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Chin
05-01-09, 1:03 am
Struggle... everyone of us deals with it... it is a constant factor in our lives... this will be my journey through my struggles... a place to collect and express my thoughts more so than in my journey where they seem slightly out of place...

So welcome, sit back and strap yourselves in... the road is a long rough one... full of pain and anguish... What more could you ask for?

Chin

Chin
05-01-09, 1:42 am
The driving rain... sheets and sheets of it, cold and wet... The wind an unmovable force that pushes hard onto anything that stands in its way... There is a storm brewing... Most of the normal human population would hide out... out wait the wrath of the storm...

Seeking shelter... it is a natural response... but then there are others... Who enjoy the presence of the storm... it is electric... the unevenness of the environment makes the road less travel...

This is when real work gets done... Step outside of your comfort zone for just a second... and in that moment of unevenness... step up... because that's where the greatest gains will be found....

Chin

Chin
05-03-09, 9:19 pm
Home is where the heart is... This is a fairly popular saying now a days... Because I live in a university setting... Home changes for most of my friends and I in this area, we spend the time split between where our friends and school are... and where our family is...

The choice between the two can seem simple... but like in many situations in life the choice is not as black and white as it may seem. There are many deciding factors in which may pull you in different directions...

But what you must understand is that home is more than a physical location where you must reside at night... It runs deeper than that... its where you feel the need to be, a location where you have relationships with people that you want to be with... and where work needs to get done....

So home is where the heart is... but like in life home requires a balance, a balance between heart, mind and necessity...

Chin

Chin
05-11-09, 3:16 am
There comes a time in everyone's life that time stands still... Time slows down and everything... This is the moment...

As we all go through on this rock hurtling through space, time is in perpetual motion. It never ends... it always goes on... never waiting or resting for anyone or anything...

There are times however where the moments can jump out at you... The simple kiss or holding of a loved one... The simple completion of school... a half a decade battle... The hiring of a new job... all these occasions invoke emotion that will be remembered in the moment, these are all moments of passion and joy.

But for all of us out there that lift like its our life... we are faced with a more bleek moment.. This moment is black and white... is the moment of affliction which plagues all lifters... The moment in which you will decide whether the weight will go up.

There is a time in the lift where you are reaching for your mark and where doubt and distraction will cross your mind... hopefully these thoughts never see the light of day... because in that split second when everything aligns... Look for the moment and seize it because before you know it the weight will defy gravity and all logic because it will move where you want it to go, it will bend with your will...

You can take a moment, moments can define you, they can delight you and a single moment can change your life...

So look for those moments... they may be hard to find or obscured... but if you can squeeze every last moment out of life... you will be complete...

Chin

Themostocles
05-11-09, 4:09 am
Poetic even

Chin
05-31-09, 8:18 pm
It's been pretty stormy out here the last few days... rain and darkness, but there is always one thing that remains constant that is a precursor to the storm...

Wind, it pushes the storm from its origin to its destination... it drives down rain, bending trees, pushing on people. Most people would avoid the wrath of the wind all together... forget about walking head first into the head wind... Most people would probably see this as a struggle and never attempt in the first place because it is the path of most resistance...

But what most people fail to see is the wind is trying to tell them something... this entity can direct you in your endevours...

There is a wind within all of us that pushes up in whatever direction that may be... Some days it may just be a passing breeze or a raging storm... But you need to listen to it, it will tell you whether to walk with the gusts or throw yourself headlong into a hurricane...

Don't be afraid, open up your ears and listen for it... find your second wind to go the second round... find the wind to go from one point to the other...

What else do you require? I know all I need is my hands, my will and this wind to fill my lungs, everyday...

Chin

Chin
06-08-09, 1:06 am
I got up the other day... Around the same time I get up everyday... hit up my supps and went for my usual run... everyday... while I cut...

It all boils down to routine... and dedication... but sometimes you have to wonder what is on the horizon... have you reached a milestone? or have you hit a plateau?

This is on my mind everyday when I step into the gym... I push and push to break my goals outlined for myself... failure is not an option... in sense I succeed everyday of my life... but everyone once in a while... something happens outside of the walls of my gym that make me want to push harder... live in the moment longer...

The sweet tender love of a girl... her face and thoughts on my mind all the time...

My family... congratulating me on the completion of university... a hard struggle that has taken me the last 5 of my life to complete...

Long ago... one day... a child was born... to this day he tries to find a way through obscurity and darkness... still learning and forever changing... 23 years later he still battles... everyday... no plateau today...

but a few milestones reached... all in all... Just another day in my journey...

Chin

Firedrake
06-08-09, 7:24 pm
And it's a day to be celebrated - all the trials and triumphs, tribulations and tests that you have survived, lead to the development of a man. This is A Good Thing.

Congratulations on the graduation, the birthday, and the love of a good lady!

Congratulations on the dedication and consistency to meet those goals.

Congratulations on being something better than "normal", "average" or "plain."

Chin
06-22-09, 2:05 am
In society now a days... there seems to be a need for tangible things... Money, goods... things that people can see and that worth a value...

This is just the kind of society we live in, where things are just based on appearance and all answers can be solved with a quick fix from a tangible object... Where people are transparent and everyone knows everything...

Anyone that has made any progress in the game of body building or just a body transformation has probably come across the questions of "what are you on?" "Is the stuff you use good?" To me this is just society reaching out... trying to link my intangible attributes to my tangible appearance...

But it is in these intangibles do they fail to see my inner workings that makes me whom I am...

My determination and hard work have been proven day in and day out... unquestionable if there is work to be done regardless of its form I will do it... I enjoy being there.... I long to be in there to do work...

My will has allowed me to endure so much... it allows me to go through life meeting challenges head on... never surrendering and never backing down...

My relationships... with friends and family alike... because I only surround myself with people who will help me and allow me to grow as an individual... I have been blessed to have the support of them all... and I would lay down alot to give back to them all...

So the next time someone ask you what do... or have that separates you from everyone else... tell them...

The Intangibles...

Chin

Themostocles
06-22-09, 2:11 am
Great write up!

Chin
07-28-09, 2:56 am
I was watching House the other day... and in the episode... One of the Doctors had to tell a patient she was dying... upon her inquiry as to when she was going to die... the doctor was unsure... the uncertainty of the inevitable shook her to the core...

I know this was fictional but all through life there are nothing but uncertainties... What will I do with my life?, who will I become tomorrow?, Who will I fall in love with?, How much money will I make? ...

On the flip side there are not many things in this world that are certain... My dad says the only things that are certain in this life... are death and taxes... and I would have to agree... You really aren't given much... you are your own maker...

I believe that there is another term associated very closely with uncertainty... it is called doubt. The unknown is some scary shit... people find comfort in routine, venturing into the unknown can shrink the strength of some of the biggest men... it is natural to fear the unknown...

There is a certain level of uncertainty present in all of us... it is in that split second of doubt... it speaks to a man's character if he can banish those thoughts and push himself up...

I found myself casting thoughts of doubt while getting wrecked by my first set of squats on a 5x5... Sometimes... you just have to bite down and will the weight to move... having the determination and desire to do what you know you can do should be enough to get through what you have to... it is not... sometimes you have to dig deep, deeper than you ever thought possible...

You have to look past your doubts and fears, past the uncertainties... make that sacrifice and seize what was yours from the start... and then maybe you will find certainty...

Chin

Chin
08-12-09, 10:03 pm
Commitment... one of the most fundamental traits or attributes required to not only succeed in the world of bodybuilding or powerlifting but in life in general...

It takes ridiculous amounts of commitment to persevere through all the hardships and all the sacrifices one must make to succeed... Lack of sleep, dieting, time invested in the gym, loss of friendship, pushing ones away to better one's self...

You can tell who are the committed ones... the ones that when the chips are down they will still throw down their hand and go all in... have the balls to lay that hand down... don't stop half way through a task and give up... don't reside at the bottom of the mountain looking up... commit yourself to being the best you can...

Everyday is a struggle and I am committed to being the best possible me... committed to being the best... day in day out...

Chin

Chin
09-22-09, 1:38 am
Memories... some are important, there are memories of joy, memories of sorrow... memories that have already been forgotten...

There are memories of family and friends, those that are around us and those that aren't anymore... memories of people that surround us... some that are closer.. more so now than ever... and those that have been passed over...

No memory can be too small, somethings like a simple kiss... time talking... a hug... can stop space and time forever... as amazing as memories are, they can be just as bad... leaving you yearning to live the good life forever...

The pursuit of the memories is a never ending battle... everyone wants to live the good life... but sometimes you don't have a choice...

Sometimes you need to relive those memories to know who you are and what you want to do... but at the same time sometimes to move on, you need to let those memories go, even if they are the good ones...

Sometimes you need to dream out loud to make memories...

Chin

Chin
10-21-09, 1:39 am
Last Monday was Thanksgiving in Canada... and unlike most Holidays I find... this one isn't shrouded in commercialism and media...

It is one of the last holidays to have a solid rooted history from which we can and should reflect on...

And that's just what I did... I reflected on why I should give thanks...

First and foremost I thanked my family...

My Mom and my Dad... for giving me a chance to join this earth... for giving me the ability to distinguish between right and wrong... for always being there for me... supporting and nurturing me... but most importantly showing me and giving me the basic understanding of how to do work... and nothing comes easy in this life...

To my brothers and sister... for always driving me to be better, through competition or love... for always being there to understand everything I have gone through and probably everything I will be through...

To my friends... those I have known from day one to the present... it's been a long and complicated journey but most of you have traveled along side through the best and the worst times... always making the time go by faster and more colourful with the events, talks and laughs...

To all the ones I have cared and loved... those still with and not with me anymore... though our relationships have passed, I will still always keep the good memories... holding on for the moment every time I reminisce... showing me how much I can love and the way to become a better person...

To the people who have crossed or challenged me... mentally, physically, it doesn't matter... the outcome is the same... you have given me the strength and the ability to strengthen my resolve... giving me the ability to push more and go harder than I ever thought possible... respect or not... I have learned from you it is not easy to earn, but when it is... it is well deserved...

To all the people who follow my journey... I may never meet you or even hear your voice... but believe that there are strength in numbers and that people are going through similar situations somewhere out there on this rock hurtling through space...

I have to give thanks for the clarity to see that... anything out there is something you have to work for... nothing is giving to you... and it can all be taken away in a heart beat... there are very few things we are guarantied in life... death and taxes are probably the only ones... so make the most of your time... do work... and when you're done... give thanks that you could work in the first place...

Chin

Firedrake
10-21-09, 8:54 pm
I may be American, but I give thanks that there's a young man out there who knows and can articulate his blessings.

Chin
06-12-10, 2:56 am
How many times can one man test his fate before it comes back and bites him? How many times can you stare destiny blankly in the face and fight back?

Some people believe that they are on a straight and narrow path, with only one route and one outcome. I can't believe this is true, because of choice, or more importantly because of change.

We are all here for different reasons, however we all interact with each other, like two paths crossing an intersection. But sometimes complancey takes over, we don't seek those same interactions we used to find, we settle, and get lullied into a sense of tranquility, a daze of nothingness. And even though our paths maybe on the same course

I have come to understand that the only thing that constant is change, and that sometimes interactions with people can't be changed, we can't control the ones we love, the boss we may have or the people who hurt you. When you get right down to it, there are very few things you can control.

But, you can control your own fate, your own destiny, by changing what goes on in the present day. The choices and decisions made today can have an impact that will last a life time. Like the choice I made to go to school, or the one in which I chose a life of lifting and solitude. The determination, strength and will that has allowed me to gain so much, will give me one more chance to make change, spitting in the face of my conformity, changing how I go through this world.

So at the end of it all, I'm going to tempt fate one more time, for this is all I know how to do...

Chin