As I sit here getting ready to head back to Japan this Tuesday, I began to reflect on a paper I had to write for an english class my senior year. It was to be entitled: "This I believe" and was meant as a reflective piece on what I truly wanted for life. I looked back on it and realized that the same foundations in this essay still hold true and may provide some meaning as to why I'm going back. If I get around to it, I will post my actually thoughts on returning :).
This I Believe: The Journey that is Life
A normal tombstone would read something like: John Doe, January 1865- June 1925. They all have their birth and death prominently shown. However, the most important part of that whole tombstone is that space between the two dates. This is where differences are made, love is won and lost, beliefs are challenged, and life is lived. I believe that life is about the trials and tribulations, not a means to an end. The journey that makes everyone’s life unique is the most important part.
Often people are too focused on what they want to do next. They want a crystal ball to see the future and find out what is to come. Even I spend more time worrying about something than actually living in the moment. Life is about the moments you take advantage of. Every experience we have leads us to something new. College is a time for indecision to hit and where many struggle to take advantage of situations in front of them in order to hold off for the future.
In my college experience, I was caught up looking to the future during my sophomore year as opposed to accepting the journey. I really had no real ambition as to where I wanted to go and did not really look into where I am. I would spend time sitting around waiting for situations to happen instead of making them happen. This is a depressing outlook on life. Eventually, I had enough and decided to get more involved in my school and community. I involved myself in many different school activities, trying things once just to say I tried. I joined Program Board, moved back on campus and got involved in hall council, became president of a student organization, and now am an RA. I even went to a swing dancing club meeting once. Even though I may be going into the teaching profession that does not mean that my entire existence should be devoted into the teaching field. There is no telling what the future may hold anyway. Who is to say that a connection made in small way could not prove to be a huge part of that hyphen that is life?
At this point in my college career, I am happy with where I am and what I have done over the years. Some may look at my transcripts and wonder how I could waste nearly 180 credits and 5 years. Though I will not admit every class I took had a profound impact on my life, the overall experience has given me the strength of character to push myself through obstacles. Had I just looked at the means to an end from the beginning, there is no way I would be getting myself into a major that was so time-consuming. Each road that my life has turned for the last five years has made me who I am today.
It is the journey that makes life worth living. Looking at historical figures, no one stares at the history of Abraham Lincoln and talks about when he was born or the fact that he died. They want to know about his presidency, what got him to that point, the Emancipation Proclimation, the Civil War, and the journey that he is remembered for. History would be useless if life’s journey was not chronicled. We learn so much from others journeys that greatly impact the way we live now.
When my time is done, I want to be known for what I did and whose lives I have positively impacted.I do not want to be known specifically for two distinct dates in time. I want to try new things and take many different journeys that will allow me to look back and say that I lived not that I existed.
Nice! Is it bad that I started singing It's the Climb?
ReplyDeleteHaha, I wrote the essay long before Miley Cyrus wrote her song.
ReplyDelete