Tag Archives: self-deception

Crest

funny wisdom on words that begin with a C

Crest: (n) the highest part of a hill or mountain range; summit.

Somewhere between self-deception and self-motivation lies reality.

Of course, we’re no good when we’re lying about our well-being, pretending we’re something we’re not. We can become very obnoxious, making proclamations that slip away nearly as quickly as they’re spoken.

I think the problem may dwell in one area:

Life is not a mountain—it is a staircase.

If life were a mountain, we would continue to look above us and realize how much more we must accomplish, and honestly, become despaired with the task.

Here is why I believe life is a staircase:

About every ten steps of climbing, there’s a landing.

Take a minute. Catch your breath. Look where you’ve come from. Don’t wait until you get to the top.

I will decide where the crest is.

Every single day, I will determine the quality of my endeavor and the victory in my effort.

Mountain climbing is not only dangerous but offers very few plateaus for celebration.

I (and probably you, too) am human. We need many victories to motivate our continued climb. Without this, we can grow very weary in our well-doing, losing our grip on the rock above our heads, and fall to our failure, dashing our hopes on the rocks beneath.

Life is not a mountain. It is a staircase.

Unfortunately, it is not an escalator. That would be nice, wouldn’t it?

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Corrupt

Corrupt: (adj) lacking integrity; crooked

Corruption thrives because there are too many people looking for it instead of admitting it.

That’s the truth.

As long as I spend my life believing that what is corrupt would never exist in me or being unwilling to consider the possibility, I will become somebody else’s corruption.

Corrupt is what we should be looking for in ourselves so that when we find it, we can correct it before it corrupts us further, and makes it obvious to those around us that we are corruptible.funny wisdom on words that begin with a C

But somehow or another, there is no sin or evil that looks quite as bad when I am sporting it. I can only truly see what is corrupt when you are wearing it.

Therefore, self-deception keeps us all living in a world of perpetual corruption—because altering someone else’s foul behavior is nearly impossible.

What would it take for us to understand that finding what is corrupt inside us will stop us from being labeled as evil?

Do I really think that I will convince the people around me that I’m incapable of corruption? Certainly not.

They’re looking for it in me.

They’re waiting for me to sprout the horns of the devil.

They aren’t horrible—they just want to be sure they aren’t the horrible ones, and the best way to keep yourself from being tagged as wicked is to hunt down witches and point the finger in a direction far from where you are.

When my name is mentioned in front of many people in this world, smiles come to their faces, and maybe even some tears of appreciation. But as God is my witness, I will tell you that to others on this planet, I was corrupt.

I will spend the rest of my life making sure that as often as possible, this is in the past tense and not a clear and present danger.


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Chump

Chump: (n) a foolish or easily deceived person.

Self deception eliminates the possibility of blaming anyone else–and the best ways to be self-deceived are to be arrogant and defensive. I have done both.

I didn’t need to, but I was so afraid that I would be left out of the complexion of the new face of an idea that I got really fussy, picky and
 ultimately intolerably pushy.

I became a chump.

Truthfully, there is no way to avoid becoming a chump unless you acknowledge the parts of yourself that initiate such a transformation. If your Dr. Jekyll does not recognize the stirrings of your Mr. Hyde, you will certainly find yourself apologizing for the actions of your lower self.

I find there are three things that always bring out the worst in me:

  1. Jealousy
  2. Fear of losing my virility
  3. And failing to sit down and realize what I have before I demand more.

I become a chump.

Unfortunately, there are people across this country who know me only as a chump because I’ve never had the chance to change my image, in front of them … to champ.Donate Button

Biscuit

Biscuit: (n) a small, typically round cake of bread leavened with yeast

There is a certain comfort in self-deception.Dictionary B

Even though lying to oneself seems to be an egregious error, at certain moments in the journey, it can be as comforting as a swallow of chipped ice on a hot day.

For years and years, I insisted that I did not like biscuits. Matter of fact, I was even guilty of planting the notion that bread was distasteful to my “buds.”

But anyone who followed me around or who was acquainted with my eating habits, would find that I was either the biggest, fattest liar who ever lived, or the weakest, dumbest avoider of temptation.

Especially if someone brought biscuits to the table accompanied by sausage gravy, I would “break down” and have one–which soon was edited, in my mind, to be “one plateful.”

Biscuits are good when they’re hot, very similar to coffee…and women.

When they sit too long, they congeal or get hardened (once again, paralleling the afore-mentioned).

  • I know they are high in calories.
  • I know they’re filled with carbs.

But when they arrive at the table hot, it is very difficult to resist them (once again, quite apropos to coffee and women).

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Bane

Bane: (n) a cause of great distress or annoyance.Dictionary B

I am human.

I have a heart which is basically a series of scattered emotions, which do not necessarily steer me in the right direction.

I believe I have a soul, even though I am certainly not truly spiritual.

I have a mind, which too often is cluttered with memories and training rather than expansive and elastic for new ideas.

And I have a strength–a body–which in my case is burdened with poundage.

Knowing the bane of my existence in all four of these areas allows me to maintain both humility and a passion for intelligent self-improvement.

So the bane of my efforts in my heart is thinking that because I feel it, it must be real. Actually, if I feel it, it’s important to find out why I feel it and why it is possibly not real.

The bane of my soul is that I am asked to believe spiritual things which are irrelevant to my actual journey, while discovering how powerful I truly can be.

The bane of my brain is that it’s insane. It is trapped in repetition and must be taken out of that cycle in order to make progress straightly.

And the next thing I eat needs to have the good taste of flavor and the good sense of nutrition or the bane of my strength will be weakness.

If we do not recognize the bane, we begin to deceive ourselves that the way we are will satisfy our needs.

Without being challenged, our arms become too short and our legs lay limp.

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Allegro

Words from Dic(tionary)

dictionary with letter A

Allegro: 1. (n) the name of a passage or movement of music in a fast tempo 2. (adj.) at a brisk tempo

I used to believe with all my heart, soul, mind and strength that appearing to be smart, intellectual, well-versed and verbal was essential in order to maintain the integrity of the self-deception of my general superiority. I did stupid stuff:

  • I lied about my qualifications.
  • I embellished on my abilities.
  • I touted my sexual prowess.
  • And I exaggerated the depth of my understanding.

I was afraid that the package of human ability provided for me was insufficient to my personal indebtedness.

One day I just woke up and got sick of being a fool. I stopped wearing the jester’s hat and dancing for the kings. I realized that the greatest gift I could give myself was to stop faking it.

The greatest gift I could give to God was to find a way to get along with human beings.

And the greatest way to get along with other human beings was to simplify what I shared with them.

You see, when I read the word “allegro,” I think of all the pretentious musicians I have ever met, who think they are extraordinarily sophisticated by expressing musical notations in Latin or Italian, which, when translated, still mean “fast, slow, loud and soft.” You see, the Italians were not trying to be “poofy”–it was just their language.

If you find yourself searching for a word to express a simple idea so that you can impress those around you, then you are probably suffering from a severe case of viral “jerkitis.” Especially if you need to say the words with a foreign accent or a bit of flourish in your pronunciation.

So when I’m discussing music in a recording studio and find myself surrounded by the “hierarchy” of the craft, I don’t use the word “allegro.” I merely say, “This is faster.”

Yes, often they correct me, using the proper term for such a maneuver.

But I just smile, knowing in my soul that the art of simplicity is the true definition of intelligence.