"it is not that we have a short time to live, but that we waste a lot of it. life is long enough.."
SENECA
On the Shortness of Life
human life expectancy is at 70, give or take. on the first half decade, you are not living, simply because you don't know how to. you are just learning. then if you are privileged enough, you start your life long real learning through school. still, you are not living by then, you are just following. following what your teachers and professors tell you, because you trust they're right. following what your parents teach you, because, well, they're your parents.
then you graduate. grade school, to high school, to college, and to graduate school, you know, if your parents are filthy rich, or you're either really smart or really really stupid.
then you get a job. then you think you're gonna start to live after all that. wrong. you have a boss barking at your back. your boss is not your only boss. their boss is technically your boss as well. and all of them are gonna be watching you, because in all fairness, they're paying you, you know, to build their dreams. but you, you are not living. you are just trying to live by their standards. not to mention, your parents still tell you what to do. and you still do it because, well, they're your parents.
this "protocol" goes on for decades, and this will be your standard for "living". you will know this as "living". this is the culture of "living". but it's not living.
and if you're stupid enough, you're gonna marry young, probably 4 or 5 years into your chosen profession. earlier if you're extra stupid. you know, because you're "in love". then you start re-ordering your life, adding someone else's standard into your way of "living" your husband's or wife's. you know, because you're "in love". then you start being a part of the tradition known as procreating, you know, even though you think it's not the right time or you just think there's just too many people already! but you still do it because first, your parents want grandkids, second, peer pressure, third, the church said so. now you have kids. and damn, it's the end of you.
and the whole process resets. only now, you are the parent. now you're gonna be telling them what to do, because hey, your parents did. then if you're lucky enough, or good enough, or you're the best ass-kisser ever, you're gonna be a boss. now you get to bark at someone, because hey, you got barked at, too.
you think you are living? no. you tell your kids what to do because someone else is telling you what to tell your kids -- the church, the media, other parents, your parents. you're barking at someone in the office because if you don't, you're gonna be barked at, again. living? no. but congratulations! because you are now part of the whole shenanigan called "society".
this happens to all of us in one way or another. and this is how you are sent to your death bed. and if, if you're lucky enough, you get to retire while you still can walk, or go to the bathroom by yourself, or can still eat just whatever you want without worrying about your health. then you decide to go on vacation. and that is if you have enough savings, which probably you don't, or if your children is supporting you because they haven't married yet, which probably they already have because hey, you did.
now you're in your vacation, having the time of your life. you go to places you've never been and you'd see their majestic beauty. you'd go to beaches, probably maldives, you know, if your unmarried child becomes the CEO of a drug syndicate or something. you're probably wearing sandals while walking on the white shores because hey, arthritis. you're probably drinking some non-alcoholic beverage under a huge beach umbrella because your doctor said your next sip of alcohol will be your last. you're probably checked-in in a very elegant hotel room where smoking is allowed but you can't because hey, doctor, remember? and you're having dinner in this extravagant ballroom gala that serves pot roast and ham and baby back ribs but all you hear is your doctor's voice saying fruits and vegetables and juice only. whatever happened to the go, grow, and glow foods you learned in the first week of pre school, you wonder. but you're enjoying every bit of it. and you start telling yourself, "this is living".
you go back to your hotel room, you doze off, and get awakened by your own heavy breathing. and for a fraction of a second, everything flashes before your eyes, and your last words are "they fucked me". you think everybody fucked you your whole life. no they didn't. you did that to yourself. you fucked yourself. so you truly lived just for one weekend, but on a brighter note, in maldives.
all in all, this statement, like "living", is pointless.
SENECA
On the Shortness of Life
human life expectancy is at 70, give or take. on the first half decade, you are not living, simply because you don't know how to. you are just learning. then if you are privileged enough, you start your life long real learning through school. still, you are not living by then, you are just following. following what your teachers and professors tell you, because you trust they're right. following what your parents teach you, because, well, they're your parents.
then you graduate. grade school, to high school, to college, and to graduate school, you know, if your parents are filthy rich, or you're either really smart or really really stupid.
then you get a job. then you think you're gonna start to live after all that. wrong. you have a boss barking at your back. your boss is not your only boss. their boss is technically your boss as well. and all of them are gonna be watching you, because in all fairness, they're paying you, you know, to build their dreams. but you, you are not living. you are just trying to live by their standards. not to mention, your parents still tell you what to do. and you still do it because, well, they're your parents.
this "protocol" goes on for decades, and this will be your standard for "living". you will know this as "living". this is the culture of "living". but it's not living.
and if you're stupid enough, you're gonna marry young, probably 4 or 5 years into your chosen profession. earlier if you're extra stupid. you know, because you're "in love". then you start re-ordering your life, adding someone else's standard into your way of "living" your husband's or wife's. you know, because you're "in love". then you start being a part of the tradition known as procreating, you know, even though you think it's not the right time or you just think there's just too many people already! but you still do it because first, your parents want grandkids, second, peer pressure, third, the church said so. now you have kids. and damn, it's the end of you.
and the whole process resets. only now, you are the parent. now you're gonna be telling them what to do, because hey, your parents did. then if you're lucky enough, or good enough, or you're the best ass-kisser ever, you're gonna be a boss. now you get to bark at someone, because hey, you got barked at, too.
you think you are living? no. you tell your kids what to do because someone else is telling you what to tell your kids -- the church, the media, other parents, your parents. you're barking at someone in the office because if you don't, you're gonna be barked at, again. living? no. but congratulations! because you are now part of the whole shenanigan called "society".
this happens to all of us in one way or another. and this is how you are sent to your death bed. and if, if you're lucky enough, you get to retire while you still can walk, or go to the bathroom by yourself, or can still eat just whatever you want without worrying about your health. then you decide to go on vacation. and that is if you have enough savings, which probably you don't, or if your children is supporting you because they haven't married yet, which probably they already have because hey, you did.
now you're in your vacation, having the time of your life. you go to places you've never been and you'd see their majestic beauty. you'd go to beaches, probably maldives, you know, if your unmarried child becomes the CEO of a drug syndicate or something. you're probably wearing sandals while walking on the white shores because hey, arthritis. you're probably drinking some non-alcoholic beverage under a huge beach umbrella because your doctor said your next sip of alcohol will be your last. you're probably checked-in in a very elegant hotel room where smoking is allowed but you can't because hey, doctor, remember? and you're having dinner in this extravagant ballroom gala that serves pot roast and ham and baby back ribs but all you hear is your doctor's voice saying fruits and vegetables and juice only. whatever happened to the go, grow, and glow foods you learned in the first week of pre school, you wonder. but you're enjoying every bit of it. and you start telling yourself, "this is living".
you go back to your hotel room, you doze off, and get awakened by your own heavy breathing. and for a fraction of a second, everything flashes before your eyes, and your last words are "they fucked me". you think everybody fucked you your whole life. no they didn't. you did that to yourself. you fucked yourself. so you truly lived just for one weekend, but on a brighter note, in maldives.
all in all, this statement, like "living", is pointless.
