Be grateful

During my metamorphosis, I came to realize something about life. And that is that it's BEAUTIFUL. But I'm talking about life. People. Nature. Art. Music. God's creations. Most definitely not grades and pay raises.

It makes me so sad to see people who think that the only thing that matters is their grades, because that is absolutely not true. A GPA does not define your worth. As much as people say that they understand this, I don't know if they actually do. They continue to strive for good grades for the sake of good grades. Not for discipline or self mastery or because they love learning, but because they want that piece of paper that says "I'm good enough". My opinion is who gives a crap whether you have a PhD or a GED? That's not what I care about. There's a human being behind that piece of paper.

Nobody should be judged by what combination of letters represents them in the "real" world. I mean really, it's just some initials representing the kind of degree you earned. Now, of course, I see the value in an education. But what matters is your intentions. Do you actually want to go to school because you want to learn? Or do you want to go to school because if you work hard enough your parents will think you're worth something? Some people go to medical school because there's money in being a doctor. Do all of the people going through medical school actually want to help people with the knowledge they are gaining? Or do they do it because their parents want them to? These are the kinds of questions I would ask a new college student. Go after something you love, because if you don't, you are wasting a lot of time. "Men are that they might have joy." Hear that? We were born to be happy. We were not born for a 4.0.

Our systems make me crazy. It's all that most people see, yet it's completely invisible. It's the idea that you MUST get good grades to be worth something to anyone. It's the idea that to live, you MUST get good enough grades to get a job. It's the idea that you MUST be valuable to a company because you have an impressive resume. Of course I also get the fact that we need to provide for ourselves and our families, but what good does it do if you're only surviving an only half bad life? What ever happened to the world that we live in? What happened that made people forget that there are people to meet and new things to experience?

When I went against the social norm and took a step back, I realized how grateful I am for the beauty I am surrounded by. We are all surrounded by it. Physically, we all see it. But do we appreciate it? I guess what this all comes down to is gratitude. If people could be grateful for the wonderful lives we have in this rotten country, maybe they'd be happy. And it's not hard at all - people say that happiness isn't an overnight thing, but it definitely can be. Your circumstances don't have to change even an ounce - it's your perspective. If you just look around and take a second to be thankful that you have simple things like shade and air conditioning, you'll be much happier. I promise, it's like magic. It changed my aunt's life. She was a pretty depressed person, and when she started being grateful for everything, she was on cloud nine. 

It seems that everyone in the world lives inside the box. When I imagine "the box" and the system that we all follow, I see everyone living in big, gray corporate buildings. They sit in cubicles while the people in control have their offices with mahogany desks and potted plants and leather chairs. Meanwhile, I'm outside, laying in the grass and staring at the sky because it's beautiful and it's there. The corporate buildings are very real for some people, but the metaphorical buildings are not real. The metaphorical buildings are the state of mind that people have. You aren't trapped in them. People metaphorically walk in all by themselves, and teach their children to do the same. It's become our culture. Nobody knows any better. 

The metaphorical corporate buildings might not be real, but the sky is real. The way that plants provide your very breath is real. Everyone should take a minute to hug a tree. I mean it. Hug a freaking tree. They are very nice to you, you know, providing oxygen for you and everything. There is nothing wrong with being close to nature. Nature is God's most raw, pure creation. It lives without corruption and continues to serve this ungrateful human race without questioning.

For some reason we often forget God and always remember that we need to get good grades. School is not about grades, people! IT'S ABOUT LEARNING. Our school system is designed so that we remember facts long enough to check the right box on the test. Real educators try to teach lessons that matter. I had a teacher that was like that. My english teacher. Best teacher I've ever had. She taught us so much more than vocabulary words. I wish there were more teachers like her. 

We are doing it wrong. I'm sure many will disagree on this point, as I have experienced before. I know a lot of pro-public school people, and they seem to only understand school. Again, that breaks my heart. A huge portion of peoples' lives are wasted when they only seek for credibility. I beg them to understand how wonderful life is when you take a minute to appreciate it, all obligations aside.

Why don't you do that - take a minute (however long you want a minute to be) and stop caring about what you have to do tomorrow. Stop worrying about what's due. Stop worrying about work or school. Just stop for a second or two.  And have a conversation with someone. Learn something new. Go outside and breathe. Look at the sky and appreciate the fact that the sky always changes, providing a beautiful picture for you every day. Then realize that we live surrounded by beauty. Then smile, because you know that there is so much more to enjoy than you ever thought before.