Hello Out There

[Maddi]

Do you believe everything happens for a reason?

[Austin William Savage]

*CONFUSING THOUGHTS AHEAD*

I think that things might always happen for a reason, but that reason wasn't necessarily happening for a reason, or vice versa. It really depends on your outlook on life.... Now, did your thinking about this thought happen for a reason?

[Maddi]

well it wasnt just one reason that made me question this but many throughout my life, whenever something bad or tragic happens I try tothink that there is a reason this happened and something good shall come of it... i guess it is just and optimistic outlook on tragic things. I guess sometimes the incident doesnt even have to be tragic, it can be something good that has happened for a reason too.

[Terry Freedman]

Maddi, I was going to ask what Austin asked! I think that things happen for a reason, but another way of looking at it I think is that everything has a consequence, which causes another consequence, and so on in a chain reaction. AT every point there is a choice in the sense that two or three different things could happen or roads be taken, and each of those sets of choices have their own set sof issues, good and bad.

For example, I remember once having to travel on an overnight train, but was unable to book a seat in the sleeper car, so I had to sleep on a seat. In the middle of the night, another train crashed into the back of our train, and aLL the people in the sleeper car had to be taken to hospital. The only thing that happened to me was that I fell off the seat and had a bit of a shock!

At any given pont, we can never know why something has happened or what the longer term consequences will be. All we can do is do what we believe to be right and sensible, and hope for the best.

By the way, Murphey's Law (note spelling) is: 'Anything that CAN go wrong WILL go wrong'. It's used humorously and as an excuse for things not working out properly, but on the whole it's just negative. Don't listen to it.

[Maddi]

Thank you for taking the time to think about this discussion as I was very intrigued by your reply. Your train story is a great example of something happening for a reason. Although it makes me think, the people who were in the sleeper car probably did not think that happened for a reason.
I see it like this... imagine there is a mother who has been diagnosed with a fatal illness and passes away and although this is a tragic event I think that maybe this happened for a reason because say she hadn't one night should could be driving her family home and fall asleep behind the wheel and then her whole family would have died. I know this is a very unusual a slightly strange way to see things, especially when it involves death but it makes me see reason in bad situations.

Another example is there was a woman who was waiting in line at a newsagecy to get her tattslotto when a man pushed infrint of her to get his tattslotto ticket, she ended up winning the jackpot. I see this as happening for a reason and also a good lesson for the man!

Thanks again for sharing your thoughts,
Maddi

[Terry Freedman]

Hi, Maddi.

I don't know what your religious beliefs are, but I think all the religions I know anything about, and even common sense, tells us that all a person can do is act; what the outcome of their actions will be is not in their hands. Whether you believe it's all up to chance, or guided by a higher power, is, I suppose, the nub of your question.

There is a great verse in the Bhagavad Gita, which is kind of the Hindu equivalent of the Christian Bible, in which Lord Krishna says to Arjuna, who he is teaching:

"Be without the fruits of action."

What he meant was, don't think about what is going to happen as a result of your doing anything, because you don't have any control over that. All you have to be concerned about is doing what you have to do. I suppose it's like doing a test. All you can do is revise for it and try to learn the stuff. You can't control what questions are going to come up, whether your paper gets lost in the post, whether the person who marks it is lenient or otherwise, etc etc.

There's a very similar part in the Bible, in which Jesus tells people that if even the birds are able to eat because they're provided for, why should people be concerned about such things, as they're being looked after?

I happen to believe that everything happens for a reason, even if I cannot see what that reason is. For example, I've failed to be successful at applying for jobs, only to land a fantastic job a little while later.

And if I hadn't spilt up with a g/f I thought was the love of my life, I'd never have met my wonderful wife!

You make a good point about the people in that sleeper car, but even there, I found out that nobody was injured seriously. So perhaps if they had not been in the sleeper car, they may have been in a fatal car crash or something once they'd grabbed a taxi at the station. Who is to say? Your story about the lottery ticket is excellent.

I think it's wonderful that you're doing all this searching and thinking, and hope that you find answers that make sense for you. I'm sure you will.

[Maddi]

Thank you very much once again, you have given me lots to think about and definetly a new view to look at this topic. I guess sometimes you just have to play the game and see how it turns out, not get too caught up in the technical rules or anything. If things happen, things happen.
Well even if things do happen for a reason, whether it be good or bad I guess its happened so what can I do... I know, Carpe Diem! I guess when things go bad there is no point sitting around thinking what went wrong and how the situation could have been changed if I had done one thing differently, we should all just live life!
I have amalgamated your ideas with others and have decided that it is impossible to prove whether everything happens for a reason, it is purely based on ones beliefs and experiences.
Thank you once again,
Maddi

[Terry Freedman]

You're welcome, Maddi. I think you've arrived at a very pragmatic resolution.

Have you been watching a series called Flash Forward. In it, everyone has seen a vision of their own future in 6 months' time, and it has become an obsession with most people: some are distraught, and others are walking around in adream almost.

I think the screenwriters realised that it's probably best not to know what the future holds, take each day as it comes, and just hope everything turns out OK!

[Maddi]

No I have never seen that show, it may not be shown in Australia, but I can tell you now that I would not be on that show! The future is not something I want to see now, I want to work towards it. If I found out my future I would definetly spend most of my time stressing about it, wondering when certain events will happen.
I have this strange idea that if I do something properly or a good deed or something like that then something good will happen to me, or something wont go wrong. I guess I am a believer of karma. I guess it sort of benefits me because it makes me get things done and I guess it makes me a better person because it gives me the energy to do something for someone else.
That is the reason I started the Operation Christmas Child project at our school. This is a bit off the subject but I just wanted to say what a fantastic project it is, I am not sure whether it is promoted where you live but if it isn't it certainly should be! It is run by the Samaritan's Purse.
It is a great project for schools to get involved with and is a lot of fun.

Thank you once again for your response,
Maddi

[Terry Freedman]

Hi, Maddi

I'm a great believer in Karma too, although if you do the right thing only because you're worried about karma, that's not such a great idea!

I haven't heard of the Operation Christmas Child project, Maddi. What is it? If you don't have time to explain, please let me have a URL if there is one.

So you're in Australia? I have a cousin in Sydney, and my sister and family just returned from a holiday in Melbourne and Fiji. I'm in the UK.

[Maddi]

Hi Terry,
Well karma is just one of the things that encourages me to do something good. I would be quite a terrible person if I only did things because of the fear of something not going well for me! That would be selfish indeed, and I am glad to say that sometimes I do good deed's just because I can, haha. I didn't just start the shoebox project because of karma, there were many reasons but the main was definetly the video of the children receiving the gifts, wow there isn't really a better feeling.
Basically Operation Christmas Child is a project run by the non profit organisation Samaritan's Purse. What you do is fill shoeboxes with things for disadvantaged children between the ages of 2-14. The gifts aren't things like food or medication but things that will give them joy like pencil's, toothpaste, clothes, a ball, a photo of your family etc. They are just simple gifts that would give a child a lot of joy. There are five things you have to put in the boxes, something to love, something for hygiene, something to play with, something for school and something to wear.
This year I set a goal for our school to make 50 boxes and we ended up with 53 so I was very happy with our schools contribution. The boxes are lots of fun to make and it is such a good cause.

Here is the link to the website:
http://www.operationchristmaschild.org.au/

Sydney is very nice place, I am lucky enough to be going there in 5 weeks to play basketball. I live in Victoria and at the moment it is very hot! Is the whether in the UK unusual at the moment? It is very unusual in Australia, very unpredictable.

If you are a teacher you might like to show the video on the operation christmas child website because it is very heart warming and fills you with satisfaction.
Thanks again,
Maddi
p.s I have a few friends in England, two are teachers, Miss Brown and Mr Cunningham, not sure if you know them... it's a small world!

[Terry Freedman]

Dear Maddi

Thanks for the information and the URL. I will look at the video later. Well done for exceeding your target of 50 boxes! It sounds like a really nice idea. So am I correct in assuming that it was seeing the video on YouTube that made you wish to get involved? How did you come across the video?
Weather here is a bit cold, although I quite like it like that! It's also unpredictable: we get 4 seasons like everywhere else, but usually in the course of a single day!
I used to be a teacher, now I'm an educational consultant. My website is www.ictineducation.org in case you wish to look it up.
I don't know the teachers you mention but interestingly enough I do know quite a few who teach ICT, and I'm quite well-known because of my website and the fact that I write articles all over the place, so it's conceivable that they may have heard of me.
Bye 4 now
Terry

[Terry Freedman]

Hi, Maddi, it's a good video. I asked a couple of Qs (belo) - don't know if you saw them. Also, is this project restricted to people in Australia and NZ?