The other day as I was working in my workshop I left the doors open, which is usually closed because I don't really like strangers strolling in and dealing with them. But I was cleaning up, and the place needed to be aired anyway - some fresh air never hurt nobody.
So there was this man that I knew who sent his kids upstairs for karate classes, I said 'Hi!', not really remembering what his name was, although we had been introduced before. Its quite a normal thing, I found out, that people don't really remember a name, but they almost always recognize a face, and for that brief encounter, you will act as if you were the best of friends, and the moment you're gone, the both of you will be wondering what each other's names were.
We talked briefly about what I was doing there, and then he commented that there is no originality amongst local furniture makers. I wholly agreed. I also added that it was because they had no passion for what they do, and he added that because they were out to make a fast buck whatever means they could.
Passion isn't something that they teach in school, its something that radiates, which is probably why its not what everyone has. In a country where businesses are run by well dressed pot bellied men stinking of aftershave, as if an attempt to mask the stink of cigarette breath, the only passion that they seem to have is the quickest way to exploit the system for their own gain. Get a large enough number of these people holding key roles in growing sectors of the economy, and you'll be progressing at a slower than expected rate.
What I noticed, but always knew was that there is a counter-effect on every decision we make, its a yin yang thing. We can't seriously expect to get away with making a bad decision without facing the consequences be it now, or later. But of course to many, what doesn't concern them now, probably shouldn't be a concern later. While that statement itself is fallacious, it can be attributed to the skewed interpretation of living it day by day. Its important to be happy and to live for the moment, but that doesn't mean you should leave a trail of destruction while you're doing it.
