"What I would give,
To feel the sunlight on my face.
What I would give,
To be lost in your embrace."
                      - "Fallen" by Blank and Jones (w/ Delerium & Rani)

In high school I used to think hugs were like so totally overrated. It might've been because I was rarely a recipient of a hug from anyone other than my mom and my grandpa. It might've been the constant stream of commie/kgb/mafia jokes from my classmates that shielded me from giving/receiving more hugs. Or it might've been the fact that I wasn't used to such a wild crazy thing as a hug, coming from mother Russia and all. Those times are long gone, however, and I have since played roles of both the giver and the receiver of hugs on many occasions.

This song reminded me of the times you get a sincere, meaningful, no-holding-back kinda hug - the one you feel throughout your body (not just the shoulder tap), the one that sends a feeling of warm goodness up and down your spine, and the one you remember for at least until after you finish talking to the hugger/huggee. Those kinds are the best. The ones that you can slowly close your eyes to, feel the love (in a friendly kinda way), and not want to let go for just a little longer. I know there are many more hugs like this out there and I will continue on my mission to collect them all.

This being said, I encourage all of you to give out more hugs - this world is becoming a crazy, difficult place and in the words of that one band, "all you need is love". Share the love, people!

The world is mine!

Life is amazing.
Life is beautiful.
Life is plentiful.

Life offers us so many interesting things to do, so many chances to learn something new, so many great opportunities to be happy, so many possibilities to feel complete, so many ways to live! Yet so very few people take advantage of it. So very few people go out and push their limits. So very few people face their fears. So many people complain. So many people are "too busy". So many people are "too important". So many people are so negative. So many people just don't care.

Why do people sit on the couch and watch TV all the time? Why do people go out every weekend, toss their money away, get trashed and don't remember anything they did the following day, only to go out the following weekend and do everything over again? Why don't people take advantage of their opportunities when they can? Why don't people explore life more? Why don't they wonder? Why don't they push themselves and their understanding of this world? Quite frankly I don't understand how people like that can be satisfied with their lives and with who they are.

Those who know me well will easily attest to the fact that I'm probably the happiest person they know. Why am I so happy all the time? I accept this life for what it is and try to suck out as much goodness out of it as I possibly can. I don't complain. I am always optimistic. And I always make time to do things I've never done before.

So, why are you still reading this? Go out and make things happen. Stop being lazy. Stop watching TV. Go run, go do something you've never done before, find a new hobby, see an air balloon festival, dance, paint, write poetry, skydive, do a triathlon (yes you can!), explore the cities around you, learn how to whistle. Don't say you have no time - you are in charge of your time - you and nobody else. The time is yours, the world is yours, you set the rules, so go out and make things happen. And while you're at it, listen to the new song by David Guetta called "The world is mine!".

And so here it is. My very own magical journal. More in-depth journal entries to come soon....