Moving On: To Remember, and to Let Go

Back in March 2009, The Walkabout, né Peter's Walkabout came into being. It was inspired by the ABC TV Show LOST, in a season 4 episode.

Over the years, I have changed URLs, tweaked the blog's look and even gone into necessary hiatus whenever necessary.
The blog ideals, purpose and intent have however remained unchanged.

That said, I came to realize that writing invariably remains etched in my mind and whenever I stop writing, I still keep coming back for more, even when I think I've had enough of it. I guess it has a lot to do with what my long time goals are, as far as writing is concerned.
I remember reading the Alcoholics Anonymous Big Book some years ago, and in the Safe Haven personal story, that A.A. found that the process of discovering who he really was began with knowing who he didn't want to be. I just cannot imagine how I'd end up if I stopped writing.

That brings me to what today's post is really about. A close friend recently asked me why I haven't cut all links with them even after I quit Facebook, Twitter and online chat. In my reply, I explained that the future is always predicated on the past. In fact, I felt that I sounded like Christian Shephard in the LOST finale, when he explained to his son Jack why the Losties once again found each other long after their deaths.



Christian said,

The most important part of your life was the time you spent with these people. That’s why all of you are here. Nobody does it alone Jack. You needed all of them and they needed you…To remember, and, let go.

Looking at my life, I dare not lose sight of the fact that it has taken many others to shape me into something good. It takes other people for us to learn, to improve, to progress. And all that is every bit worth remembering.

So where does letting go come in?
You see, moving on is only possible when you embrace the new and relinquish the old. It doesn't always involve breaking ties or burning bridges. Letting go simply involves acknowledging that the old has passed and the new has come to take its place.

Interestingly, letting go is very rarely possible to those who have in any way given up. For the hopeless, Dionne Farris's Hopeless is a very deep song that addresses the need to let go.
She sings,

Goodbye morning, sorry it had to end / Goodbye morning, you just won't do me right / I stayed just a little too long / Now it's time for me to move on

Goodbye yesterday, I just can't stay around / Goodbye yesterday, I can't take you with me / You see I stayed just a little too long / No, no, no I can't ...

Therefore, beginning this Easter weekend, take time to remember all that has gone into making you what you are today. Decide what needs to accompany you as you move on into progress. And more important, take note of what you need to let go of, and do the needful.

The Walkabout Continues :-)

Howdy good people!

Well, it's been quite a while since I last wrote anything online. You see, a few days before April 01, 2011, I decided to re-purpose my entire ComplitCommunications.com web site. This called for much needed time to read, research, train and rejuvenate in readiness for a major comeback in creative writing and communication design.

To this end, I stopped posting on The Walkabout, Complit Design, Green Initiatives in Kenya and the Connect eMagazine blogs. Furthermore, I gracefully exited Facebook, Twitter and online chat. It was no longer necessary to recklessly share my stuff online.

That done, I suddenly realized just how awesome it was to finally have my life back, with minimal distractions and lots of time to read, plan my writing, communication design projects and other pertinent life issues. I started feeling like Blake Richman.

It was while voraciously reading that I came across Laurie's blog. This adventurous writer has in nearly all the posts I read, given me the nudge I needed to get back to writing. It finally dawned on me that I need to continuously write. I do have a lot to share, and it's only by writing that I can best add value both in my life and those of others.

This then, is my initial 'comeback' effort. The other aforementioned Complit blogs and the larger Complit Communications web site will be rolled out at the appointed time in July 2011.
In the meantime, I continue to write as I learn and share on this walkabout - a journey of insight, inspiration and self discovery. Posting will be more frequent than before, very concise, timely and highly relevant. I'll also regularly keep you posted on the books that I am currently writing and the online magazine that my team and I  will launch soon.

Finally, I am further persuaded to continue writing every time I look at Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. This is one book I very strongly recommend to anyone who wants needs to write. In this book, King tells his life story and has some priceless advice for any writer worth his salt.

So to all you out there who love a good read online, it just got better. Stand by for some cool posts, hopefully every day and some interaction on your blog(s) as well.
Cheers!

Much more than the Sum of its Parts

"The whole is more than the sum of its parts."

- Aristotle [Metaphysica]

We know that if we each do a little more, we all do a lot more. This holds true for any joint effort such as brainstorming, crowd-sourcing, team sports, academic discussions... and more.

It however gets a little bit interesting when we consider stereotypes. In this skewed way of looking at things, we focus on one [usually negative or wanting] attribute, and base our entire outlook and judgments on it.

In Kenya, people of a particular ethnic extraction may be perceived as proud, lazy, promiscuous, unromantic or greedy, among other undesirable traits. We still go ahead and inspired by prejudice, dislike individuals for belonging to ethnic communities which are generally believed to have the aforementioned traits.

The recently solemnized wedding of 36 year old Peter Mbugua and 75 year old Wambui Otieno Mbugua at St Andrews Church in Nairobi has been widely discussed on radio and across the Internet. People have voiced their divergent opinions, many of them typically based on stereotypes and popular opinion.

My attention was however drawn to this post by one member [Kusadikika] on the Wazua forum. He/she writes:

Have you ever eaten a delicious meal of say Pilau after which you are left smacking your lips thinking "tamu sana"? Would it make sense if someone later asked you what is it you found delicious; was it the salt, was it the spice, was it the rice, was it the garlic or tomatoes or the oil. Could you still have loved it had it been served frozen rather than hot? Does it therefore mean that what you liked was the heat in the food and not the meal itself?

People are many things. They are tall, short, old, young, rich, poor, with ugly feet, beautiful hands, long hair, good teeth, talkative, quiet, kind, funny, talented etc. All attributes we possess and circumstances we stand in are part and parcel of who we are. Take out one and the whole is changed. You would be a different person if you were younger or older, a different gender, taller or shorter, less intelligent or more intelligent. You would be a different person if you were more or less educated and yes you would be a different person if you were richer or poorer.

Mbugua and Wambui love each other and have been together for 8 years. They met and fell in love in the circumstances that they found themselves in. Love is a beautiful thing. Let us not scandalise it by dissecting it.

I find the above very sober and well-thought. I agreement with Vin on the same forum, I dare not add anything else. It's all and well said.

Let us acknowledge our diversity, but still be graceful enough to find unity sans myopic, stereotypical prejudices. May we appreciate every individual's worthwhile input to the bigger picture.

Have a productive week!