Aaron Welty Sometimes life comes at you fast and you do unexpected things. I never thought I’d ever write about a time that I got my hair cut, but sometimes in the midst of simple things much more is happening around me.
I’m not afraid to admit that I love Star Wars; I’m what you’d call a “fanboy” As such I happen to have a few plastic lightsbers amongst other collectables from that Galaxy Far, Far, Away. Recently, I finished a book called I Like Giving, a collection of stories about people willing to give in ways great and small to affect the lives of those around them. I see it as a great way to make the world around you smaller than it currently is. What’s more is that I think the giving can have even deeper meaning when someone finds a way to give out of who they have been created to be, to give out of the interests they have been gifted with. Here is one such story, about making the world small via one lightsaber.
Did you know your wallet has the potential to tell stories that can make your world smaller?
What do Christopher Nolan, George Lucas, Dave Filoni, Frank Peretti, J.J. Abrams, Joss Whedon, and Patrick Scott all have in common? They’re fantastic storytellers. They’re also the different people I can easily rattle off as the ones I sometimes wish I could be, and then I remember that I’m something other than that.
What might you do if a time-traveling physician showed up in your fireplace?
“100% of many-your-own sundae bars end in happiness” – Sheldon Cooper, The Big Bang Theory
During a recent morning commute to work, I happened upon a snapshot of a conversation between two men walking along the sidewalk. While I had no context for what I heard, what stuck with me was the emphatic – and repeated – declaration of one of the men: “I want happiness”. What did he mean by that, did he know what he was saying? Did he secretly want a make-your-own sundae bar?!
“The world is full of lies, evil, pain, and death; you can’t hide from it, you can only face it. The question is, when you face it, how do you respond; who do you become? – Phil Coulson, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Who is Batman? This is the immortal question that many of the rouges put away in Arkham Asylum wish to answer, but few have. The Riddler answered it in Batman Forever, the Joker in Batman Beyond, Hugo Strange in Batman The Animated Series and Arkham City, Hush/Tommy Elliot in the comics, and Ra’s Al Guhl in Batman The Animated Series and the Nolan trilogy. Is the masked vigilante the mask, or is the billionaire, playboy, philanthropist the mask?
In the remake of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, the title character is given a wallet by a world famous photographer that he has worked alongside for years. Inside the wallet is an inscription of the motto of LIFE magazine, Walter’s employer: “To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life.” While Walter has worked at LIFE magazine for 16 years, and been confronted with the motto daily upon walking into work, he never internalized it, never lived it. Something all the more highlighted when another character tells him “listen to your wallet”…
Do you dream of doing something? Do you have an idea you’re trying to make a reality or a message you’re trying to convey? If that describes you, Platform by Michael Hyatt is a book you need to read. While Platform won’t help you create the product or message from start to finish, something the author makes clear at the start, it does give solid advice on how to promote and/or advance that message or product, to grow the audience for it.
Author, Speaker, and Super Nerd. Aaron Welty speaks and writes regularly connecting the dots of life, faith, and science fiction. Originally from Michigan, he now lives and works in the Washington, DC metro area.