It is believed by some that there is Kismet or Karma at the core of every event. Some things are just meant to be and one is supposed to accept the consequences as simply fate.
Of course there is always the 'comfort' of believing that what will be, will be and that one has little choice in the matter. It's like believing that we have no real power to choose our fate - a rather fatalistic and 'off hand' approach to living in my opinion.
Granted 'living on the crossroads' is a matter of commenting on life and the idiocy of options that life offers at times, however, it is never a signal of surrender to accept things as they come.
Two incidents, I think, cement the idea that we are all masters of our destiny and can readily defy labels that others (or circumstance) choose to impose on us.
The first is the news from Harare that a Zimbabwean man had won the coveted 'Mr. Ugly' title in a weekend pageant. The man had upstaged 15 other hopefuls (six of whom later dropped out on account of 'cold feet') contesting for the crown in what the Herald newspaper of Zimbabwe cited as “tightly contested.”
What was refreshing in my mind was that the man, Austin Mbewe, 30, was quoted in the papers that he felt “honoured by this victory. I have been a subject of ridicule from society since childhood and the world has seen that there is a beautiful side to my ugliness.”
The pageant had the blessings of the National Arts Council and the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority and the judges were women.
Here was definitely a man who would not stop to show the world the true nature of his beauty... even when the world around him believed that he had none to show.
The second story sprouted from a Newsweek feature in January that labeled the small city of Grand Rapids, Michigan, as No. 10 of America's 'dying' cities.
This time the whole city was in on the response through an epic single-shot video posting on youtube that ran for almost 10 minutes. The one-take video (see below) featured more than 3,000 people and included marching bands, parades, weddings, motorcades, and synchronised pyrotechnics that set bridges on fire. It culminated with a helicopter takeoff (and a message) that told the world (and particularly Newsweek) that this 'dying' city was very much alive.
The video was set to a live recording of Don McLean's "American Pie."
So powerful was the city's statement that Newsweek tried to distance itself from the insult, by posting a message on its Facebook page:
“To the Grand Rapids crowd:
“First off, we LOVE your YouTube LipDub. We're big fans, and are inspired by your love of the city you call home.
“But so you know what was up with the list you're responding to, we want you to know it was done by a website called mainstreet.com--not by Newsweek (it was unfortunately picked up on the Newsweek web site as part of a content sharing deal)--and it uses a methodology that our current editorial team doesn't endorse and wouldn't have employed. It certainly doesn't reflect our view of Grand Rapids.”
You gotta love it!
Taking the bull by the horns and putting things right is what its really all about – I guess we shouldn't feel compelled to take things as they come if we can't agree. It is matter of truth that WE can define our karma... and that karma (as we think it) has nothing to do with it.
But then you'd always have detractors claiming that it was all karma after all!
Of course there is always the 'comfort' of believing that what will be, will be and that one has little choice in the matter. It's like believing that we have no real power to choose our fate - a rather fatalistic and 'off hand' approach to living in my opinion.
Granted 'living on the crossroads' is a matter of commenting on life and the idiocy of options that life offers at times, however, it is never a signal of surrender to accept things as they come.
Two incidents, I think, cement the idea that we are all masters of our destiny and can readily defy labels that others (or circumstance) choose to impose on us.
The first is the news from Harare that a Zimbabwean man had won the coveted 'Mr. Ugly' title in a weekend pageant. The man had upstaged 15 other hopefuls (six of whom later dropped out on account of 'cold feet') contesting for the crown in what the Herald newspaper of Zimbabwe cited as “tightly contested.”
 |
| Not so Ugly really: Mr Ugly Austin Mbewe (centre) poses for a photo with Second Runner-up Chitova Chezhira (left) and First Runner-Up Kudakwashe Chiramba. Image from Bulawayo24 site. |
The pageant had the blessings of the National Arts Council and the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority and the judges were women.
Here was definitely a man who would not stop to show the world the true nature of his beauty... even when the world around him believed that he had none to show.
The second story sprouted from a Newsweek feature in January that labeled the small city of Grand Rapids, Michigan, as No. 10 of America's 'dying' cities.
This time the whole city was in on the response through an epic single-shot video posting on youtube that ran for almost 10 minutes. The one-take video (see below) featured more than 3,000 people and included marching bands, parades, weddings, motorcades, and synchronised pyrotechnics that set bridges on fire. It culminated with a helicopter takeoff (and a message) that told the world (and particularly Newsweek) that this 'dying' city was very much alive.
The video was set to a live recording of Don McLean's "American Pie."
So powerful was the city's statement that Newsweek tried to distance itself from the insult, by posting a message on its Facebook page:
“To the Grand Rapids crowd:
“First off, we LOVE your YouTube LipDub. We're big fans, and are inspired by your love of the city you call home.
“But so you know what was up with the list you're responding to, we want you to know it was done by a website called mainstreet.com--not by Newsweek (it was unfortunately picked up on the Newsweek web site as part of a content sharing deal)--and it uses a methodology that our current editorial team doesn't endorse and wouldn't have employed. It certainly doesn't reflect our view of Grand Rapids.”
You gotta love it!
Taking the bull by the horns and putting things right is what its really all about – I guess we shouldn't feel compelled to take things as they come if we can't agree. It is matter of truth that WE can define our karma... and that karma (as we think it) has nothing to do with it.
But then you'd always have detractors claiming that it was all karma after all!
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