"One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes."

Familiar with the lines?

I'll keep you guessing if you're not. So just read on…

Life space.

I have heard a lot of this term in my four years in Psychology. It didn't stop there. The more I encountered these two meaningful words when I went to graduated college. And more of it, I use in my analyses during my counseling sessions. Though I must say, with all honesty, I'm not an expert in uncovering such. Just a little bit!

But what do these two short words mean?

First, let us define life.

Life means, according to my Microsoft Encarta is existence in the physical world. It also refers to the whole duration of one's being able to breath, take in food, adapt to the environment, grow and reproduce. It may also refer to the period during which something continues to function. And it denotes a way of living characteristic of a particular group or individual.

Secondly, let's take a closer look at the meaning of space.

Space refers to the region that lies beyond the Earth's atmosphere, and all that it contains. Thus, it also implies the region, usually of negligible density, between all celestial bodies in the universe. In addition, it can also mean the unbounded three-dimensional expanse in which all matter exists.

Putting both meaning to a more psychological perspective in defining life space, it is the bounded (Not unbounded, you have to take not of that. Because a person's life is ruled by rights where one's rights end as another's rights begin.) expanse in which a person or an individual functions, such that, all his/her personal experiences (exclusively his/hers) and other unique or distinctive characteristics absolute in him/her with all their dynamic make-up influences, controls, motivates and shapes his/her behavior, activities, thoughts, beliefs, philosophies, points of view, feelings, and all other endowment of being human.

Correct me if I am wrong because the meaning I just shared with you came from my own understanding as I get it and as I use it in my everyday practice. Anyway, this is an interactive blog. You can throw shots at me if you wish to. Just be gentle, all right!? I'm quite sensitive you, know. Argh!

But how is this in any way connected in my book review?

Have you read or heard about The Little Prince by Antoine De Saint-Exupery?

Well, this is all about it. I first saw the book from high school but didn't pay attention to even just skim read it. When I was in college, Vanessa, a close friend, mentioned it to me. Saying it is a wonderful book. She was talking about the stars (Well, I presumed she talks about it because she has a fetish on stars. I didn't know it is in any way linked to her Little Prince.) and give remarks on "what-is-essential-is-invisible-to-the-eye" stuff. "Hell, well!", I said, "Whatever!"

I came across it the next time when I watched with my family a Filipino movie where Angel Locsin received an old book from her secret admirer, that is, Richard Guttierez, entitled The Little Prince. Since then, I told myself, "What in the world is with The Little Prince that sensible people like Vanessa and Richard (the actor in his character, well, I don't know in person…) likes the book? What's in the book?" so I thought, I have to have a copy of the book. So after three years of watching the movie, thirteen years away from college, and seventeen years from high school (don't compute my age)… that soon, (Hehehehe!) that I got the chance to have a copy of the book.

Okay, enough for the recollection… let's get to business.

The Little Prince. Life space. "One sees clearly only with the heart. Anything essential is invisible to the eyes."

First scene: The writer, when he was six, has drawn a boa constrictor which ate a whole elephant. The grown-ups around him laughed at his drawing, saying it wasn't a snake, but a hat. He stopped drawing since then.

Lesson: The simplicity of a child sometimes speaks more of than what adults can. In other words, don't show your drawings to dumb grown-ups!

Second scene: The Little Prince was talking about baobabs, a kind of tree that grows too big for his planet that it can explode his planet into pieces if it is not uprooted upon its recognition that it is a baobab.

Lesson: Any bad habit starts as an exciting little adventure, that when you get to like it, it fits deep into your system like strong roots and it becomes difficult for you to unlearn it. In short, stop experimenting, there is a term called vicarious learning.

Third scene: A little planet occupied by a seemingly monarch who thinks he rules the stars and everything that inhabits his planet, where there is none that he knows of.

Lesson: Grown-ups are sometimes like that, they feel as if they have already mastered everything that they can manipulate everything, including other people. They have forgotten that authority is based first of all upon reason – reason that is morality-based, acceptable in other words, and seeks the good for not just one but for the majority, including both living and non-living things. Just a warning – "These people are dangerous!"

Fourth scene: The Little Prince moved in to the second planet which is inhabited by a very vain man who assumes every other creature is his admirer when the only creature in his planet is himself.

Lesson: Sometimes, I mean, more often that sometimes, man becomes too proud of himself that he forgets the terms "consideration" and "respect". My message, "Get real!"

Fifth scene: The third planet is inhabited by a drunkard who drinks because he feels depressed and ashamed of himself because he drinks too much.

Lesson: Man becomes so filthy. Their smuttiness more often than not is because of their own wrong doing. Simply put it, "Grown-ups are really very, very strange."

Sixth scene: The fourth planet belonged to a businessman who assumes he owns the stars because he thought of owning them first and he can put them in a bank by counting how many stars are there, writing the number in a piece of paper and keeping the paper in his drawer.

Lesson: Argh! A waste of time. Wasted life. Adults usually invest much of their effort doing not so sensible things. And they assume they do it because they are serious people. Oh come on!

Seventh scene: The fifth planet was rather extra small with a lamp and a lamplighter which is too absurd to be there because the sun shines and sets every minute, there is no need for an artificial light.

Lesson: People become so preoccupied with something they don't need. They just wake up one day, there life is almost over, but they haven't done a single act with meaning in their life. In short, "Damn!"

I think, I have to cut it from here. My review is so long, you might get bored. But I promise to continue next week. I'll give you time to digest the lessons you have to learn. For the meantime, well, I mean, I just realized, The Little Prince is very short compared to other books I already read, but the sure thing is, it's very good. Really-really good! I advice you get a copy of your own if you haven't got hold of it yet.