Going against the grain is not necessary in order to create your own happiness but if society’s mould does not fit you, it may be that creating your own path is the best way to live your best life.
One could also accuse outcasts of attempting to justify our alternative lifestyles by claiming more happiness than those who observe the mainstream societal roles.
This is my post to say that our lives prove otherwise.
When you attend school and are funneled into prescribed and preferred professional roles despite not actually knowing what or whether you may be interested in them…and then later have to find an 8 to 5 job to pay taxes and put food on the table, and then later find a life partner with whom to have progeny whom you will hopefully raise in a house you have mortgaged or built. And if you do everything right, then your progeny should grow up to follow in the exact same footsteps and then you’ll retire from your lifelong endeavours and die.
That’s a fulfilling life, right? You have been a valuable and productive member of society, no? Not only have you added to the earth’s population, you have also paid taxes to improve services in your jurisdiction. During your free time, you participated in your favourite hobbies, enjoyed time with family, were happy, sad and everything in between. If you’re lucky, maybe you had a relatively clean bill of health until your dying day.
I am finding that putting in hours at work isn’t working for me. I know that it doesn’t work for a lot of people but we do it anyway because we have bills to pay.
This is the same logic I have seen women apply to marriage. They know they are miserable, their partners are not pulling their weight most of the time, but they grit their teeth through it because the alternative is terrifying and stigmatised.
Well, as scary as the alternatives are, I am going to take the risk and try as many alternatives as I find appealing until I find what works and fits. I know it is a privilege to have the luxury of experimenting. That’s why it would be a shame if I didn’t exercise it. I am challenging everything that does not make my life worth living and replacing it with what makes the most sense to me, regardless of what is the expected path.
terrifiedbride 