Yesterday, I came to a realization. I realized that life is but one big school and death is it's graduation. Stay with me. I promise it's not as dark as it sounds.
This is how I see it. From grade school to undergraduate to graduate school, you’re always expected to know a bit more than you did the previous year. Each class lesson is an opportunity to learn and prepare yourself for your next exam. And how well you do depends on a variety of factors, but includes some combination of circumstance, self-effort, and attitude.
Similarly, this is life. In life, you’re constantly faced with life lessons. Some lessons are easier to see and easier to overcome while others are more subtle and harder to overcome. And your ability to overcome these obstacles, again, depend on some combination of circumstance, self-effort, and attitude.
What makes the school of life tough though is the fact that you were never informed of your attendance at this school, and frankly, you have no choice. Additionally, you aren't always aware of the lessons you’re being taught and you’re not always given the tools to succeed, which can be extremely frustrating. What’s worst is that most of us are told a lie that once we leave this traditional system of education, that it’s time for us to take everything we have learned and go prove ourselves. It becomes more of a “do or die” mentality, leaving very little room for failure.
How scary and overwhelming is that? Let’s look at life through the lens of school. If life really is a school, how would you treat and react to experiences in your life differently?
For me, I would allow myself to try new things and fail a little bit more. Because just like in school, at the end of the day, everything will work itself out. You may not always see it right away, because the school of life takes more time, but the light at the end of the tunnel is always there. You just have to trust and allow yourself to guide the way. Even when you fail a class, it's okay. Somehow, you figure out a way to make it up and continue on. It may take some of us a little longer to figure things out, but who says we all have to move through it at the same pace?
I would definitely take more risks and experiment a little more because it’s okay. I’ll have at least tried. Because when I look back on my years in high school or college, I never regretted the things I did, only the things I didn't do, the things I wanted to try but never got around to, or was too scared to. Not that everything I ever did was the right thing for me, but I got to learn that lesson first hand and I never had to wonder.
I would take things less seriously and not be so hard on myself. When you see life as a series of classes and lessons you're meant to learn from and not this daunting, cut-throat, real world thing everyone talks about, you realize how unimportant most things are that we stress over.
I would be more open. I want to be open to the lessons life is trying to teach me. I'm meant to experience not only the good in life, but the bad, because with each circumstance, there's a lesson in there for me. A lesson that will help me be a better person.
Why does any of this matter? Because life should be enjoyable. We've been blessed with the ability to think and feel in ways most animals can't, so we have to take advantage of this. Why must we waste our time dwelling in misery when there's so much happiness to be enjoyed? What are these duties and responsibilities that we have to fulfill? Who benefits from us acting this way? When we're laying on our deathbeds, none of this will matter. Regardless of your beliefs about life after death, all of these superficial, material accomplishments will leave us and will mean nothing. The only thing that matters is how we feel in that moment. Are we content and satisfied with how we lived our life, or are we filled with regrets and wishing for more time?
I'm not saying to shun society and all of life's responsibilities. I just want to enjoy every year in this school of life. I know the only thing that will matter to me is that I'm surrounded by people I love and I got to do and see everything I wanted to, plus more. I won't care about what's in my bank account or what legacy I left behind. Sure, all of that is a bonus, but not the priority. So from here on out, I vow to take life a little less seriously, to go easy on myself, to listen to my needs, to worry less, and to enjoy there here and now.