“At least your passionate about something. I have no idea what I’m going to do…” I’ve heard a lot of people say that. It seems that no one is exactly sure of what the future holds. But for some of us, this is a very worrisome problem. I’ve heard that your twenties are a strange time. They’re a time where you’re figuring out what you want to do with the rest of your life. There’s no real guide for that, and that part can be scary.
I used to draw everyday, and for most of my life I thought that I would grow up to be a graphic novelist. But one day I dropped everything and began playing piano. No matter how much I had planned in life, I still found surprises in who I was. It doesn’t seem to really matter that I have a handful of things that that I’m very passionate about. The future is still unknown.
Uncertainty has worried me for a while now. But I’m learning to make peace with the unknown. Here is what I’ve learned so far: I’ve noticed that a lot of my friends dedicate portions of their life to something that they’re not all too interested in. They simply do certain tasks because it’s something to do. A lot of people go to college because it seems like a safe option. There are people who want to travel, not so much for the love of another country, but because their life seems a bit bland and they want some excitement. I even have a friend who appreciates his job because it burns time and distracts him from wondering about what will happen next in his life. And while it is very important to try new things and explore what you like and dislike, I don’t so much as see that, but see people who can’t handle the anxiety of being uncertain, and grab at the first thing they see.
My best friend and I play a game called Super Smash Bros. It’s a fighting game, and whenever my friend kills me and I start to get flustered, he always says, “When you lose a life, take a deep breath and think, ‘Okay, how am I going to approach this?’” And for some reason this advice has always sticks with me when I get anxious about the future. I take a deep breath and think, “Okay, How am I going to approach this?”
When I get worried about the unknown, I slow down and remember the things that are important to me. I remember that I love drawing, writing, and playing the piano. I remind myself that I want to live a life that makes me and others happy. But most of all, I love my friends and family and want to be around them. And so while I don’t really know too much about the future and what I’ll become. I know that those are the things most important to me. I remind myself that financial success and success are two different things. I remind myself that that success in society and success are also two different things. Instead, I take a deep breath, and remember what’s important.
