Equivalent trade

Principles Of Life: Equivalent Trade

"Nothing gained is without sacrificing something of equal value."
The law of conservation. It is something that I have followed for most of my life largely without knowing what it is all about. It is something that governs us all whether we tend to agree or not. Whatever we gain, we lose something else in return for it. Whatever we lose, we gain something else whether we realise it or accept it.
Equivalent trade.
It is something that would make sense in this whole world gone wrong.
Or would it really?
The irony is that from a distance, the world does not revolve around this law. How can two people who both work hard for the same goal end up with one failing and one acing? How can child lose his or her life before she even has a chance to make an impact on the world. How can the good people always die and the assholes that populate the world still go on and on?
What did they truly sacrifice?
What did they truly gain?
Then again…we human beings were always born with a lack of foresight and acute perception of things. We can understand the face value of life and the individual details of one's actions and we have long been content to live the rest of our lives based on those values and details. Maybe that's why laws like this do not make sense.
In our own arrogance and ignorance we only see what is around us, see what circles us. The little parts of the machinery that keeps the the larger system working. It's like trying to conclude the larger picture by only seeing a tiny fraction of the canvas.
It really doesn't work that way.
If a law, a principle or a system is absolute then so must the area it governs…which in this case isn't the world around us that we see…but the universe that we have yet to comprehend. Given that possibility…then equivalent trade where gains can only happen with sacrifices could work. Loosing something doesn't mean you're the one who will be gaining. If the universe is a connected whole…that would mean that sacrificing something could also indirectly cause someone else or something else to gain…not just for yourself.
Does that make any sense?
I hope it did.
It just sucks that we rarely have the capabilities to see it. It sucks more that we rarely have the mentality to understand it. Yet…even with our inability to comprehend all this, life still goes on and the system is still in place. That balance between sacrifice and gains has been here from the moment the universe was born and would still be here when the universe ends.
Equivalent trade.
It's about time we realised that rule.
It's about time we made some use of it.

John Arne Riise

John Arne Semundseth Riise (born 24 September 1980 in Ålesund, Norway) is a Norwegian footballer who currently plays for Italian club Roma. He is the older brother of Bjørn Helge Riise, a fellow footballer currently playing for Fulham FC of the English Premier League. Before moving to Roma, Riise spent seven years in England playing for Premier League side Liverpool F.C..

Early career

Riise began his career in his homeland with Aalesund. After a single season as a senior player for the club, he moved abroad in 1998, playing the formative years of his professional career with French club Monaco.
He was a regular member of the 1999–2000 Ligue 1 championship-winning side, however, he fell out of favour with coach Claude Puel after admitting his desire to leave. Riise was subject of interest from English Premier League clubs, especially Fulham and Leeds United that both offered £4m bids in 2000,^[2] though both came to nothing as Monaco wanted £6 million for him.
 He was then sold to Liverpool for £4 million the following summer

Liverpool

He made his debut for Liverpool in the 24 August 2001 2001 UEFA Super Cup game against Bayern Munich played at the Stade Louis II. He scored as Liverpool went on to win the game 3–2.^[4] He also scored important goals throughout the Premier League season against teams such as Arsenal, Everton, Newcastle, and Manchester United. Riise initially wore the number 18 shirt but changed to the number 6 shirt in the 2004–2005 season, which had been vacated by defender Markus Babbel. He scored ten goals in his first season with Liverpool.
He endured what were considered below-average seasons by most in the 2002–03 and 2003–04 seasons,^[5] but he rediscovered his form in 2004–05 following the appointment of Rafael Benítez as manager. He won a Champions League winner's medal, providing the assist for Liverpool's first goal of the final, although his attempt in the penalty shoot-out against A.C. Milan was saved. In the 2005 Football League Cup Final he scored in the first minute of the game; however, Chelsea eventually prevailed 3–2 after extra time.
In January 2006, Riise signed a new contract at Anfield to keep him at the club until 2009.^[6] In February 2008, Riise announced his desire to stay at Liverpool for the rest of his career.^[7]
He helped the club to win the 2005–06 FA Cup, scoring in the semi-final against Chelsea and successfully converting his attempt in the penalty shoot-out against West Ham in the final.
After a poor run of form in Liverpool's away games in the autumn of 2006, Riise reacted to comments made by teammates Pepe Reina and Jamie Carragher that Liverpool could effectively write off their chances of winning the league, saying, "We never give up. Cowards give up."

Riise made it into the top 50 Liverpool appearances of all time when he played in the 5–0 victory over Luton Town on 15 January 2008.
On 22 April 2008, in Liverpool's Champions League semi-final first leg against Chelsea at Anfield, Riise scored an own goal in the 95th minute to equalise. Liverpool went on to lose 3–2 in the away match and were eliminated from the tournament 4–3 on aggregate.

Roma

 Throughout the 2007–08 season, Riise's natural place in the side was often taken by Fábio Aurélio, the Brazilian establishing himself as the club's first choice left-back.^[9] After being linked with moves to other English clubs, Riise signed on 18 June 2008 a four-year contract with A.S. Roma. The club paid €5 million total (which could go up to €5.5 million), including €2.8 million per year.^[10] Riise scored his first goal for the club against league leaders Internazionale. Two months later, he scored again in the same stadium against Milan with a free-kick into the top right corner, also providing an assist on Roma's second goal of the game. Riise was the man of the match for the game, which ended 3–2 in favour of Roma.^[11] On 24 January 2010, Riise scored a late header three minutes into injury time in Roma's 2-1 away win over Juventus.

Personal life

Riise married his childhood sweetheart, Norwegian model Guri Havnevik, in 2003^[12] but later divorced in 2004. He has one daughter with Guri named Ariana, born in January 2001. He has Ariana's name tattooed on his right arm.
Riise has a brother named Bjørn Helge Riise in professional football who currently plays for Fulham FC of the English Premier League. John Arne is the older of the two brothers.
In 2005 Riise was thrust into the spotlight by the Norwegian press, when it emerged he had recently sent out text messages to a number of celebrity women with the same chat-up lines. He was dubbed "SMS-kongen" ("The SMS King" in Norwegian)^.
In October 2007, details of Riise's payslip were stolen from his dustbin and leaked to the internet, revealing his monthly take home pay to be £82,413.^[14]
He is now married to Maria Elvegard. They got engaged in 2007. The couple were due to be married in the summer of 2008 but had to postpone the day after moving to Rome. They married on 21 June 2010 in a private ceremony in New York, inviting only their family and close friends.^[15] Maria decided to have a double barrelled surname, (Elvegard Riise).
On 4 August 2009, Maria gave birth to the couple's first child, Emma.^[16] He has Emma's name and date of birth tattooed on his left arm.