brain theeconomist

I see, not with my eyes, but with my heart. I feel, not with my body, but with my energy. I listen, not with my ears, but with my soul. I act, not with my mind, but with our universe through Love. I Live with standards but without expectations so I may thrive gracefully, authentically, & without regrets. I Live & let Love.

nhuynguyen

#live #life #love #quotes #soul #energy #universe #poetry

a nhu series: Our American Dream

Ep. I

In the coming months, my family will be celebrating our 23rd year in America, the Land of Opportunity, and I will personally be ending my Quarter Century year--leaping into my early mid-life. That’ll be a bittersweet birthday. No lie. But before dancing to where those trade winds twirl me, I want to truly understand the vitality of our American Dream to preserve it, not only for us now, but more importantly, for our progeny in this land built by generations on generations on generations of immigrants--a fact often conveniently forgotten. Wouldn't you agree? In recent years there've been heavy conversations surrounding what boils down to the health and wellbeing of our American Dream--or rather: the lack thereof. And all the talk points to the sentiment (being optimistic here) that if we aren't deeply mindful of the situation and its implications across all social and economical aspects to live more intently, our "American Dream" may be no more; a reality we all ought to refuse, right? As a benefactor of the practicality of this ideology, it is within my individual responsibility to--at the very least--protect it so those after me may also enjoy it. It is the decent thing to do. It is something one with integrity ought to do--or so I was taught and too believe. I'm no economic scholar of sorts, so my investigation will be far, far from flawless. Forgive me. But I chose to share my journey anyway for a couple of reasons. First, I write to process & crystallize my understanding and share to keep myself accountable to my discovered truths by being my truths as written and updated in black & white. Second, I refuse to be unaware of the gravity of the problem of our generation. Yes, THE - problem - of - our - generation. No joke. So I'd like to invite you to go on your own investigative journey to seek the truths underlying the reality or practicality of our American Dream in order to lead a life that preserves it, as it is a defining element of our national identity--the one thing about America that is universally received positively and as such should ever remain. I'm starting my journey by defining what the "American Dream" means to me. When I think about the "American Dream," I think of the ability to live life without fear of prosecution, I think about the access to a world-class education, I think about stories of rags-to-middle-class-to-riches. When I think about the "American Dream" I think about being in the position to give back to our world. When I think about the American Dream, I think about how amazing it is to be able to live to find my truths and just be my truths. The buzzwords that come to my mind on the "American Dream" are: inequality, mobility, access to higher education, 1% vs 99%, progress.. Trying to understand the complicated interconnected building blocks of our American Dream will be like diving into a cave dense with cob webs, so I won't be going into great details into everything. But will try my best to think about what I feel is most important. Until next time..

originally written: 30 Aug. 2014

#americandream

Recklessness can only be resolved by mindfulness, not more recklessness.

written by nhuynguyen on 27 Aug. 2014

to all the pseudo artists:

real rappers rap true reality it's a rapper's main responsibility so STFU if all you is is social irresponsibility you lyrically compromised once you was commercialized would you ever preach to yo kids the shit you be singin'? Helllll No!! thought so. then why you keep shit singin'? truth is, you no better than a street wanksta dealin' it difference is, you be slangin' for the psychological meth biz so either step the fuck up or STFU and drop the mic for someone who will rap about our people's plight we need to build each other up not bring each other down by slammin' about just gettin' rich, callin' ladies bitches and all that kind of other shit that enslaves our collective subconsciousness hope you can see the light before the end of yo life because you straight sold your soul for paper and ice yours truly, nhu

originally written: 15 Aug. 2015

#hiphop #artists #music #poetry #thugpoetry #spokenwords

In response to the Business Insider's "13 Photos From the Protests In Ferguson, Missouri, You Won't Believe Happened in the US."

a glimpse of Martial Law.. The Department of Homeland Security has actually been preparing for this for quite some time now. This may be a pre-emptive flex to deter thoughts of strong social upheavals. Look into the munitions acquisition by the Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS) vs. the Dept. of Defense (DoD). Compare the quantity of ammo used at the height of the Wars in Iraq/Afghanistan and the quantity of ammo purchased by the DHS. Interesting--to say the least.

originally written: 14 Aug. 2014

#ferguson

ISIS & Kurdistan.

In response to NY Time's "The Iraq-ISIS Conflict in Maps, Photo, and Videos."

Very informative compilation by the NY Times. As a refugee myself, I take particular interest in the dynamics of the refugees displaced by the Syrian civil war who fled towards Iraq and headed straight to where they've been welcomed by Kurdistan, which has also been welcoming the displaced Iraqis fleeing from the ISIS aggression as of late. The humanity of the Kurds in embracing these namely Arab refugees (given their tense history) speaks volumes to the Kurds' character as a people. Evidently, through the actions of the hundreds of thousands of fleeing refugees trusting to find safe shelter in Kurdistan reflect the strength and stability of its region and ability for sovereignty. Any regional territory of a people without self-rule that serves as humanity's sanctuary during times of violent bedlam deserves its self-determination, free from oppression (even though that should be a right--not a privilege--for all peoples). Regional Arabs who think or believe otherwise should have the self-respect to not seek refuge in Kurdistan. That's not harsh, it's simply the truth. And of course the Kurds are going to be apprehensive about overly accepting young, hot blooded Arab refugees into Kurdistan. Don't play that innocent, pity me card, please. No one's naive. Arabs should respect the Kurds for doing what they've done for all the Arab refugees who were warmly received by Kurdistan. Maybe if the regional Arabs didn't oppress the Kurds and were able to respect & co-exist with an independent Kurdistan, more displaced Arab refugees could've been helped by the Kurds in this time of brutal mayhem. Karma comes full circle. I recognize & respect Kurdistan's leadership and humanity towards the fleeing Arab refugees because such love and kindness was not afforded to the Vietnamese refugees during our exodus post April 30, 1975 by sea. An unknown number of the near 600,000 Vietnamese men, women, & children who fled by boat were massacred, abducted, & sex trafficked by the thai fishermen turned pirates. As documented, the thai pirates not only robbed and savagely raped the Vietnamese, but also murdered them in the most barbaric ways, even more atrocious than that of the Nazis with the Holocaust and Pol Pot's killing fields. None of these monstrous murderers were ever brought to justice for their crimes against humanity. And what's worse is that the thai government not only did not prosecute these pirates, but also obstructed the rescue missions of the Vietnamese.

originally written: 14 Aug. 2014

#middleeast #kurdistan #isis #iraq #war

mental health mindfulness.

In response to the Daily Beast's "Genie, You're Free: Suicide is Not Liberation."

Mental Health holds a very special place in my heart. I still need time to process the loss of Robin Williams, but this article broadly illuminates how much we need to invest in improving our mindfulness surrounding depression and suicidal ideations. No one should feel that taking their own life is the only way or the best way or an accepted way to alleviate the mental load that is life which we all carry. Suicide is never the answer to anything. We must live to fight for better days, if not in this lifetime then for the next. If we choose otherwise, we still must face the same struggles we failed to face by giving up on life and not being the best we could be in this lifetime. Goes back to Nietzsche's idea of Eternal Recurrence.

originally written: 12 Aug. 2014

#mentalhealth #depression

expansion.

My all-time, absolute favorite sculpture: #Expansion by #PaigeBradley. A million eloquently crafted words won't even do her justice.

See not with our eyes but with our hearts to seek the truth she shares.

image courtesy of: google

daddy's daily dinner discussions: Middle East politics

Daily Dinner Discussion with Daddy: Bo (dad in vietnamese) decided to dissect middle east politics tonight. the main take-away was to let all the different religious groups, peoples, conflicting entities, etc have their sovereignty to facilitate regional peace. all of them. each and every one of them. the kurds, the sunni, the shia, especially all the women (yeah, dad thinks all the middle east women should rise & form their own country. why not?), etc... then "take out" the voluntary invasive aggressors.. we all need a chance to live to learn to love separately (independently) before we can live to love to learn together and co-exist. that's the macrocosm parallel to the microcosm of us needing to be our own persons--our own individuals--first before we are able to be in a healthy partnership or relationship. if we do not understand the self, how can we possibly understand the other? if we cannot forgive the self, how can we forgive the other? if we cannot change alone, how can we compromise as a team? and how does an individual or a people even evolve towards enlightenment being so deeply drowned in bloodshed for so many generations, so many centuries? we can't. no one can. we need room to slow down and actually breathe with the space to clearly think without having to constantly fight for our livelihood. and the exploitative division of the region by the western imperialistic powers has done nothing but try to divide and conquer other peoples for economic and geopolitical gains, not just in the middle east, but in as many developing parts of the world with viable natural resources as they can infect. it's the same thing with present day oligarchies or plutocracies on a singular national level and all its socially constructed institutions. that's why gandhi believed that to change the world, first look nowhere else but the self and michael jackson sang about it too in "man in the mirror." the middle east was the ancient cradle of civilization. much of the foundations of civilization as we know it today came from there and the fertile crescent. 600 years before Jesus Christ there was Cyrus the Great. remember him. remember the teachings of his cylinder. remember all peoples have greatness within them but manipulators manage to keep the opportunities just out of reach. that's why you must always be prepared to just create your own opportunities when you feel that the time is right in your own life struggles. no one is going to give you power, you take it. that is the dignified definition of "carpe diem." your generation seems to be very confused at the moment. "carpe diem" does not mean go and waste life by having too much irresponsible fun. there is no integrity in that. you are my daughter, you must live with integrity everyday. as we must stay vigilant of modern evolutions of divide and conquer, we must also take into account the modern evolutions of the primal fight or flight (or even freeze) response. nowadays, it's either (1) Fuck Everything And Run, or (2) Face Everything And Rise. the choice is yours. remember the way you do anything is the way you do everything. choose elegance over vulgarity; courage is grace under pressure. you're my daughter, you have no choice but to be graceful. make that your truth. be graceful. -- my dad is my masculine sage, my grit-building tough love, my eternal provider & protector; my mom my feminine sage, my gentle, soothing love, my eternal nurturer. explains a lot as to why i am who i am. being brought up by this team of dynamic duo, i can see how i got so good at entertaining myself lest to be tortured by the basics of the day-to-day. admittedly, sometimes i get a bit carried away and become a bit awkward. i'm working on that.. Bottom line: Spend as much time with mom & dad as possible! As we lament our aging, they may be accelerating at an even steeper rate. Our parents actually miss us a lot! We will always be their babies, their princes, their princesses!! No one will love you like they do.... maybe your siblings.. i see my little bro as my kid actually.

originally written: 08 Aug. 2014

With an internal coal-burning flame, the sweetness of solitude will be difficult to beat.

written by nhuynguyen on 08 Aug. 2014

It ought to be more along spectrums of constructiveness and less like dichotomies of schisms.

written by nhuynguyen on 07 Aug. 2014

daddy's daily dinner discussion: on reading

Daddy's dinner discussion tip of the night: Don't be a literary bulimic. Reading is like eating. When you eat, you must digest the food for it to be nutritious. When you read, you must also digest the content for it to be soulfully nutritious. Don't read to just regurgitate. Don't be a fake. There's a big difference between quoting and actually knowing. Insightful people know the difference.

originally written: 05 Aug. 2014

#reading #literary

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