A Broken Spirit

“So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.” 

What i believe Chris meant by this selection was that every living person has some desire to adventure, to explore the unknown but are hindered by the fact that our lives are too sheltered. Growing up we are taught to follow the rules, always do this and that but not what we want to which will make us unhappy in the long run. It is human nature to want to explore and adventure into the outside world and do different things but as Chris stated we are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservation. Our future are already planned for us as a child and we are forced, no, tricked into following that path and not setting our own which gives us no real life experience and absolutely no happiness. We stay within a fine line that has been predetermined my the people around us and no one is brave enough to cross it.

Chris however broke away from that line away from his predetermined future and decided to create his own from that day on. He was no longer held back by his sheltered life and went out into the wilderness to let fate decide his future. He went day by day not knowing what would happen or where he would go next but he loved how he was living. He was unhappy with his life and was one of the few people that actually did something about it. he went anywhere he liked did anything he felt like doing which is one of the greatest adventures a man can live, being free.

My life has been conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism in just about anyway i can think of. I abide by all the rules set for me in my house in school and on the streets. i wear my school clothes and I.D. every day which all shows a life of conformity. My mom tries to do everything for me and  teach me everything that's good which is a life of security. Conservatism well just by doing the same thing every weekday is conservatism which is going to school, going to football practice, then doing chores which leaves the mind no time to thing of new things to do. If i ever met Chris, i believe he would most likely ask me "how could i live my life like this day by day" and the only thing i could say would be THIS IS WHAT I WAS TAUGHT.

POETRY

EVERYTHING WE DO

 We may not always realize that everything we do

Affects not only our lives but touches others too.

A single happy smile can always brighten up the day

For anyone who happens to be passing by your way.

And a little bit of thoughtfulness that shows someone you care

Creates a ray of sunshine for both of you to share.

Yes, every time you offer someone a helping hand,

Every time you show a friend you understand.

Every time you have a kind and gentle word to give,

You help someone to find beauty in this precious life we live.

For happiness brings happiness and loving ways bring love,

And giving is the treasure that contentment is made of.

To me, the meaning of this poem is that just the smallest sign of compassion, caring, or thoughtfulness could make someones life better or just brighten up their day. Chris would probably like this because he is always the one person who is happy and rubs it off on other people even if he doesn't know it. He's always bright and brightens up everyone's mood that's around him.

THE PEACE of WILD THINGS

 When despair for the world grows in me

and I wake in the night at the least sound

in fear of what my life and my children's lives may be,

I go and lie down where the wood drake

rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.

I come into the peace of wild things 

who do not tax their lives with forethought

of grief. I come into the presence of still water.

And I feel above me the day-blind stars

waiting with their light. For a time

I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.

The meaning of this poem is that nature by itself can ease any worries or grief that is brought on by the world and its troubles. Chris's whole purpose of escaping into the wild was to get away from the worries of everyday life. He felt that the wilderness would set him at ease and he would have a more peaceful life. 

One Mistake Too Many

On march 27, 2007 i began my six month trip into the wild and had no cares in the world. This was the most exciting time of my entire life and being alone for the first time was a great accomplishment for me. 16 hours had not even passed before i started to encounter minor problems that would ultimately lead to the biggest mistake of my life. First i had to sit in between a fighting couple, then when i got off the plane all the locals looked at me as if i did not belong there, as if i were a threat but i did not worry about these things and just went on my way. Before heading into the forest though i recall stopping at a food stand and buying a bundle of bananas from this old man who was a big help to me. I asked him the simplest question ever "what should i look out for when i'm in the forest alone" and he replied "malaria is your biggest worry" and proceeded to hand me a needle labeled "Malaria Vaccine" without asking for any payment at all. After i said my thanks and gathered my bananas i was on my way into the Amazon alone.

Skipping three months forward into my trip to when i was familiar with the land and living only off of what i gathered that day for food there is one little mistake that changed my life forever. Because i  became very lonely in this lush, green, peaceful, and dangerous environment and no other humans were around to keep  me company i became good friends with a howler monkey who was very timid of me at first but began to warm up to me after a month. Every day i climbed a tree i slept next to and had a conversation with him as if he were human. This was a normal conversation for us, "How are you today BoBo? Are you hungry? Lets go find some bananas shall we." and he always replied with"who" which now that i think about it was pretty weird. One day when i woke up i found that my camp had been ransacked, but by who, you guessed it, BoBo, but he wasn't alone, he had three little monkeys with him who apparently had an interest in my fishing pole and brought it high up into the trees. Before i knew it they had wasted all the line and snapped it in half with no worries about what i needed it for.

Since fish are the only thing i thought you could hunt that didn't hunt you back the fishing pole was my lifeline and without it i would have to improvise my fishing methods. When i was younger my uncle taught me how to fish just by using my shoe laces and i quickly put it to use. For days i was successful at catching the most delicious, flavorful, and exotic fished i had ever tasted but this was only the beginning. I had forgotten that there are always bigger fish in a river, bigger than me and i realized this too late. While i was fishing a fish (a big one apparently) had grabbed my make shift line with my finger knotted in it and in a quick second beyond all disbelief, my finger was gone. Because of my medical experience and quick thinking i was able to close and sterilize my wound when i got back to camp but i was not deterred from my prior goal, to survive six months alone in the Amazon Rain Forest.

Ever since that day i have learned to not put my self at such extreme risk as to lose a finger. lucky enough now that i think about it i was luck the fish did not drag me under. A fish got away with my finger that day but i will never forget that i was able to keep my life and come home after the six months to see my family waiting with terror and happiness on their faces. I kept my life only to almost have it screamed away by my mom though for missing a finger.

Innocent or Guilty

A young couple named Audrey and Pipin were a pair of the best free divers on this earth once upon a time. A terrible incident occurred on one widely publicized occasion which started many rumors and doubts. Pipin's life, love, motivation; Audrey had drown. Many rumors say that Pipin killed Audrey, that he did so because he did not want her to beat his record. Well I believe different and a lot of evidence support my belief.

First off Pipin worship the water god most of his life and when Audrey came into his life it seemed as if she was more important to him. After her death he was so traumatized that he abandoned his relics and threw them into the ocean which showed he really loved her. Also Pipin tried to push her to break his record which showed that he was,supporting her and was not against her beating his record. I do believe he killed her but completely by accident because I think that he may have not completely closed the valve that releases the air the bring a diver back to the surface. Even after all of this some people may still believe it was murder but you know my decision it was accidental all the way.