On Direction and Purpose

I just read a blog entry on MySpace that a friend wrote about contradictions in her life, on finding direction after college and the admittedly sad state of this country. One of her points was that critical thinking is no longer rewarded or encouraged, we are taught how to take tests rather than learn and how to become "cogs in the machine."

In a lot of ways, I'm not sure critical thinking has ever been encouraged. People are often threatened by those who go against the grain; those who speak out in a new direction.

And then I thought about the free thought/ hippie movement of the 60's...was that rewarded? In a lot of ways, counterculture of every kind has become important in hindsight. I wonder what the non-hippies, those who needed to be providers, those part of a conservative society, thought about the people who will always be symbols of that time period. Did hippies create change or simply point out what needed to be corrected?

It is easy to look back and say, "I should've done that differently" or "why did I waste so much time?" If you are not willing to act, if you are paralyzed in some regard, you cannot grow. Changes do not need to be ground-breaking or even noticed by others, but they need to happen.

We cannot be the same person we were a decade ago.

What to Say

I make a collage every few years with pictures of people, photos and sayings. Some of the sayings are very meaningful and some are just snippets from a magazine.

One quote I am reflecting on more and more these days:
"There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. Yet that will be the beginning. "
~ Louis L'Amour

Thinking about that made me realize I have kept none of my New Years' resolutions, because the reverse is also true. You have to finish before you can begin.

I have a fairly good start on my resolutions now, which is more scary than empowering.

They say that making a serious mistake one time is natural, normal and understood by most. (Depending on what it is, of course.) Doing it again can be considered stupid, defiant or just not caring. I have been guilty of all of those things. While I wasn't capable of changing before, it is now time to do what I have refused to think about and work on.

What I have, I care about too much ~ it is too important to screw up.