It often seems to be the case that everything we do is geared in thinking about our future (well maybe not “everything” but a lot of the important things). We try to get good grades so we can get into college; we try to craft perfect applications so we can enter better colleges; we try to do well in college so our dream job doesn’t seem so unreachable; we get our dream job to get everything else we want…be it a happy family, material goods, or a self-sustaining lifestyle.
These are all great things; without challenging goals, I’m not quite sure what human life might be. However, I really think that us adolescents, and maybe even adults, can get too caught up in the investment of time…all for the future. Now, don’t get me wrong; I’m not trying to say yolo, #gowildandrunaroundnaked. There’s certainly an undeniable value to being studious and diligent…to be able to finish something that needs to be done. But! I would like to propose to all y’all’s consideration that there is more to life than working towards goals.
Please, take some time to love yourself; other people love you (including and especially, your parents) so love yourself. Go binge on some ice cream, buy and play that new video game, confess your love (or obsession) to that girl/guy you can’t talk to (now I’m just making stuff up…). Just take some time to enjoy yourself.
Deadlines are very real things, I know. But there’s something so beautiful about living in the present that allows us to regain our sight for the future. It’s because our future first survival instincts are geared towards allowing us to live in an enjoyable present…but if one never enjoys the present that they’ve worked so hard to establish, isn’t it wasteful and just a little tiny bit sad?
I would like to write about what encouraged this topic in the following paragraph.
Since coming to college, I’ve been swamped with work. The bulk of my work is a class called CS019 which incorporates a year of computer science into one semester (shameless plug: I highly recommend any future Brownies to try and take it. Awesome professor, great challenge). Unfortunately (like most programmers), I have this compulsion to finish my CS019 assignments before starting any other one; otherwise, it sits on my mind like an itchy cast and tortures me without mercy. So I’ve pretty much been doing about seven or eight hours of work everyday since coming here; thank goodness for work groups or I’d be socially inept by now. My mom calls me just about everyday and the minute long conversation goes like this:
Mom : What are you doing?
Me : Homework.
Mom : Have you eaten yet?
Me : No.
Mom : Why not?
Me : Homework.
Mom : Well I suppose I’ll leave you alone then.
Me : (hangs up without even saying bye)
Then one day, my mom finally said what was on her mind.
Mom : What are you doing?
Me : Homework.
Mom : Have you eaten yet?
Me : No.
Mom : Son, this isn’t what your dad and I let you go to college for. Going to a prestigious school and studying hard is worthless if you aren’t taking care of yourself right now. Go eat and play outside for a little while; stop doing your work and take a break.
Shock. Dismay. Confusion… Did my mom, MY MOM, really just tell me to stop doing work and go play? What? (Not meaning to push forward any stereotypes but my whole family is Chinese; take what you will from that.) And ya’know, I knew she was right; darn those mothers, they’re always right.
So where’s the change in my life? Well, two days ago I started exercising again; it was a 1 am workout in the shady basement gym of my dormhouse. Afterwards, I went to play piano (this was around 1:45 am) in an even shadier and empty building. All this on a weeknight and what fun it was! I felt so refreshed the next day, the polar opposite of my zombie robot self previously. And, I started to really enjoy life again; enjoy means to take joy in something and taking is an active action; make and take, the time and the effort, to enjoy your life.
I was given the suggestion of writing about staying on track for all you high school seniors (and some juniors) who are in the violent midst of the application process currently; These applications are for some of you the first time in your life where you basically make your own future. The quality of your applications will forge the next stage of your life and possibly the rest of it so do what your limitless self can (putting on the pressure) but remember that your future is now legitimately in your hands (taking some off) and you have unbounded possibilities before you. But really, I hope that you can learn to play as hard as you work (not vice-versa mind you) because then, life starts to shine in three dimensions rather than one.
Welp, that’s it. If my last line was too cheesy for you or you plain just didn’t understand it…well…I hope the rest of the post was enjoyable!