You Only Live Twice

The journey of life is truly a very colorful one. It is full of adventures, new places to go, new people to meet, new things to see, an extravaganza of experiences. We may almost dare to call it a carnival, where we are lost in our own tune, trying to find our way back, getting shoved this way and that way in the crowd of people around us, but ultimately finding our spot, or maybe not. In all that we see, all that we learn, our life forms its own shape in the process. Our experiences shape it up, our stamina helps it grow, and most importantly, our determination defines that shape. And yet, in spite of all this, at times, we fall short of expectations. These expectations might be our own, might be of others, not always can we fulfill them all. Some of us cope up with that shortcoming, while there are some, who just fade away. Most of us miss out an important point here.

The important point being, you only live twice. Yes, twice. Once for everybody around us, and once for our own selves. The length of these two lives depends on us, whether they will run parallel to each other, or they will come consecutively in order depends upon us. Whether we want to live both of these lives, or just one of them, totally depends upon us.

Our family, friends, close ones and not so close ones, actively and passively bring in a lot of goals in our lives. These goals we love to meet, to see that one person smile, to make that one person happy, to ensure, that one person still has their faith on us. We take up the pressure at our own will, but the task is not always smooth. Like every normal task, hurdles come in, things get complicated, and even before the others come to know of it, we start doubting ourselves. Regret sets in, energy wanes away, things start getting darker, without the slightest of realization that all of this pressure is coming from that one cumbersome yoke on our shoulders. We can easily put it down and free ourselves, but mostly we forget to do so, or worse, don't even consider it as an option. 

A big part of this burden also comes from comparison. Either we ourselves, or our near ones, put up an ideal figure before us, and the comparison begins. Our life, our story, our journey, everything is compared to that one figure. Down this path, after some time it does not matter anymore if we begin to judge a fish by it's flight capacity, all that matters is, if they can, why can't we! Needless to say, this path is absolutely unhealthy. Our mental health, physical well beings, moral judgement, everything suffer, we change as people. Nothing else matters, except the fact that we have to reach that bench mark that has been marked by somebody else. Comparison blurs out everything else, comparison kills.

The second journey is more self -centered. It conveniently evolves around self-set goals, self-evolution and self engagement. We set our own goals, smash them, and set the next. No peer pressure, no comparison, no rigidity, just what makes us happy from within. Our life, our story remains unique, having its own beautiful colors, reaching its own unimaginable heights. This may sound very self-centered, but then a person who is happy and contended from within, can best serve the others to make them happy, within their own capacity. Not only does the fish swim as far out as it wishes, it leaves behind all of them, who would expect it to fly up in the sky, even at the cost of life. 

Our lives are a combination of both of these journeys. Many of us have traveled down the first path way too long to ultimately realize how exhausting it is. Many of us had chosen the second path at some point or the other, to realize the bliss that comes along with it. We do not fit in every available shoe, no matter how fancy it is. Our shoes, our stories, our lives best be their unique selves, bringing out their own combination  of colors. It is upon us when to switch the paths, where to stop on one, and how to steer the chosen one. It is highly unlikely, that we can't turn one of these two lives into our own proud canvas full of arts.