open, except those parts that are not

[morningpeacock]

stop being
afraid
of what could go
wrong
& focus
on what could go
right


What a splendid day!

Reminder to all that daily exercise and sunshine will always improve one's mood! Smile and enjoy your day and think positive thoughts!! Whatever you are setting out to accomplish today, you can! Each step puts you closer to your goal! If you are passionate enough and driven enough, anything is possible!

-- Maito Gai



[Locked to Minato, Kushina, and Rin]

Whenever you are free, I would like very much to speak to you about a personal, private, and important matter. It does not have to be the three of you together, just at your convenience, but as soon as is possible.

Thank you!

-- Maito Gai

Comments

[lostmarauder]

[He made sure that his reply was only going to the shinobi who sent the missive, though he wasn't sure of village so he just sealed it to the symbol. If more than one person got it... he wasn't too concerned in this instance.]

Maito-san,

While enthusiastic, if everyone only focused on what could go right, then no one would be prepared when things went wrong. So maybe your declaration should have been 'stop being afraid of what could go wrong' followed by 'and start being prepared for it to overcome' or something more relatable than simply a declaration of pure optimism.

Peter Pettigrew

[morningpeacock]

I understand what you are saying, but why believe that things naturally go wrong, Pettigrew-san? You are still focusing on the negative rather than the positive in this. That is a pessimistic point of view!

I admire your willingness to overcome, but sometimes preparing for things to go wrong instead prepares you to fail! You are preparing to accept your defeat before you have even begun!

Realizing that things can go wrong / focusing on things going wrong to the point of worrying when they have not happened yet are two very different things!

Have you ever learned to play catch? If all you think about is the ball hitting your face, if you focus on that fear, that is all that will happen. The ball will come and you will not catch it. Sure, maybe you will duck to avoid being hit, but you will never learn to catch! However, if your are willing to look past that fear, look past what could go wrong and focus instead on mastering the catch--on what could go right!--then you will learn to catch!!

Focus on being a great catcher, Pettigrew-san, not on how to ice your face if you are hit with the ball.

[lostmarauder]

My outlook has never once caused me to get hit in the face with a ball Maito-san. My protest is that you implied it's fear that drives people to watch for the failures when it's really not.

Failures teach, right?

Peter Pettigrew

[morningpeacock]

[ shdjhsdhkjashdkjas AM I TALKING TO NEJI. GEEZ ]

Failures do teach! That is very true!

But what drives one to watch for failure if not fear?

-- Maito Gai

[lostmarauder]

Experience.

Caution.

Awareness that things are not so easy as optimism would make them be.

There's more, but those are the ones that readily come to mind.

Pettigrew

[morningpeacock]

Those are all words that eventually boil down to one: FEAR.

Experience says it hurts. Do not do it. I fear being hurt.

Caution says this looks dangerous. Danger means pain, it means difficulty. I fear that.

Awareness that things are not 'so easy' -- I fear things that are not easy.

Your excuses come readily to mind.

I think you are a smart person, Pettigrew-san, but I also think you do not take many risks. Life has, for me, been an uphill climb. I have certainly been a experienced failure. Things have not be easy. But had I been cautious or taken the path of least resistance, I would have stalled at the bottom of the hill. I would have achieved some, but I would not have achieved as much as I have.

What are your dreams, Peter-san? What do you want to achieve that you have not yet?

-- Maito Gai

[lostmarauder]

Interesting that you're making an assumption like that about someone you've never met before.

I never said anything about not taking chances, not moving forward. My only argument is being prepared and not expecting it to go as you like as you seem determined to say.

There is no shame in being someone who sees the world as it is when they set out Maito-san. That does not make them the coward you would paint.

Pettigrew

[morningpeacock]

I apologize. I have been known to jump to such assumptions.

I would not call you a coward. But you do not have to be so cautious. My father showed me that, when the world is certain you will fail, you do not have to accept the world's choices for you. Smile and move along and achieve your dreams. I would like to see others realize their dreams as well! And sometimes I need to write these reminders, like the one above, to pep myself for my own endeavors.

And you did not answer my question about your dreams and aspirations, Pettigrew-san!

[lostmarauder]

As I said, you're making assumptions about someone you don't know.

My dreams and aspirations have come to where I wished for them to be when I was young. It only happened because of my caution.

Pettigrew

[morningpeacock]

I will cease to make such assumptions then!

But I have a new question or two for you:
Do your childhood goals being accomplished satisfy you?
Do you have new dreams and aspirations now that those are achieved?

[lostmarauder]

Dreams are something that at this moment, I can't afford, but I work on projects until such a time as that would be... workable.

And yes, being a shinobi pleases me.

Pettigrew.

[morningpeacock]

One can always afford dreams.

And I am glad. That in and of itself should motivate you to continue to dream and pursue those dreams. How satisfying it is to achieve something you have wished for your entire life!

[lostmarauder]

Dreams get people killed.

It was not an all at once sort of goal achievement. It was gradual, and mostly carefully planned.

Do you never plan things?

[morningpeacock]

Nothing worth anything ever came without risk. Sometimes life is the risk.

My achievements have been gradual as well.

I plan! I am planning something now, in fact. And I make goals: "I will do __ laps around the village before lunchtime or I will do __ pushups to make up for that!" I plan visits. But I do not allow plans to dictate my life.

[lostmarauder]

Those aren't plans you know. Those are lists.

Plans are... broader in scope than that. They also come with dozens of contingencies. Don't yours? The idea of a plan only going one way is absurd, which is what it would have to be for it to be a diction.

[morningpeacock]

[ ANGRY SCRIBBLE ]

They are to-do lists! That is still a plan. I can PLAN what I am buying at the grocery! THAT DOES NOT MAKE IT NOT A PLAN EVEN IF I LIST IT AS A LIST!!!

Of course there are contingencies!! That does not mean that I accept those! My plan now, of course, has many possible outcomes. But it does no good to focus on the bad ones! If one of those happens, it happens! There is little I can do about it, so I am choosing to live with the positive one in mind and hope that my positive energy and winning attitude helps make GOOD. THINGS. HAPPEN.

[lostmarauder]

So you're saying you see and admit the bad ones exist.

Didn't you say that was fear?

[morningpeacock]

FEAR WOULD BE ACKNOWLEDGING THE BAD ONES AND LETTING THAT DICTATE MY CHOICES. FEAR WOULD BE NOT DOING SOMETHING BECAUSE I WAS TOO CAUTIOUS AND TO AFRAID OF WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE BAD RESULTS HAPPENED.

FEAR WOULD BE THE MONTHS IT HAS TAKEN ME TO DO THIS.

So no! That is not fear. Not now.

[lostmarauder]

So, what I'm getting out of all this is that you wrote this note to make yourself feel better because you've been freaking out about something?

There are worse reasons I suppose.

[morningpeacock]

Yes! Yes I have. And I am proud to say it has worked, despite your efforts to thwart my mood!

You have never needed a self-pep talk?

[lostmarauder]

Usually things like that only make me feel worse about things actually. Better to pretend to other people than to myself.

[morningpeacock]

[ Sadly, he understands. ]

It is not pretending, though! Your positive attitude will put you more at ease! It is reassuring! You need to work on reassuring yourself!

[lostmarauder]

If you ever met me in person you'd understand.

But no, I'm getting exactly what I need to do what I need to do already, thank you.

[morningpeacock]

I think you are selling yourself short, Pettigrew-san!

A little extra reassurance does not hurt.

[lostmarauder]

I think you're not grasping my meaning Maito-san, but that's okay, you'll either see me in person someday or not.

What are you reassuring yourself for?