Success

I had an epiphany today. I've been trying to sum up the problems I see around me and I believe I've stumbled across a great find. Most people after completing school are in the nine to five grind. It's not long before they are "set in their ways". If any of these people who are honest when asked, would tell you that they experimented with many things in their early years from drugs to sex to sports to being a musician to being an artist to a host of jobs etc. If you pay attention, these days they "say no to drugs", they've held one particular job doing the same task for years and years, the sex has most likely gotten infrequent and dull, they don't play sports anymore, the guitar or drum set is collecting dust in the garage just next to the art easel. They might tell you that they don't have time to do any of those things these days, though they have no problem spending hours in front of the tube, living vicariously through characters. Why did they stop? People call it "getting old" or "set in your ways". Let's take a closer look: Society taught them success was a full time, high paying job no matter how boring and mundane. Society taught them success was a house with stainless steel appliances, flat screen t.v.s and a car in the garage with a shiny emblem on the hood. Society taught them success was an average of 2.5 children to raise and put through college, being an upstanding citizen in your community (meaning not questioning or resisting any of this) attending a church in your free time and to stay current on fashion, technology and reality shows. Society taught them that even though they couldn't possibly afford all this at one time, it was considered "successful" to spread the payments out, you know 5 or 10 years for the car, 15 years to accrue enough money for your 2.5 kids to get good educations, and there was absolutely nothing wrong with taking 30 years of their life to pay for the "mother" of all the bills, the house mortgage. I don't see anything wrong with owning any of these things...but what are they really costing these people? Inspiration! Before they got sucked into the rat race of "being a success", they had dreams of being an artist, they enjoyed writing their own music, the drugs seemed a happy time in their high school and college years, but ultimately didn't help them afford their "successful" things, so they just cut it back to some social drinks, maybe a pill or two (for their depression of course). The love making got old pretty quickly. Who feels like being intimate after a day of 9 to 5, running errands, cooking and/or eating, watching a few hours of television and throwing back a few bottles of brew? They're exhausted. I'm sure their vehicle and home brought them inspiration when they first made the purchases, but honestly, is a hunk of metal that rolls and stops on command supposed to inspire them for five to ten years? Is a box of wood or brick to watch their reality shows in supposed to inspire them for 30 years? Why would they ever decide to do this? And why would society tell them these actions meant "success"? Who controls what society is allowed and forbidden to do? Right, "Uncle Sam". Why do you suppose he would tell everyone to go out and buy things that only temporarily inspire, but cost a fortune to pay off? "Uncle Sam" makes anywhere from 1/4 to 1/3 of most people pay check. The harder and longer people have to work for things, the bigger these numbers get for "Uncle Sam" and the longer he gets to collect them. And the sad truth is that these people will go on working in order to buy more and more possessions in hopes of finding one that will inspire them longer than it takes to pay it off. I want you to think carefully. What's the most important thing in your life? Today, it may be a pair of shoes or an amazing new smart phone, but are the same shoes and phone going to keep you feeling inspired? Of course not. What about your pet, your friends, your parents, parties you've attended, parties you plan to attend, a vacation, any celebration where you were surrounded by happiness and fun? These things cost a fraction of what your material items cost. What if when you graduated high school or college, you spent your life working enough to live in a dwelling that was warm in the winter, cool in the summer and dry in the rain, no bells and whistles? What if you spent the rest of your life driving a car that got you from point A to point B, but was missing that shiny emblem? What if you spent the rest of your life composing your music and art, laughing and vacationing with friends and playing frisbee with your golden retriever? What if your relationships stayed fresh and young, due to lack of stress? Do you think you would be more miserable than the ones who had all the "success"? Who would suffer from you living such an adventurous lifestyle, no one...oh yeah "Uncle Sam". You are born with a sense of wonder and adventure and it seems society's main goal is to convince you that you don't need it. Your inspiration is your most valuable precious resource and you should never sell it. Especially for "Success".