ashpanda

lallations of a labile lagomorph: once there was brownpanda who died leaving behind his mate ashley whom we called panda out of love and since brownpanda.blogspot.com is not available. . .the picture is ashley

Saturday, September 09, 2006

In search of people, in praise of failure

Paul Twohill just got kicked off Singapore Idol. Xiaxue's entry on sex under 18 in stomp.com got kicked off too. I remember Maia from the last Idol, and to a lesser extent Olinda. They do not represent the average Singaporean but I think they personify what it means to be a Singaporean. More than the average Singaporean.

I don't know what it is I mean to say but I am reminded today how failure defines us more than our successes. It's as if we are not real or complete until we fail. Not that we should intentionally fail. Not at all. Quite the reverse, in fact. But. . .

I see failure in its positive and affirming light. I can't explain it but I celebrate and ache for those who fail. Isn't love the most sublime when you love me in my failure?

posted by brownpanda @ 11:10 am  

7 Comments:

  • At 12:23 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    I enjoy reading your blog. Now I see where Xin Hui gets her writing ability from. :)

    Failure defines us more than our successes, because it teaches us so much more as we strive for success and improvement. For if we always succeeded, we would see no need to work hard and strive for goals that seem unreachable, if we've never known what it is not to be able to reach a goal

    Yes, love is seeing people for their flaws and failures yet loving them still the same. For Christ loves us even though we fail, time and time again.

     

  • At 1:42 pm, Blogger brownpanda said…

    Thank you for your lovely comments. I am humbled. Do write again, please?

     

  • At 4:26 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Well, I suppose that my comment about failure is rather narrow. For without failure, we would never know how to rely on God. We would figure that we don't need Him because we can succeed on our own. Perhaps that's why people turn to God when they struggle and fail.

    I've got a funny feeling that Autolycus will pop up and talk about being vulnerable. :)

     

  • At 5:45 pm, Blogger brownpanda said…

    Dear Becca, how can your comments be narrow? Not at all. They were deep and full of wisdom. It's just that I hesitate to talk about why but prefer to talk about how it is. I teach but I prefer not to. I think we just crave one another. Is that not enough?

     

  • At 5:56 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Why what? But sometimes it's hard to understand how something is if you don't understand why it is that way.

     

  • At 7:20 pm, Blogger brownpanda said…

    Yes. There is so much we don't understand. And so sometimes, we try out various answers. It's like music. It is easier to enjoy and appreciate music than it is to understand "why it is that way". I think the beauty of life is that it is often beyond understanding. And the really difficult but wonderful thing to do is just admire the magic of it all. I'll answer this more fully in my next blog. Tell me what you think.

     

  • At 11:20 pm, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    That, sir, is the reply God gave to Job. Sometimes, the desire to know 'why it is that way' is just pride, presumption, or protestation. Which is why Job's four friends all got scolded for it. They were all attempting to justify God's actions to Job. God pointed out that He didn't need justification, since who could justify His actions for Him? And so, it should be best to just leave it at that, and marvel at the wonder of it all. It's not a crime to wonder what and how (science), but the real 'why' is the province of God. You can ask Him, and He need not answer.

     

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