So I just read my last blog. It was written THREE YEARS ago which, I’m quite certain, was actually yesterday. My reaction to it’s eloquent words pouring so intricately out of my beautiful clairvoyent mind? Always this.
It’s a knee jerk reaction. I can’t help myself. I think I’m an excellent writer when I decide to be. In any case, much…..MUCH has happened in those three theatrical years. In order to not bore you with something EVERYONE is tired of talking about because it, in fact, involved EVERY single person on this planet: I will let you google 2020 pandemic if you happen to be reading this in 4068 as I hope my words will penetrate that deeply. The people will surely commemorate my life, with this blog being the culmination, and relic, that is to tell my life story as the utter legacy I must be….which brings me to my point.
Life is…..so……so…….so…..short. How do you reconcile that fact with even trying to leave a legacy? Within two generations, you will be forgotten. No one will know who you were, and if for some reason they look you up in an attempt to piece together their ancestery, the most they may get is a reduction of your human spirit in the form of a job title and address. Unless they have found these blog post’s I’ve written in an attempt to define my unique existance, in which case, hello and you’re welcome. Here, you will learn all the greatest, and still somewhat socially acceptable parts of me.
But back to the subject of this post – if life is so short, why try to do much of anything? At the same time, the fact that we know we are barreling toward the end, is what motivates us to do something with our lives and do it quick before time runs out. As time goes on, IF you are growing mentally, you will learn that you no longer live for other’s but for yourself. The caveat being, we built a world where pleasing others, to an extent, is necessary to fueling the life you are building for yourself. However, what if we only lived for pleasure since there doesn’t seem to be a real reason to do anything other than that during this short time? My theory is that would slow life way down and make it long enough to realize that pure pleasure will not sustain you. It would essentially magnify the fact that you better do something while you are here…..
My newest epiphany on the concept of legacy is the following: instead of the following tired question supported by all the raging pressure of a society built on competition and perfection: What do you want to leave behind? What do you want your legacy to be? Newsflash: that “legacy” will only last two generations, at best. Instead, imagine you are in Heaven or the next parallel world and you are looking down on Earth. Someone comes up to you – a stranger, points to Earth and asks, “So, what did you do down there?” Pressure….off. Completely. This makes it way more open of a question which allows for way more open of an answer. This stranger doesn’t have the capacity to know what was good or bad here on earth. They don’t know the parameters of what was seen as successful etc. You then get an opportunity to create the narrative with zero preconcieved notions.
What if we started looking at life without thinking of parameters that society has set? The same parameters that may have shifted your goals and perception of what you have or haven’t reached. What if we compared our life to a blank slate or thought of it as starting at zero and adding up what we did against zero? Honestly, why do we do it any other way?
As a school counselor and LPC-Associate, all I want to do is get people to see life this way. I want everyone to think differently so that we can all feel better doing life. We can see the world with new eyes at every turn if we tear away the social constructs we have somehow managed to build and adhere to for years.
The only social constructs I can get behind is a deep sense of understanding the human condition, kindness, and empathy. If you are kind to others then you are a good person and really, how can we ask for anything more than that?
In conclusion, you do you. Have fun while you are down here, lean into joy every single chance you get. This life is a whirlwind and it’s only spinning faster, well atleast perceptibly as we age. What will you say to this stranger when they ask “What did you do down there on planet Earth?” I hope you can paint a picture that brings you joy when they do.
onthecontrarykelly 