The 2/21/2008 Manifesto

I am constantly struggling to keep all the things going on in my life in order. It’s been a challenge, especially since settling into my new home during the last year and half, starting a new job, and getting married. Tons of big life changes have occurred all the while my responsibilities in life, in person and in work have doubled, or tripled. I used to think these transitions would be just that, temporary times of change. I have come to an understanding with myself that my life will be made up of these transitions, and I just have to be okay with it happening. What this means is letting go of some things…hobbies, habits, activities and relationships. Letting go can be difficult, but I realize I am not able to hold on to everything.

This is not to say I am not happy. I am probably more content and happy with my life now than I have been for the past few years. I have a loving wife, I enjoy my job, I have great friends, I live in an amazing place, and I get to see my family a heck of a lot more than I have in the last 10 years. With this happiness I have been attempting to prioritize the things in my life that I do not want to let go. That takes some time, and that means shifting the way I think about life. That means changing my behaviors. I am changing the way I work to be more productive but not work the average of 55-60 hours a week (my profession’s standard, which is ridiculous). I am changing the way I live (cutting back of the mind wasters of TV, junk food). I am changing the way I deal with people (forcing myself to contact friends, family, take time away from work to visit friends and family). I am changing the way I spend my time (reading more, writing more, pursuing my passions). And through all this I am hopefully learning what life means to me.

Why do I write about this you ask? Well, I believe that there is more to life than what we see on TV, read in magazines or are told at work. I believe that life is what we make of it, and that we must only work to live, and live to learn. I believe that we as individuals must take a stand in our own lives and demand more than what TV, our government, and corporations let us have. It is our time to take control of our lives and our world and stop living the lives of zombies. We must work against the prevailing images and model the way for our fellow humans regardless of what is thrown at us. We must create the world in which we want to live, and not the world in which others create for us.