The road to reaching your full potential is not always an easy one. I, for one, am still struggling. But I will eventually get there, slowly yet surely.
I used to be that person who was self-centered and apathetic to everything else but my own needs and wants. I was stuck in a routine, but it was a routine that could be likened to quicksand. I was afraid of getting hurt by others, and by extension, I became afraid of trying out new things. Looking back, it was extremely selfish. It meant that I needed to get what I wanted and expected out of others, and if I couldn't, I would just walk away from them. In order to drown my anxiety, I occupied myself with fiction and games, and spending hours on my laptop. But eventually, I realized that I could not go on living such a life. I needed to change myself. To put it in Dr. Garcia's words, maybe this was the experiencing of both dissatisfactions. The first dissatisfaction was concerning my frustration with the world. And after some reflection, I experienced a second dissatisfaction. This time, I was dissatisfied with myself. I wanted an inner transformation. I wanted to transcend my current self. I wanted to go out into the real world, and become the best person I can be—not only for myself, but also for others.
As Dr. Garcia said in his lecture, finding the truth is an inner struggle. There are two aspects of every person: the "you" who wants to open the door of the truth; and there is also the "you" who is on the other side of the door, who wants to keep the door closed. The truth requires courage, but once the door is opened, it sets you free. Perhaps that is why we experience an inner struggle when we finally realize that there is something we need to change in ourselves. There is always that part of us who resists change and wants to keep our stagnant routines. Whenever we try to get out of our comfort zone, there is always that tiny devil on our shoulder whispering: "Don't bother with change and just stay where you are right now!" That is why finding out that you need to change something is just the first step. It requires courage to actually accept that you need to change, and to go through with that change.
If we want something to change, we need to plug both ears in order not to let that devil's words get to us. We must follow that light which beckons us. We must dive into the unknown, and it is by doing so that we get to know more about the world and also ourselves. We may never fully get to know the Truth—but if we sit on our laurels, we sure won't get any closer to it.
I really liked how you spoke about being in a routine that is like quicksand. Even though routine's give people a sense of security, I believe it also hinders a person to grow. I myself like being in a routine at times because I feel safe in doing it. But I think you're right that if we just sit on our laurels, we won't get any closer to it. (the Truth) Because of this I'd like to think of the time Dr. Garcia quoted Steve Jobs about staying hungry. I guess especially now at the start of our lives we all have to stay hungry in order to find and discover the truths we're looking for. Let's all dive to the unknown together! Thanks for this paper Jem!
ReplyDelete"It requires courage to actually accept that you need to change, and to go through with that change."
ReplyDeleteI really like that line. It's actually just a simple sentence but I think it is an important reality. For me, at least.
It's just one sentence but for me there are 3 very relevant words and these would be "courage, accept, and go through" and all of those connecting to change. It is ever since I started college when I truly realized that you have to go through one of those 3 in order to get to the other.
- Finina Muñoz (C)
My thoughts exactly! Your reflection reminds me of the Prayer of Serenity. "Lord, give me the courage to change the things that i can, accept the things that i can't. and the wisdom to know the difference." I believe that we all set goals for ourselves. "By this age, i should've...." We tend to put so many things on hold because we think we have all the time in the world. We tell ourselves we're not ready and come up with excuses to justify our actions, or lack thereof. We love the idea of familiarity. We need to remind ourselves that we were born to be strive for transcendence, anything less than that is a waste of time.
ReplyDeleteGenica Lim (C)
I like your last two sentences, "We must dive into the unknown, and it is by doing so that we get to know more about the world and also ourselves. We may never fully get to know the Truth—but if we sit on our laurels, we sure won't get any closer to it." because it really speaks of how we need to make a move, how we shouldn't just be static beings. We need to open ourselves up to change, to the unknown, because the process towards our search for the truth is the adventure that we long.
ReplyDeleteTrixia Tan (C)