Perspectives: Go your own way...

Relationship? Or Nah? That is the question that the whole world seems to be obsessed with. Who is in a relationship? Who isn’t? Our generation is the generation of oversharing. So even you are not in a relationship, you are constantly bombarded with images of promise rings, weddings, and ugly babies of distant cousins every day. In addition to unrealistic expectations of family life, we are also told that if we don’t make six figures, we may as well be hobos. At the same time that I hear my biological clock ticking, I’m also being told that my career is the most important thing. That I should never depend on a man and blah, blah, blah; vote Hilary 2016. We are habitually conditioned to live life feeling like we are always behind.

What no one tells you is that it’s okay. It is ok to not know exactly what you want to do with your life the moment that you step foot out of your high school. Accidentally dying your hair orange instead of blonde, isn’t the end of the world. You may even start a new trend. Maybe you will just look really stupid, but even then you will make it. Changing your major, or at least thinking about it, is almost inevitable. Losing sleep about whether to major in Underwater Basket Weaving, isn’t worth your time. One mistake doesn’t make you a failure; one success doesn’t make you a champion. Every day will present new opportunities and challenges that will test your character, as well as your patience.

When it comes to love and relationships, no one wants to invest emotions out of fear of being hurt. It is okay to have feelings. It is okay to love someone that doesn’t love you back. Not being loved back doesn’t mean that you less of a person; it just means that you are expecting the wrong person to love you. If you are any- thing like me, you often have days where you feel unlovable. Those are the days where I have to constantly remind myself of things that make me happy, that don’t involve anyone else. When you go through hard times remember what you live for.

Fact is: you have to work for whatever you want out of life. Marriage with kids, or rich bachelor that lives in a house boat in Florida, or anywhere in between. There is no right way to live your life. I recently read an anonymous quote that said, “What is normal for the spider is chaos for the fly.” What works for your friends or enemies won’t necessarily work for you. Do what you want, as long as you respect yourself, other people, and the Earth. Life is what you make of it.(Don’t you dare start singing Hannah Montana)

No matter who you are, you will not be the same person in five years. Your style will change, your lifestyle will change, and your identity will change. You will question ev- erything that you ever thought that you knew. You will laugh at things that one made you cry. It is called evolution. As long as the world turns, change is in- evitable. Don’t be scare to try something new, don’t be scare to be who you are. Do what you want. Chase your goals, whatever they may be. In a world full of copies, be an original. After all, the original is always worth more than the copies.