Looking For Answers

The question remains to be found, yet I keep expecting some sort of progress in my life. The sorts of adventures I crave are so antiquated that I feel a bit misplaced. One cannot simply up and leave. And jobs are so prescribed and... predictable nowadays that I am not surprised by the vast amounts of materialism.

Mankind has begun to lend itself and sell its freedom to the sweet temptation of safety. The few who rule this brave new world take pleasure in this co-dependency. The more that mankind isolates itself in items and imaginary worlds, the quicker it allows itself to die and create its own extinction.

It is time for a new era; it has been proclaimed by ancients and those who keep their ear to the heartbeat of existence.

Indeed, mankind is at it's rope's end. If outside forces do not remove it, surely it will implode upon itself.

What this new race will be, I do not know. Womankind, childrenkind, primate-kind... it is up for grabs. It is the time for change and outrage. It is the time for passion, not extremism. Intelligence needs to be celebrated once more, and experience to be honored. The greatest battles are going to be against ignorance and indifference.

These walls that have been built up must come down. Petty battles are being fought across the nation, and every detail being observed microscopically. For every habit we hoard, there is yet another weight added onto our personal paths to enlightenment. All institutions are inhabited by many people who claim that they are the ones who are right. Science is pitted against art and religion, though all of them can work completely in tandem. Education and politics can be balanced if one so desires it. The rich and poor can collaborate: if the two never merged how else would we have the poignant and inspired stories of some of the greatest members of society (Dr. King Jr., Princess Diane, Gandhi, Mother Teresa) and religious guides?

We do have a great amount of power, but we fail to recognize it. I remember visiting a director of a shelter in Washington C.D. He told my classmates and I that everyone has the potential to do great things; but if we misuse this potential, we do the greatest disservice. In his eyes, to be lazy and depressed was a selfish infliction on yourself. Admittedly, I think that depression has more roots than selfishness. Yet, in my own phases of depression I have recognized that most of my own suffering came from my own hands.

In the light of my own self-determination and less agitated consciousness, I realize what this reality lacks. This world is far too broad and too fragile to waste away in sweat-stained rags and sterilized worlds. We have turned ourselves into experimental creatures, manipulated by businesses and politicians. True freedom is gained by worldly adventures and personal responsibility.

Refuse to be imprisoned by this so-called "free market".

Demand for your rights, and those of your neighbors, for once theirs start to disappear, yours will quickly follow.

Penetrate into the secret societies that rape our abilities and skills with weapons of abusive power and humiliation.

Retaliate with passive-aggressive techniques when these entities attack, and progress with swift motion and unity when they are scattered. When they are still, remain patient and study them: take advantage of their weaknesses.

Fortify your position with allies, using compromise as a means to establish a cohesive unity against dirt and infestation.

Propel yourself above the safe and minimal standards that society has developed; greatness is gained from experience, not from the money earned or inherited from a long line of a family name.

And finally,

Liberate yourself and others from the crippling habit of ignorance and aggression by providing actively growing knowledge and gradually developed peaceful wisdom.

Contemplate these statements and find what truths lie within you, and then learn the best course of action that you can apply to your own life.

Critical Drinking - A Reflection

There are those who drink for fun and to express themselves, but there will always be the students who drink endlessly. These are the students who fruitlessly drink to fill the hole that rests inside them. Go into the bar and see what types of customers appear. In the corner is the gaggle of girls doing shots. At a table a couple is enjoying their beer, talking animatedly. Then there is the one on the corner of the counter, slowly enjoying their beverage.

               

 During college I saw, and experienced, both worlds. My friends and I would make our way out of the Healthy Lifestyles floor, and settle into one of the seedier dorms. Drinks would be evenly distributed, and each of us would keep an eye on the other. Even when a close friend hosted a wine party, there was a sense of organization and safety. We were surprisingly responsible, for the drinking college stereotype. So what would fuel the drinking that the media likes to explore? Perhaps it is time to look closer at college students lives.

There was always a tradition of seniors drinking on the first day of classes for celebration. The image of a senior was one hand with a pen, the other with their drinking mug. Stress was so overwhelming for the thesising students that it was accepted, even supported, that they would go drinking. Often the seniors would say how they were going to treat themselves to a drink or several after they reached a certain goal. Drinking was a group activity, and the most relaxing way to distress besides taking other drugs.

Yet for every day that there is a party on campus, there is at least one student who is sitting by themselves with a bottle. As the workaholic seniors focus intensely on their work -abstaining from friends or the pursuit of friendships- they become isolated. Each student has to rely on their own abilities to get through the day. But since some students have never been so overwhelmed, they have poor coping skills (if any at all). That single senior tries to always have a drinking group ready, but will always have something in their room in case there are no groups to join for the night. So they are left alone, with their drinks. Even if the campus is dry, the student will find a way to acquire the needed drug.

Alcoholism and addiction can be enhanced by genetics, but the students need to be taught good habits before they reach critical mass during college. I remember feeling so overwhelmed by thesising, personal issues, dirty politics, mass abandonment, and damaged self-esteem that I tried to drown the pain with numbing salve. Each day was a struggle to exist, to muscle up the façade that would get me through the day. I would hear stories of others drinking unthinkingly, somehow enjoying the evening and letting go of stress. All that I knew, and remember, was a costly journey into long nights and sunrises, hearing the life around me wake up as I fell asleep. When colleges take the time to address the needs of the students, then we may be able to eliminate the need to drink and reduce the amount of alcoholic incidents on campuses.