Inspiration

I was reading Morten Haugum Hake's blog today (it's in Norwegian), and in the comments section I came across a prayer, called the prayer of Saint Francis. His blogpost in many ways talks about everything that is held within this prayer. I am not a very religious person, I call myself a spiritual atheist, but this prayer certainly moved me in a way towards trying to understand other people better.

If Morten wrote his post in English alot more people would probably be able to enjoy the feelings I had from his blog, he is a fantastic blogger.

What he basically talks about is giving value. Giving value is showing love, respect and treating other people the way you feel you should be treated. The more you treat others with love, the more love you will receive. Love grows only with love and the more there is the more it will grow. (adapted from Mother Teresa)

I'm going to inspire you with the prayer in English;

Lord, make me a channel of thy peace;
that where there is hatred, I may bring love;
that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness;
that where there is discord, I may bring harmony;
that where there is error, I may bring truth;
that where there is doubt, I may bring faith;
that where there is despair, I may bring hope;
that where there are shadows, I may bring light;
that where there is sadness, I may bring joy.

Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted;
to understand, than to be understood;
to love, than to be loved.
For it is by self-forgetting that one finds.
It is by forgiving that one is forgiven.
It is by dying that one awakens to eternal life.
Amen.

Value

So today I've figured I will share and give some value and love to friends and family that have helped me along the way and that I enjoy the company of. I will probably not be able to give to everybody, and maybe if you feel left out I will add you later.

First of, my mother: Ann Kristin
Mom, I love you, you have been a rocksolid great mother being able to take care of three kids both on your own when dad and together with him. I am truly grateful for all the care and love you have given me and my brothers throughout my life. I truly respect you and think I could probably not have a cooler mother to grow up with, you are very liberal-minded and a hard-working student, mom, wife and you give so much to many. Your interests in the spiritual is most likely the reason I call myself a spiritual atheist, in the end I used a lot of your books and resources to learn what I know. I am truly greatful to be your son. Thanks mom! I love you.

My father: Per Svein
Dad, you are probably among the coolest people I know in the world. You treated us strictly when you needed to and you raised us with respect and firm hand, you've given so much to your family, your wife and your kids. I do not believe in any way that my brothers would disagree when I say we are thankful and very happy with having you as our father, we truly love you. You've seen us through so much and helped us with everything from love to building small cabins in the forest.

Benjamin David Baker
For being the best friend, for being patrisii, you are among the people I respect most in this world. You are the smartest, most persuasive and outgoing person I've ever met, you have all the qualities of a good leader and you will undoubtedly reach far in this world! I have had so many good times with you, living together for two months in 2007 was absolutely one of the most fun times I've ever had, and sharing russetida together wasting 9000 kroner was totally worth it! Some of my greatest memories I have shared with you, and I am very thankful!

Erik Røynestad
For being the most funny arrogant and cool friend I have, I have always enjoyed your company, sitting hours up on the computer talking bullshit or playing random computer games, for always winning with the sleaziest smile in the world! You are such a great person! Helping eachother out in the summer when both of us had little money and both on a sort of diet was really one of my most memorable times! It was so much fun scouting the stores for cheap stuff to eat and I thank you for pushing me to eat so much more that I could finally gain those necessary pounds I needed to push 60 kilos! For all the nights out and the clubs and people we met and the nachspiels we were really drunk in! For always looking out for me when drinking! I'm so thankful to have you as one of my coolest friends. Keep being cool! (of course you will, you're God!)

Jovica Ugrinic & Lorenzo Maria Martini
For one of the best years of upper secondary at prepschool! The trio of craziness! We did so many things together, I wasn't too fond of the King Diamond concert, but we still had a really great time and I cherish the memories we had together! For the danish ferry and for all the great times we had together after and before turning 18! And Jovica, thanks for all the later years, the clubs, the beers and the blackouts, all the awesome times of coffee and drinking and all of it, the small parties in your apartment and all the great people we met! Lorenzo you seem to be doing great, architecture is really going for you, I wish you all the best in your business and future, you will do great, you're a hard worker!

Rayco Roberto Vanegas Schenk
For all the great times we've had together, your visit to norway and setting off the alarm in my apartment, for drinking till far to long in the morning, for not remembering our nights! For showing me the best of Nicaragua! You are such a great person, you're the most outgoing person I've seen in Nicaragua, you know everybody, alcalde! I love your honesty and your confidence, you are one of my very best friends in the whole world. Four times together we have travelled and spent time together! We've partied here and we've partied there, we've travelled here and there and showed eachother norway and nicaragua, you have given me so much value and I hope that I repay it in kind or even with more because you are such a cool and great person! Keep being you, keep being honest and I will learn a lot only from that!

Nina Hansen
My girlfriend, and the most awesome person that I met in 2009. I love you for you, for being the one who talks the least, but still gives me fantastic experiences, for being patient with me and for loving me, you are a fantastic person, you are so cool, I really digg you! I love the fact that you are coming all the way to NICARAGUA to see me for less than two weeks, in now two weeks! You are so crazy! Thanks for being you! Keep being you, you are the best!

Ana Laura Gonzalez Orozco
Alitas, for being my azteca, for being the coolest and most confusing mexican I know! It doesn't matter if you read this or not, but I am very happy I got to know you. Vikingo y azteca! You are a fantastic person, and I hope to have some great and awesome experiences together with you during my life!

Tarek Jar
For being the coolest person I met in 2009, for giving me so many compliments and being such a high-energy guy! I really appreciate the fact that I got to know you, we're going to make the best summer ever!! Coaching FTW! I'm really kicking to get our business up! For having awesome talks about FRs and experiences! You are a great friend, man! Peace & Success!!

Palito, Gordo, Perro, Ernesto, Pancho, Mache
My nicaraguan bestfriends, getting to know all of you has really been something really great for my life! I really enjoy your company, partying with you, driving around randomely to random places and many other things really is great for my soul and you are giving me a great experience in this country by doing very little! Being you is the greatest gift you give me! Thanks so much, I love you all maricas!

Daniel Liland
For being the most patient little brother in the world! You managed to survive with me being an asshole for years and I am really sorry! I love you brother and wish you all the best, you're going to be the best inventor, technology-man, nano-professor or whatever in the world one day! Maybe even hacker or programmer! For your positivity and relaxedness I admire you and I aspire to have the same ammount of relaxedness over everything. You are the coolest geek brother I could have! Love you!

Silje Wiik Nielsen
For being the most awesome lesbian in the world, for being my best girl friend, I love you, you are among my most fun and outgoing friends and you keep changing to cooler and better everytime I see you! We really need to catch up more and have more fun together!

Daniela Hirch
For being one of the most unlucky nicaraguans I've met, you are so cool and so funny, I really enjoy your black humour and sarcasm though I might not always get it, it's a training thing! Meeting you was one of the most fun things of my birthday, I really enjoyed dancing and talking with you, you make really good company! Your luck will get better!

Tonje Dahl
For giving me the strength and ability to change my life towards my own direction! For being a great person with awesome circus skills! For leading a great life and for being you! Keep going at it! You are awesome! B-)

Robert Liland
For always being the one I could talk to, always being the one more experienced, yet not the more mature, haha! I love you brother, growing up with you has been one of the best gifts given to me by life. You are such a fantastic brother! I miss you down here, looking forward to seeing you and your awesome little kid in the summer, he looks so much like a little charmer! YOu are the most charming man I've ever seen, I just remember the number 120 last march! Haha, not sure if you remember that talk. I've had so many great conversations over beers and drinks with you, so many good times with you and Arthur, Ivan and your other crazy bunch of friends. You are one of THE coolest people exisiting on this planet! I don't know how I can stop writing about you because without you brother my life would probably have ended up in so many other directions. For always being the defiant one, and always going against our fathers wishes when it came to bodyart and other crazy stuff, for being so individual and cool! KEEP BEING YOU. I love you brother.

Henrik Stavenes
For always being the weird and crazy friend, always being the one I could come to with my crazy ideas! For being so intelligent and so cool and understanding, or at least, less judging! For being the most sarcastic person I know, and for being completely Final Fantasy obsessed! You are one of my very best friends and I enjoy all the memories I have with you! Keep going philosophical, maybe one day you'll find the meaning that will change the paradigm of this world. I believe in you. Think big!

John Thomas Føreland, Jon Rickard Pettersen og Knut Nystad
For being the best friends in primary and lower secondary! For always serving as a base of security and goodness! For being good no matter what! For all the crazy things we built and did together and all the games we played and the movies we watched and pizzas we ate! For the bathing in Kvernhus and for the walks away from everyone else at school. For Dungeon Keeper and trebuchets and firethrowers and jet-engines and spears and crazy people at the disco trying to kill us! For all the fantastic and crazy memories I've shared with you, for giving me a good life in primary and lower secondary despite all that was. I am so thankful, you are good people and you deserve all the good in your lives!

Fredrik Niklas Werner
For your thoughts, your pushing and your expertise, for your chill-out attitude and what you have taught me so far I am very grateful! I certainly hope that together this summer we will create some of the wildest times of our lives!

All the people from Raud Ungdom og Raudt
For giving me great experiences, lots of information and knowledge! For giving lame star wars and political jokes and for at least a time giving me a greater purpouse on which to focus my mind! For giving me also the strength to change my life to something better, for giving me input and ideas! For giving me a bunch of great friends and great times. For letting me get to know Bergen at last and to maybe find out more about myself!

All the good people from my studies in Development!
Thanks for the many conversations, the experiences in Mauritius, the support and all the collaboration and your work on our published report on Mauritius!

To all that I didn't remember, and to all I will meet, keep sharing the love and the great people that you are, be the best you can be! Don't be anything less than the best. Trust in yourself, for there are no borders unless you believe there are!



Peace, love & success! Enjoy la vida!