Mike Rubin, MD, PhD, CFA’s Post

We are what we consume. Sometimes literally, yet also figuratively. We consume media. Lots of it. We think it is exogenous to us, yet when we engross ourselves in in it, it becomes endogenous. Are we consuming processed media… …or farm fresh organic media? Our minds, hearts, and souls are filled with what we put in them. Might we want to reserve opening the door to only nourishing entrants?

Just when we think we fully understand something… …when we take another look… …do we discover and uncover new insights that weren’t apparent at first sight? This gives us pause to ponder… Might we want to be a bit slower to judge some times… …and allow ourselves a bit more time to fully understand?

We speak of words, and notes, and substance… … yet we should also speak about the absence of these things. We should speak of silence, and rests, and vacancy. Is it not the void where form emerges? Is it not in absence that we form a sense of presence? Before there was love ❤️ and light 💡 …there was a void… …and it was dark… …yet full of potential. So is it really empty… …or is it our full potential… …ready to explode into a supernova of new beginnings and realized dreams?

Sometimes in life we spends hundreds of hours preparing for a single moment… …a race… …a game… …a wedding… …an event… …an opportunity. And then it happens. We might subsequently ask ourselves… …what was the greater part? The preparation or the event? Might they be equally valuable?

There is reality… …and then there is art. There is nature as it is… …and then there is a photograph of nature. And even when there is art… …the question arises… …is it real? And what is meant by that is it computer generated, altered, or filtered… …or straight from a human source? Yet might we allow ourselves the latitude… …every once in a while… …to blur the lines… …and conclude there is a difference with little distinction?

Take something simple… …combine it with something else simple… …proliferate and perpetuate… …combine vision and ingenuity… …and behold… …the emergence of beauty and complexity… …brilliance and inspiration. It all starts with a vision… …a lot of experimentation… …and then… order. Is it worth reminding ourselves that art, and by extension life… …enables us to create so much… …with so little… …when we empower our beliefs… …ignite our passions… …and persevere in the direction of our dreams?

📃 What do we see when we stare at a blank page? Do we see possibility or a void? ⚡️ Do we see potential energy or static electricity? 👁️ Vision is the prime mover of humanity! It is not what we are given… …it is what we do with what we have. ✂️ How much is possible (literally and figuratively) with merely a few household instruments and some paper?

What are the bounds of what we can do when we merge passion with perseverance? When ingenuity meets tenacity? It starts with a spark, and ensues with a commitment to carry forward a vision which inspires us. At first others may question us… …they may not understand our motivations… …that’s okay. In time others will appreciate our insights and commitment. With self-belief and determination, do we have all we need to do wondrous things?

When does a bottle cap cease to be a bottle cap… … and become a work of art? When there are 2 of them? 100 of them? 1000 of them? Or is it more about how they are oriented? Or both? When we take something quite ordinary, multiply them, and arrange them intelligently, we can create something quite extraordinary. Perhaps this is the formula for success in so many things? We don’t need to reinvent the wheel continuously. We simply need to take things that are already out there, put them together smartly, apply a little bit of ingenuity, and thus transform the mundane into the divine?