HW 34

"I wonder how they feel about themselves..." (Gwendolyn Brooks) I was surprised when she said that line I was expecting her to say something along the lines of, I wonder if they think they are cool for not going to school... I think the way she decided to put it however makes a whole lot more sense to finding the purpose of cool.  Having high self esteem is something we all want and I think that when someone has it their appearance and personality seems a whole lot stronger.  However even the most confident person to us may seem like they know exactly what they are doing and are positive about themselves but may have a completely different idea of themselves then what appears to an onlooker.  It seems as if most people for their whole lives try to find their purpose for being here, and so we observe all of the things around us.

One of them being other people, we have this whole idea that by looking at other people we will find the answer.  But in reality we all are so different so I don't think we are looking in the right places.  I think the reason why so many people are alike is because we observe hundreds of people every day and we pick up on traits that appear to be making the person happy.  Just as Gwendolyn Brooks was trying to say, what drives them to do the things they do...  if they can do it can't I do it too?

Today in class we were talking about maps and as much as we all have our own maps I think most peoples over lap and intertwine.  Then I started thinking about subway maps and subway routes.  We all have a different line because not one person is the same person but some of our lines have very similar ways of moving and getting to our destination.  We know that if we follow the path that people who have similar lives to us also follow we will end up just like them.  The reason why I think most people continue the same route as the people similar around them is because when we ask ourselves how they feel about themselves the answer is probably normal and satisfied.  Andy was talking about the young boy who his father tried to put on a different subway line and although it seemed to be leading him to a better destination in the future in the present it wasn't normal for the life he lived in.  The reason why there are so many lines is because different people accept different things and setting plays a huge role.  This is then why there really is no solid concrete answer to what cool is because how can you pinpoint something that has so many different lines and destinations within it.  

For some people however I think their guardians and parents play a huge role in making sure their daughter or son makes the right decision in which path they decide to follow.  For some reason when I think of this idea I think of stage moms.  Mothers who seem to be more into performing and being in the spotlight then their own child.  These mothers push their children to be something that their child might not necessarily really want.  It seems like they are reliving a dream they had and it didn't work out.  A babies mind is like a sponge, babies are not born with the ability to think for themselves and understand the difference between right and wrong, that's where parents come in.  They set up a lifestyle for a baby so that they will be normal yet satisfied.  From my own observation it seems as if parents take their own paths take out all the regrets and all the things they didn't like and make a better and more advanced path for their child.  However just because you are related to someone it does not mean you want to lead a similar life to them... but it is harder to change a path once you are in it because right from the start you have always lived a certain way.  Socially if you were to live any other way you wouldn't be accepted.  I think parents fear their child not fitting in and although they probably won't admit that it seems accurate.  Most people think being accepted means you are automatically happy, and at the end of the day that's what parents want for their children.  

As much as this might not even seem physically possible I think the only way to escape this way of living is getting off the path completely.  If you have no set destination and you just live in the moment maybe the whole concept of trying would demolish.  I think we focus so much on what is going to happen next and what already happened that when we are in the moment we don't realize what is going on.  If we are aware of the mistakes we make then we probably will make them a couple more times and then won't ever again but if you just sit there and are not fully alive in the moment how can you have any sense of reality?  People reflect and reminisce but there is a difference between remembering and living, things are not as clear when you look back on the past.  So maybe the only way to find your own sense of inner peace and "happiness" is to be for the moment and take the step forward your gut feeling tells you verses a map already laid out for you.