Too many times have I opened this screen in attempt to write something at least partially profound that would inspire someone out there in the great big world, but too many times I was confronted with writer's block, something else always came up, or I just didn't know which words to say. I find my uncertainty a little funny because I am a believer in words. I love to read stories composed of haphazard sentences somehow compiled into something genius. The thrill of reading has always been fulfilling and has induced much needed time for self-reflection and questioning. I've very recently developed a strong liking to writing my own thoughts down, expressing my emotions with a pen and paper instead of always speaking them. Someone in my life once told me that emotions are so messy, yet beautiful. "So are words, so beautiful," he said. I couldn't agree more.

Words have a power that connect us to a crumpled piece of paper or the vocalized thoughts of another human being. We can feel so much or so little based on the words we see and hear. Later, that someone mentioned above made the point that, "Meaningful words are just scribbles on a page. It's our understanding of it and how it makes us think how it relates to our life or how it relates to our stories that matter." I find that as I get older, I want there to be a certain level of depth and meaning behind the words I speak and write. I want to feel connected to the words I read and write in a way that differs from another who may read or write the same words. Hence why I now try to formulate my thoughts into somewhat eloquent sentences that gives some degree of insight as to what I might be feeling. However, I realize that I fall short of this often so please bear with me if I haven't lost you already.

One of my favorite books is written by the brilliantly witty John Green entitled, "Looking for Alaska." I won't give away too much since I hope all of you sit down and read it for yourselves. But in the event that that doesn't happen, here is a short synopsis:

Boy from Florida who reads biographies of well-known authors, lacks school friends, and memorizes the last words of famous people is looking to make more out of his life. Moves to boarding school in Alabama in hopes of new experiences and opportunities. Meets his best friends who eventually become like family to him. Breaks A LOT of rules and consistently strives to make the most out of every opportunity. Meets girl who he somehow falls in inexpiable love with. The year is full of hundreds of tiny adventures until girl leaves and the remaining clan must find out how to go on without her. The discovery they make at the end is remarkable.

Despite my poor, yet intentionally choppy explanation of the plot, I failed to mention a profound aspect of the story that kept me intrigued throughout my time spent reading. While I know absolutely nothing about Francois Rabelais except the fact that he was a poet and his last words were, "I go to seek a Great Perhaps," I find this simple phrase to be a compelling one. The narrator went on to say, "I don't want to wait until I die to start seeking the Great Perhaps." So I went on reading, trying to somehow quantify these words into a straightforward idea to live by and follow. I have finished the book and am still left unsure of what this means. But I think I might have an idea.

The Great Perhaps has to do with what we make of it. It is dependent on whether we desire to make the most out of every possible experience in hopes to gain some greater understanding of the world as a whole. It depends on if we choose to Carpe Diem and place ourselves in situations with risks we are just a little to scared to take. The Great Perhaps relies on our willingness to travel countless winding roads with the unsettling possibility of never determining where we are going. I think the Great Perhaps is what we want it to be and how we make it into just that. Or maybe I am wrong and it is just another couple of words written on a page, holding little to no meaning that countless readers try to quantify and reason to somehow make sense out of what they feel inside.

I'm not sure; however, I do like the idea that we must take action in order to actively seek the Great Perhaps. So that's just it. Once we've written all of our ideas out on paper and exhausted every ounce of our minds, we must go out and do. It is true that words hold a whole lot of meaning, but can that meaning have any depth to it if we stop there? How can we actively seek out and live by the meaning of countless words and endless phrases if we just read and write them? Similar to the idea that if I had just written, "I want to serve people. I need to do more in the world. I am good at XYZ things and possess this and that talent and someday I hope to make mittens for elementary school children. Maybe I'll even start my own non-profit. We'll see." If I had stopped there, the words would hold some meaning that would eventually deteriorate over time due to may lack of doing. The meaning behind the words would speak, but the actions would scream.

So I close with this. Maybe we all aren't supposed to start a non-profit or maybe we all can't volunteer three hours a day at the local food pantry. But then again, what if we are? What a world we would be a part of if we all wrote down the words we want to say and then took that paper, set out on a journey to seek the Great Perhaps, and did something unimaginable that would forever change the life we lead as well as those lives we intend impact. I challenge you all, as I challenge myself, to go out and seek the Great Perhaps. Go out and make a difference in some way that will leave your mark. For words can be beautiful, but actions hold the true power of how we express beauty.