lotteworld: a lesson on perspective

Today I went with a couple of friends to Lotteworld (imagine Korea's Disney World) and I had a blast. It's funny because I went to Lotteworld often as a kid and I always loved it. It just seemed so... BIG. There was a ride called the "Viking" which was a big wooden ship that sailed through the air back and forth in the sky. Another called "Gyro Drop" which slowly lifted you into the heavens before dropping you hundreds of feet to the ground.

I rode those rides again today and it's funny how things seem so different. Everything was not quite as large as I remembered. It kind of reminded me about the importance of perspective in life.

When I was in high school SATs were huge to me. I felt like my score on the SAT would dictate the success of the rest of my life. And I studied for and worried about that score in a way that reflected this perception. Now I look back at that time and chuckle; it's funny how a number I barely recollect now could have meant so much to me then. Unfortunately, there is a version of this story that I can tell for almost every period in my life; some how there always seems to be something of utmost importance that will dictate the rest of my life: college admissions, finals, on-campus recruiting... the list goes on.

As this new school year begins, I plan on taking some time to remember what is really important to me and reestablish some perspective on life. I encourage you to do the same.

sad day for the world.

I just learned that Randy Pausch the "Last Lecture" professor who I wrote about in my blog last December passed away today.

Pausch inspired me in many ways. Not only was his story and his lecture remarkable, but I was touched by the reaction of a good friend of mine. After reading about Pausch on my blog, she approached me and felt that it was really important for us to write him to offer our prayers and also share about Jesus.

So, we wrote him a letter together and also sent him a bible. I'm not sure what ever came of that, but I'll definitely be keeping his family in my prayers.

If you haven't seen his "Last Lecture" it's definitely worthwhile. Sometimes we all need some perspective in our lives.

perspective

I want to introduce you to a man named Brett Leake.

He's hilarious. He's been on Jay Leno. He was also born with muscular dystrophy and has spent 43 years of his life confined to a wheelchair.

Yesterday I saw Brett do an hour of stand up (sit down, rather) comedy and it was really funny but also really inspiring. His philosophy is that life is full of problems but you've got to be able to find the humor in every problem. As he spoke about his life, he really put things in perspective: life is a miracle, life can be difficult, but life is SO precious. It's amazing to see someone who's lived such a difficult life, love life so much more than those more fortunate.

So next time you get caught off on the highway or have a rough day at work... take a moment to consider how lucky you are to be living.