I was dying
First, I was dying to finish high school and start college;
And then I was dying to finish college and start working.
And then I was dying to marry and have children.
And then I was dying for my children to grow old enough
for school so I could return to work.
And then I was dying to retire.
And now, I am dying... and suddenly I realize I forgot to live.
Anonymous
Submitted by Nicole Zablocki
I was scrolling down my Instagram feed when I saw a picture of a poem that my friend posted. To be honest, I was stunned for a moment trying to taste every word and swallow it one by one, then I knew that this is the most honest mistake every human being tend to make. We forget to live. We are too busy being stressed out and being overwhelmed about something that would not matter 5 years from now. I think people spent probably 75 percent of their life time putting pressures on themselves. It's heart-breaking to see a lot of people regretting the choices they have made in their past lives, and wishing they could have done it all over again.
I'd rather make a lot of mistakes than trying so hard to avoid them. I don't want to be an eighty year old lady who spent her whole life doing nothing because she is too scared of failures. Mistakes is unavoidable, we all make mistakes, we learn from them, they are a part of us. Without them, we are nothing. I am not saying you should do drugs, sell ecstasy and cocaine then steal from people. We all have boundaries, and we need to figure it all out which one to do and which one to leave behind. It's all common sense. We know what is right and what is wrong. All I'm trying to say is have fun, live your life, enjoy your youth because you won't get it back once you reach that stage where you have a family that you need to take care of.
I spent too much time being afraid of deciding, choosing, and escaping. I used to let other people make the choices for me because I cannot stand up for myself, I am too frightened with what life has in store for me. My mom was my sidekick, I discussed everything with her and told her to just decide everything for me. But one day she told me, "I won't always be here for you, you know? There will be one day when you have to do everything on your own." That point on, I realized that she is right, I don't want to be a coward who always live under her shell wishing that she would protect me till my death. Realistically speaking, that was preposterous of me to even think that I can hide my whole life from the real world. I keep telling myself even until now, "I own myself, I make the choices and the decisions, I'm the one who knows what I'm capable of and what I'm disable of, I know me best. I may ask other people for opinions and advice, but at the end, I'll be the one to decide because there is no one else who knows me better than I know myself." That's how I got through everything on my own, when I make choices for myself, I won't regret a thing because I know that at that moment, it was the best choice for me.
LOVE,