Artist Above: Ramin Nazer
How should we be spending the time that we were given here on earth?
Should one be living a hedonistic paradise? Some may argue yes, but others would say that we should be working to help better the world . . . but wait, what about working on ourselves? I mean, that’s why we were put here on this giant rock, right?
Right?
Hello?
THE CYCLE
Lately, I’ve been finding myself getting pulled into a cycle that is all to familiar in my world, and probably yours too.
This cycle is that of a man who loses countless hours to whatever his current obsession is. The last time I found myself here was with rock climbing where you could easily catch me spending three hours at the gym like it was nothing. But there came a point when my internal judge began to not be ok with that.
Let’s call him . . . Richard, because fuck Richard. Dudes a dick.
“Hey asshole, what are you doing spending three hours rock climbing on a Tuesday night. Don’t you have some better shit to do?” said Richard, the dick.
As much as everyone hates Richard, the fucker successfully did his job.
He planted a seed that began to insidiously work its way into my subconscious. From there on out, every time I spent three hours at the gym, all I could think is how I should be doing something better with my time. Something more productive. Something that would get Richard off my back because what I was doing wasn’t enough––in the eyes of Dick.
I mean Richard.
Well, I find myself bumping up against this cycle once again as I’ve been getting back into skateboarding and seem to only want to put my time and energy there. But I can tell that things are different this time around. Things are different because I no longer acknowledge the notion that I should be doing something better with my time, other than what I’m doing in that moment, because is this not also part of life?
I don’t know if there’s a purpose to life. I really don’t.
H o w e v e r, I do believe that everyone has a purpose.
I believe that with the time we have been given, we’re here to learn, be of service to others and to the world, and to enjoy this bitch to the fullest, in whatever fashion that may look like––minus the real heinous shit, ya know?
One third of that equation means letting our hedonic freak flag fly high. If we want to spend hours on hours rock climbing or skateboarding, then we should do just that. That’s us having fun, or in the words of Marie Kondo, “that sparks our joy.”
But, and you knew there was a but coming because we still have two thirds of our equation left to deal with.
Pursuing a life of joy does not mean neglecting every other area of our lives. We work to balance all the things; relationships, work, priorities, service.
Why should I help others, or the world, and why should I work on myself? Why shouldn’t I just do whatever the fuck I want?
The short answer: the world needs you to step up to the plate. One would think this is enough, but mo fo’s really be not giving a hot damn. In that case, the long answer is going to be an analogy, and if this doesn’t do the job, then you’re probably that kid.
DON’T BE THAT KID
There is a valuable life lesson that has been drilled into our heads since our younger years as teens, maybe even kids. The best part is, this wasn’t even a lesson that our parents or teachers taught us––which is actually a lesson within a lesson: lessonception.
If a group of people––kids––can come to an agreement on their own terms, without the intervention of adults, then you know that this shit is air tight. Safe to say that a lesson that doesn’t have to be taught is a lesson that transcends all barriers, but what could be so important that 100% of people reading this have long forgotten?
Our first time doing a group project in school.
Let me ask you, during a group project, were you ever a fan of that kid who would sit there with a thumb up his ass the entire time? Fuck no. I mean, unless you were that kid . . .
What about the girl who was a control freak? We definitely liked her more than hedonistic Hector because she actually did some work, but she also sucked eggs. She didn’t know how to have fun with everyone else. So while hedonistic Hector and neurotic Nora put a damper on school projects, there was everyone else who now not only had to work on their end of the deal, but had to work on course correcting for our two fuckos.
You picking up what I’m putting down?
Yes, let us have fun in life, let us do all the things. But how could that be all that there is when the world asks us of so much more? All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, but all play and no work makes Jack a mere toy. Somewhere in the middle lies the answer, and it’s up to the individual to find it for themselves.
