Project Moira

Daily writing prompt

What historical event fascinates you the most?

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While I wouldn’t say this event fascinates the most out of any other, I do find it interesting.

In 44 BC, Julius Caesar was assassinated. His killers believed this act would make them popular with the public of the Roman Republic. They viewed themselves as liberators, freeing Rome of a harsh tyrant.

At the time, Caesar was actually well-liked by the general public for his successes in battles, reforms that aided the poor, and construction of public works.

Caesar’s death triggered anger towards the conspirators and incited the next round of civil wars that would ultimately lead to the fall of the Roman Republic.

Of course, there were many issues with Caesar’s rule. His method of ruling the Republic is what would later be called Caesarism, in which an authoritarian derives power from the general public by presenting themselves as an embodient of national unity and strength. These types of rulers often do so my force, established strict rules for a the social order.

The killers may well have been freeing the Republic of a tyrant, but that is not how the public viewed this event. Caesar’s influence over Rome seemed to only grow stronger after his death, a bit like a martyr.

I wonder how the conspirators seemed so out of touch with the populace of Rome, that they did not see clear signs of support and strict loyalty to Caesar.

This event is an example of what can occur when a leader who rules by cult of personality is fatally attacked.

Daily writing prompt

What’s something you believe everyone should know.

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I believe that one of the most vital skills for self-improvement is empathy. Being able to understand people’s emtional state and how they got to that point.

It’s different from sympathy, even though the two are commonly used in place of eachother. Sympathy is specifically the act of feeling pity for another. Empathy is knowing what the other person is feeling.

There’s a lot of people nowadays who say that empathy is a weakness. That is makes you too soft and easy to manipulate. I believe those supposed weaknesses of people with empathy, aren’t actually directly correlated with having empathy.

People that are too soft and easy to manipulate are usually this way due to deep-seated insecurity. It may seem like they have strong empathy since people go to them for emtional support, but they actually just allow everyone to use them. They don’t assert boundaries, they struggle to say no.

Empathy is a skill that can be used in a wide array of circumstances, really anything that involves people. With strong empathy, you can tell when people get upset, and then you can figure out the why. Without the ‘why’, you don’t really know what problems people are facing. If you don’t know what peoples’ problems are, you can’t help them.

Daily writing prompt

What does it mean to be a kid at heart?

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To be a kid at heart means to have an innate curiosity for life. Always asking questions, always wanting to know more.

Kids can be strikingly resilient, adapting to new environments remarkably quickly. At this stage of development, the brain is wired to learn and gain new skills a bit quicker than adults.

Being able to harness that power you had as a kid now, as an adult, can improve your willingness to learn, try new things, and maintain a positive outlook on life.

Daily writing prompt

You have three magic genie wishes, what are you asking for?

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It seems these questions are usually caveated. In Aladdin, the Genie can’t kill anyone, bring people back from the dead, make someone fall in love, or grant more than three wishes.

There’s also usually unintended consequences of your wishes due to an unusual or literal interpretation. You might wish to never age, but instead of granting immortality, the genie kills you, stopping you from ageing. Wishes for large amounts of physical currency such as gold may be granted, but you could be crushed if the genie wills all of that wealth on top of you.

You have to phrase your wishes carefully, as a mischievous genie tends to look for loopholes in each wish.

I would want my wishes to have positive impact across the world. There’s a lot of things preventing humanity from reaching its full potential. I think putting a stop to the most common causes of death would be very beneficial for humanity as a whole.

It’s tempting to wish for world peace, but I don’t believe it’s actually possible. Theoretically, world peace would remove all ‘evil’ from the world. Unfortunately, conflict just seems to be a part of human nature. We tend to be self-interested, constantly competing for resources, which instantly creates conflict. Essentially, a wish for world peace may be granted, but it could not possibly last due to human nature.

But more importantly, throughout history, you can see that the greatest creations tend to be created in the face of adversity.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

World peace may remove all adversity from our lives, instead we would be complacent. We would have no drive to push humanity to the next frontier.

I believe that human’s cannot reach their full potential if their individual needs are not met. Things like safety, security, shelter. Fulfilling those needs would give everyone a more even playing field.

Really, I think the ideal thing would be for to have unlimited wishes, or the same powers of the genie, so you could fix more than three things.

I think my wishes would be:

1. My wishes do not have unintended consequences.
2. (Holding a notebook and pen) For everything that only I write in this notebook to come true.
3. I wish for freedom for the genie.

Daily writing prompt

Describe a family member.

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I think the most clear indication of family is blood relation. A family member shares DNA with the other family members. However, there’s also the family a person chooses for themself. This could be a spouse, friend, or pet.

How do you know if you’re part of a family?

I suppose it depends on the things a person looks for in a family and deciding if their needs are met. Some people want safety and security, others want support and respect.

Ideally all members of a family have a strong commitment to each other. Each member wants to ensure the welfare and happiness of all other members.

The people you spend most of your time with are the same people who will either support or hinder your personal development. So, it’s vital to choose the family who wants to see you succeed and will support you at even the low points. Do the same for them.