Tight Rope

Our culture has made life a balancing act. In the eyes of society we need to: get an education, get out of debt, own a home, have a fancy car, have the newest phone, have a high paying career, and rear a family. Depending on where in the country you live by the time you achieve all of this is what determines if you are a failure or success.

So let's look at things from a different perspective.

We are all failures. We are going through resources faster than we can make them. We are living of of "food-like" products instead of food. We are sitting in cubicles when in reality we are animals just like every other living organism. Imagine how healthy a _insert favorite animal here__ would be if they sat behind a computer screen for eight hours a day instead of outside moving around. It's no wonder we're obese. It's no wonder we're not happy. We are not anywhere near as Japan, working themselves to death. But are we not on our way there? Is competition not driving us in an unhealthy direction for our species? Instead of trying to help others and ourselves live healthy, fulfilling lives, our society wants us to be dependent on the drug administration. Treating our symptoms instead of the simple solution to our problems... eating real food, and treating ourselves like the animals that we are. We need walks, fresh air, a proper diet for longevity. We do not need to be constantly connected with everyone we've met since we opened a facebook account, we do not need to watch 30 minutes + of television daily. We do not need to take work home to get "ahead" when we're actually severing good relationships to the people in our lives.

We are all successes. We have evolved into amazing creatures which massive potential to create a better world for our own species and for every other species we share this world with. We have different cultures to learn from to make these advances possibly. We have such capacity to really improve the lives of any creature we come into contact with if we could put greed aside and focus on the fact that we are all one.

So what is more important? Being happy? Making others happy? Truly living? Or "living" for others? You decide.

Fake it.

After a late evening my eyes were having trouble opening so the decision to stop by the gas station for some caffeine was made. At the gas station I quickly grabbed the drink of choice and went to stand in the surprisingly long line. There were two cashiers but only one was actually going through customers at a normal pace. The other one was held up by one customer. 

A fluffy woman with long silver hair tied back in a pony tail. She was leaning over the counter and speaking with the one. Her facial features were like a wrinkled version of my mom's. She reminded me of her for a few different reasons; because of her hair--keeping it long  is somewhat uncommon in woman of a certain age around here, her conversation--you could tell how lonely she was, and her face--the resemblance was uncanny. 

It made me feel guilty and sad. I don't know where to draw the line with my mom's and my life. I don't know how to get all the things I need to done and still spend enough time with her to make her feel appreciated and dismiss her loneliness. It's hard enough to balance work, school, and a social life. I spend time with family weekly, but it's not enough to dismiss her loneliness, it's easy to see. 

So how does everyone else seem so functional? How does everyone seem to find a healthy balance and make everyone feel loved? Or is it this hard for everyone and they all just paste a on a happy face and go about their days pretending everything is okay? Painting a mirage in the line of sight for all to fall prey too. Using that whole "fake it till you make it deal" that may as well be "lie to yourself, everyone else will believe it and eventually you will too."