Another Year of the Treadmill
January 14th, 2009 Posted in advice, personalToday I turn 23.
That to some would be cause for concern and in moments of weakness I have felt a little scared seeing the years go by.
It seems the world keeps turning faster and faster, gaining speed and momentum.
When you are little the big wide world seems to tick by slowly. Your in a constant state of awe, totally amazed by it all. The possibilities seem infinite. You could become a fire fighter, an astronaut or anything else that strikes your fancy. Girls are icky but you know one day when your all grown up you get to play mummies and daddies, have little kids of your own.
As we get older the world spins faster. The second hand becomes a blur as the minutes, hours and days pass by. It can seem like your life is spent on a treadmill, ever increasing in speed while you desperately try to keep pace.
Sometimes it feels like your in a cartoon and your feet are glued to that treadmill spinning around and around out of control and knocking you about. We all get that way. We start to believe the world is eating us alive in our prime.
The truth is though your feet aren’t glued, you can even get off the treadmill any time you like.
Its not just the time either. Pressure is building. At first all that mattered to those around us was if we could spell our name, recite the alphabet and do a good finger painting. But the expectations grow each year.
Good grades must be turned into a great career. Fall in love with a?? great partner, buy a house. And so on. It can feel like a lot weighing on your shoulders. The burden of others expectations.
However you have the power to release that burden right now.
Just as you blow out candles on a cake, so to can you extinguish your burdens and make that treadmill disappear.
Check the number of candles on your cake. Your an adult and you are in control of your life.
You may not be able to slow the clock down, but you can control how much or how little you have to do in a day. You can also work towards a healthier life to ensure that you have more years to enjoy in good health and a longer life expectancy.
People around you may place expectations on you however ultimately only you can let them become a burden. Or you can choose to ignore them and live the life you like.
You can have your cake and enjoy eating it as well. Remember it is your life.
3 Responses to “Another Year of the Treadmill”
By Philip on Jan 15, 2009
Sometimes we do forget that we do own our life. It is a hard step to take because there is pressures to merely survive sometimes. I am still in college, but I have pressures to get the right degree to get the right job. Even figuring out the right job is hard.
The overwhelming question is: Am I doing everything the best way possible. Maybe we should focus more on living and find out where the road leads instead of worrying the destination. No matter where we end up, it will work out.
The post puts life in perspective.
By Legend on Jan 17, 2009
So true! Great post. Most of all the stress and expectations we put on ourselves is all self inflicted.
By Arun on Jan 27, 2009
Great analogy Bill! I may have to steal the tredmill metaphor.