There is a quote in the book Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp that states, “We’re all like grass blades. We all grow up shoulder to shoulder, under the same sun, the same rain. Until inevitably someone comes and cuts us down when we’ve reached our prime.”
When I read that, the hard truth of it hit me.
My whole life I have wanted to be older. I’ve always looked up to people who are older, thinking that I couldn’t wait to be just like them. I looked forward to high school, and then turning 16 so I could drive, and then turning 17 so I was older than 16...and so it goes on. But now, I am at a point in my life where I wish time would slow down. This is a good age. We are right between the age of not having to be responsible for ourselves completely, yet we have enough freedom to still be young, and independent without having dire consequences for messing up, which we undoubtedly will.
This is a time when we can still have big dreams for the future, without the future being now. We have our whole lives ahead of us, and the slate is clean. How exciting is that? The world is your oyster and it’s ours to explore. Writing this now is even inspiring me. It is salient for me to keep my dreams alive at this age. There is so much I want to do in my lifetime. Travel the world, fall in love, live somewhere extraordinary, and find a job that I am passionate about. I want to live spontaneously, and never linger for too long in a pattern.
In my experience, I have met many adults who have lost sight of their dream and settled in the easiest place they could find, with a job that they were just okay with, and a person they could just about tolerate. That won’t cut it for me. I refuse to give in to the rudimentary principles that society has put in place, where money is the central part of everybody’s lives. Buy this car to drive to work. Drive to work to pay for this car. An endless repeat.
Maybe my dreams are unrealistic, and that’s okay. After all, what are dreams if they aren't difficult to achieve?
When we’re young, it is easier to have high hopes for the future. We are polished and new, not torn down by the culture we live in and influenced by the road more travelled. I do not want to reach the end of my journey and realize I have not done half the things I wanted to accomplish. No, I have every intention to complete all of my goals on my bucket list. We only get one ride on this roller coaster, and if it isn’t beautiful in every form, then what is the point? Jack Kerouac said, “Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry.” That is exactly what I plan to do.
