A Personal Prescription for a Bittersweet Life
When I was little my dad told me:
“Son, you are worthless and insignificant and you will never accomplish anything in your life.”
I’m kidding, he didn’t, but I always wonder how could’ve that turn out. My dad approach to life was more of a smell the opportunity, approach it, work for it, get it, have it, enjoy it, and repeat sort of approach, and that philosophy was passed down to me. But I never really actually genuinely took his advice. I want my own approach, which I believe he will never agree with.
This personal sentiment you are about to read is no life advice on how you should live, is a prescription of mine I try to take every now and then so I don’t fall victim of a far-fetch world we are constantly been bombarded from friends, family and the media.
You see, since little, our parents have always told us how great and precious we are, that we could strive in this nasty world if we are willing to fight for it and endure. Is not only bound to our parents, our education system, society, and the media are constantly reminding us of it, it was even coined in the USA as “The American Dream.” Everyone believes they are entitled to greatness, to have better living standards, to love and to be loved in return, to a successful career, a bigger house, a faster car, more luxuries, more money, more fame, more this, more that, more EVERYTHING. It seems that more is not even enough. Maybe our brains are wired to pursue more, maybe we just are greedy by nature or maybe we value ourselves by how other perceive us, by how much possessions and what positions we hold, or maybe all of the above. Don’t get me wrong, this is no attempt to contempt people pursuing that, to be honest with you, I probably want a taste of it too.
Nowadays, technology allow us to be connected to the -est of our societies across the globe, the prettiest, the richest, the funniest, the strongest, the handsomest, the talent-est. This ensues our minds to be inextricably wired to their lifestyles, as all of the attention are given to them, and as a result, a relative depravation from the -est of the -est. What comes after that is another story.
Reality is, you probably won’t even make it to a near top, you won’t be even close to that near top, a probably more real reality is that you are worthless and insignificant and you will never accomplish anything in life. And that is because we are just one among the billions and a no one when we compound it to the infinite universes out there, and obviously because we just don’t want to endure the pain (note that I am not against at pursue your dream theme either.) I believe you need to be responsible for yourself and be better than who you were yesterday.
And this is where I’m leading to, you see, we need to learn to be okay with what we are, up there is probably not as it seems. I believe there is a universal law that human beings are subject to, suffering. Rich suffers, poor suffers, white suffers, black suffers, tall, short, strong, skinny, Asian, homeless, sick, disabled, handsome, ugly, capitalist, communist, democratic, single, married, widowed, divorced. EVERYONE suffers. This suffering thing is not picky at all, is not as picky as Covid-19, the virus has a preference towards certain social classes, ages and race (if that is okay to say.) Of course, some sufferings are worse than others. Nowadays, however, the average person tend to fixate their suffering on a more particular thing, the uninteresting no-fun life make money climb up the latter. Do not yearn for the summit when you are not willing to re-climb it when you fall along the way up. Besides, is the fall that make us grow, make us stronger, faster and smarter, it’s the pain what makes it all worth it. All that said, pick up your fight and endure what is meaningful to you.
And you, what are you willing to suffer for?
