“Well then you ought to sleep well, ’cause there’s hope for sure.” – The Avett Brothers
I’ve always believed that life is both far too short not to take chances as well as the perfect length to live fully and beautifully. It’s a crazy thing, really, the way people insist on avoiding the risks that make life worth living in the name of caution.
Of course, if you don’t study hard and get a useful degree, and then use that useful degree to get a stable 9-5 job, and then use that stable 9-5 job to raise a reasonable family, you could be seen as ‘irresponsible’ or ‘immature,’ and I couldn’t possibly imagine anything worse than that. Don’t get me wrong: there’s a lot of beauty in simplicity and if that’s you and you’re enjoying your life, I’m truly happy for you.
However, what if college feels like a waste of time to you? What if having a job where you’re expected to show up from 9-5 every week day without exception sounds like prison (yes, I know it’s technically voluntary, but you get my point)? What if you want to raise a family that lives for adventure rather than good grades and financial stability?
Are those people doomed to a life of frustrating monotony and disappointment? Is there only one way to be successful? Is God’s purpose for our life solely for us to be conventionally ‘responsible’? Or is there more than all that?
Well, as a college student without much life experience, I can’t say I know the answer for sure; but I intend to find out. My main goals in life are to love God and love others, but my secondary goal in life is to enjoy it. I believe the best way to live is with a whole lot of joy, a healthy dose of daring, and absolutely no semblance of a plan.
Which brings us back to the quote with which I started: no matter who you are, where you live, what you have, or what is going on in your life, when your head hits the pillow at night there is always hope for the next day. Just because you’ve been stuck in a rut for the last 20 years doesn’t mean you have to be stuck for the next 20. It’s all up to you whether or not you make the most of the time ahead of you.
No matter how many airtight plans you’ve made, the future is just a massive question mark and it’s up for grabs. Personally, I would rather look back on life knowing that I did my best to make the most of it every day. Stay tuned to find out how it goes!
Perspicacious 