LIFE (FEAT B.)

UNI: Part Time

I’ve officially enrolled into a Diploma of Theatre part-time :)

So as of Semester 2 2012, I will be doing full-time BArts/BLaws, Dip Theatre and holding two jobs. Wish me luck!!

LIFE: I did my washing today!!

Feel proud of me.

My pants resist dirt like post-apocalyptic survivors and death so it’s the only item of clothing I don’t need to wash in my weekly washing haha. Probably not significant to you but it means one of two things; 1) I legitimately have time to relax or 2) I’m procrastinating. In light of things, it is most definitely the latter. But seriously, you should be proud of me. 

Either way, in the last week, I’ve wanted to commit unlawful acts of homicide so many times. It’s mostly towards idiot drivers, but it’s mainly towards fellow students in the Macquarie University library. Apparently to the non-law students in the library with me, “Can I please ask you to stop talking in the silent area?” doesn’t resonate with the same effectiveness of failed diplomacy in slamming down your hands upon the table, standing up and releasing three hours of pent-up irritation in thirty seconds of elaborated ’please shut up’. Despite what you think, the Library probably isn’t the best place where you can sit on your boyfriend’s lap and whisper him sweet things. 

For the love of god, if you want to shag your boyfriend, at least do it in the bathroom!

xx.

B.

LIFE: Balance of Belief and Respect?

Coming from 13 years of Christian education, one thing I have learned to get by is respect and tolerance. In high school, there was one girl who made it readily apparent that she was an adamant atheist to the point of disrespect. I’ve always like Gandhi’s quotation, ‘I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians’, which adheres to all religions, not just Chrisianity. 

This morning, after obtaining my morning coffee, I made my way to the library, only to be stopped by an Evangelist Christian Fundamentalist. As I always have, I politely said, ‘Thank you for taking your time to talk to me, but I am Buddhist and I am not interested in converting at this current point of my life.” Usually that is accepted and this is one of those instances where my opinion didn’t really count.

Plainly put, the man was a little too pushy to the point where I was physically intimidated by his presence. He ended up trailing me to the Library, waving his Bible around and telling me that I’m ungrateful being Buddhist and I didn’t know anything about Christianity, which he was so obviously incorrect about. I told him I felt uncomfortable with his presence and to please stop harassing me but when he refused, I again started to walk away until he grabbed my arm. Because I’m not a douchebag, but I am from a legal education, I threatened him with assault and adamantly backed down but shouted at me that God was going to smite me for refusing his to use my God-given freewill to pursue Christianity. I just kept walking.

It put an awful tone on my morning.

I guess the issue I have is the point at which you start to disrespect a person’s belief. I’m a huge believer of understanding, tolerance and acceptance. I believe that the more faith you have in an idea, the less critical you need to be of the pitfall in others as your passion in your belief will allow you the confidence in discussion and learning about the other. It saddens me that this isn’t the case for a lot of people, but everyone practices their own virtue. 

Personally, I have dabbled in Christianity, and I do find much of it very educational with very good moral guidance, as with Islam and Judaism too. I understand that he is an Evangelist - one of their intentions is to convert others. Now, I am a faithful, although not fully practicing Buddhist. In my period of life, Buddhism has virtues that I love and cherish, but I don’t feel I have the ability to follow it to my heart’s fullest. My mother is content with that. She understands that Buddhism is such a restrictive discipline, that she’s happy for me to start practicing when it suits me. She respects me, and she respects the religion so much that she knows the appeal will eventually make its way to me. 

One of my close friends, Min, has recently come to Christian faith after long philosophical battles with himself about it. He came to faith after an educational chat with a friend who was also Christian. When I asked him why, he simply said he chose it because he turly believed in Christ. Fair enough. I thought it was admirable how he so openly discussed it with me. 

I’ve got another ‘acquaintance’ who was once a good friend, up till the point where Christianity got in the way though. Like an obsessive girlfriend, he name-dumped God into every conversation, with conversation eventually always coming as to why I didn’t want to take up Christianity. I figured after a year of tolerance, that my friendship with him was worth less than his concern about my relationship with God. I understand that he was worried about my eternal life’s salvation, but my mortal brain got very sick of it. In fact, I probably came to dislike God for a lengthy period of time because of his carrying on. 

Either way, I’ve finished my coffee and social commentary is probably annoying to some of you haha… Write me comments if you want! I’m always interested to hear what others have to say on this too…

xx.

B.