So I know I was going to talk about intellectual stuff like the education system or something for my second post-but I have a life epiphany that I would like to share with you all. And it's not even one I've been thinking about the past few days (which I have been doing). I came up with this about an hour ago while driving and almost ran into a car but I DIDN'T so it's okay.
My big 'life epiphany' is this: Anything in life worth doing-there's a risk of getting hurt.
If you're reading this and thinking "wow, um...you just figured this out?", well then, maybe I should congratulate you for already knowing. But for me, it really made sense today.
Probably part of what started it was some tragic news I received today. One of my teachers/mentors in high school, Ms. Howard, passed away. As sad as it is, it is sort of beautiful to see all of my high school friends come together-even if its via internet or text or whatever-to remember this amazing person who touched our lives. We're all going our separate ways and live far apart, and may not really speak to some of them outside of Christmas time anymore, but in this, we were brought together. Now, when we were in high school and Ms. Howard was a daily presence and we saw our high school friends every day, none of us would have imagined that just four years after high school, this would happen. We were naive-but that's how life works. But we still enjoyed our time with her and each other as much as if she lived another 50 years. It's sad that she died, but the fact that we are sad shows how much of an impact she had on our lives, and how lucky we were to have a teacher in our lives that cared about us.
This goes for any special relationship; spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend, fiance, friend, family...whoever is important to you. Those that really matter...they'll make us sad or angry, even before someone dies. They'll betray you, not listen to you, do something you asked them not to, say something negative about someone else you care about-you name it. It'll drive you crazy, and make you almost wish you didn't have those emotions (I have thought that SO many times)-but don't. The fact that they can make you this upset shows how much of an impact on your life. The good has to come with a little bad-it's part of being human. That pain shows that you care about them, and most likely they feel the same-embrace it. Work through what happened and grow in your relationship with them.
I said this applies to more mundane things too. When I was little (and to an extent now), I've been kind of afraid of playing sports like soccer, basketball, etc. I did to appease my parents. But I was so terrified of getting injured. But this epiphany applies to sports and other fun things in life. There's a risk of getting hurt-and it being painful, having to miss out on future things to recover, etc. But people still do those things in droves. Why? Because they are fun enough that it's okay to take that risk of pain. And really, anything fun will. The only way to avoid pain is to hide away and live in a little room...which is kind of impossible, but also really sad.
Of course, too much pain isn't good, and if the main emotion in a relationship is pain and suffering-get out of it. But in order to ENJOY a relationship, and I mean truly enjoy it-be it a sport, vacation, etc., you have to accept that there will be pain. But that's okay. Because it means you're ALIVE. And LIVING. And on the way to bringing happiness to your life.
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