A story | 984
My Author Journey, Sunday, July 9, 2017
# 984 (countdown)
—

Second day of the weekend. This weekend is very unusual for me because I’m spending most of it with my family. Our son has just come back from his 14-day summer soccer camp and after 14 days of not seeing him I wanted to be around so that I can listen to his stories and so that he can spend more time with me after 14 days of not seeing me.
Being home on weekends in general has nowadays become a stamp of a good parenting. I personally think it’s bullshit and something parents shouldn’t obsess about.
I mean, you can be home on weekends but if that’s the only time you see your child during the entire week and it’s the only chance for you to talk, play, laugh (and you’re a classic upper middle class person — earning a lot of money in a job you hate because that’s what you picked in your teenage years and then you were convinced that it’s too late to change that) what message does this kid get? What does it teach him / her about life?
It teaches him / her to value money over the joy of the process of getting it and I think it’s a crappy message to send a kid. And they somehow tend to value similar things later in their lives.
I’d much rather send my child a message that I enjoy the process so much that I can’t live without it. That I need it like oxygen. That on a day I can’t do it I feel bad. That not being able to do that over an extended period of time would be like a torture for me. That its value and meaning in my life is equal to the value and meaning of my relationships with people who are close to my heart.
And on most weekends (on Saturdays and Sundays) when I leave home for 6 hours at a time and go to my favorite Starbuck store to work I am sending him this very message.
Also I genuinely believe that those who did what they loved in their lives make it much easier for their loved ones to come to terms with their death.
Knowing that this person spent most of her time here on earth doing what she loved and believed in (or at least constantly searching for that thing) is a huge relief.
It’s all about the story. If this person’s life was an exciting story to tell (an adventure, a life filled with passion, a life driven by a purpose) it changes a lot in how you look at this person’s death. I guess it would be a huge relief for me.
Reading.
Vladimir Putin by Roy Medvedev (one page; a physical book in Russian).
Listening to audio:
Cure: A Journey into the Science of Mind over Body by Jo Marchant (20 min; on audible app)
Movies.
My Way: The Rise and Fall of Silvio Berlusconi (20 min, on Netflix).
The Martian (cable TV). That’s the second time I watched it. Matt Damon as an astronaut Mark Watney who is presumed dead after a storm on Mars and left behind by his crew. Watney (alive) finds himself stranded and alone on the hostile planet. And to save his life he need to be resourceful.
I think all people are resourceful, but we just need to remember that we are and believe that we are. Those who don’t remember won’t make use of it. Neither will those who don’t believe in their resourcefulness.
Also, if we learn not to take things for granted, we will be more resourceful. And people lose because they expect everything should either be as they wish it was, or fix itself.
The movie was based on the book The Martian by Andy Weir. Want to read that book.
Andy Weir self-published this book chapter by chapter on his blog and as he was doing it more and more people would ask him whether he will make it a book. And he did.
I wonder, if what he self-published on his blog wasn’t technically a book, what would we call it? Probably ‘a story’. We can tell the same story in many different formats. It’s always the story that captivates us and the format is secondary. But poor storytelling can spoil the experience. It happened a lot when a book was made into a movie. That’s why I want to read that book. From what I saw in that movie I can tell that the story is great. The movie was OK (three and a half stars out of five).
Speaking of death and coming to terms with it by your loved ones. Here’s the message which Mark Watney wanted passed on to his parents in case he died on Mars (there is a reason he wanted this to be his last message to his parents):
If I die, I need you to check in on my parents. They’ll wanna hear all about our time here on Mars. I know that sucks. And it’ll be hard talking to a couple… about their dead son. It’s a lot to ask. Which is why I’m asking you. I’m not giving up. We just need to prepare for every outcome. Please tell them… Tell them I love what I do… and I’m really good at it. And that I’m dying… for something big… and beautiful… and greater than me. Tell them I said I can live with that. And tell them… thank you for being my mom and dad.
Videos on YouTube.
Aubrey Marcus Podcast 2017 | Gary Vaynerchuk Interview
Progress on my second book. Zero.
My today’s answers on Quora:
Answer to Am I going to ruin my life if I picked the wrong major?
Answer to What are the career options, after getting a master’s in political science?
Answer to My 14-year-old daughter wants nothing to do with me. What do I do?
Music for this writing session: Starbucks Coffeehouse (a playlist on spotify by Starbucks), The Martian Original Motion Picture Score (a playlist on spotify by Harry Gregson-Williams).

