As The World Turns, We Carry On.

In essence, jobs are like classrooms and what we end up doing in our lives is closely related to what we enjoyed (or studied) most in school. The one who excelled in Photography, now finds their classroom to be the great outdoors; the one who was fascinated by Auto, now finds their classroom to be an auto body repair shop; and the one who fell in love with Civics, most likely finds their classroom set somewhere in the midst of government.

While in school, we were each given assignments to complete (think: daily tasks at work) and how we best completed them afforded us a specific grade (or, pay). Learning to tap into the bias of each classroom teacher afforded us the ability to move up and down the sliding scale of what was called the Bell Curve (or, your position at work).

And, just like the classroom, you always find those that like to dick off; those that take things a little too seriously; and those that always go with the flow of whatever life gives them—taking and doing the bare minimum in order to just “get by”. Our evenings, just like when school was done for the day, are spent pursuing extra curricular activities like swimming, soccer, browsing Netflix (which was once called Cable), hanging out with friends, or creating art when no one else is looking. Those that stood out among others in their extracurriculars (you know, the ones that always went to OFSA or were in every school play) have since become the actors, actresses, and athletes, standing out in today’s celebrity spotlight.

I was once in line at the LCBO when the cashier excitedly told me that we used to go to elementary school together. Though I didn’t remember her, she vividly remembered me and said that, as we sat next to each other each day, I would spend the entire day drawing or talking about non-school related things to other kids at our table. Taking these accounts from her and others that knew me while growing up into consideration, and looking back on what I’ve done in my life; where it has taken me, and how I choose to see the world, this doesn’t strike me as surprising at all! With how pleased I am with where I am (#BestLifeBlessedLife) and the satisfaction I feel, perhaps what we really seek to do while covering up and masking our own identity with some sense of what we’ve termed “adulting” is really just to learn to take off the skins and presumptions of who or what we think we should be and just stand in the light of who we are—exploring our true nature while getting back to the essence of who we were as kids. Pursuing the things we loved before we were jaded or misguided by Society’s advice. Were you a thinker? A philosopher? A creator? A healer? A scientist? A mathematician? Just because you’re not Elon Musk, or Steve Jobs, or Maria Curie, doesn’t mean that this isn’t who you are. Try to remember your passions, follow them, and never forget: there are levels to everything…

When you really take the time to step back and think about the true ingenuity of our Society, you may come to realize that we (as most insect hobbyists out there will agree) are living in one giant Ant Farm; and we have termed this Farm, “Society”. It is a highly interconnected system of networks addressing our various needs and wants and is set in place to keep our species going. Did this Ant Farm always exist? Can we not get back to a more pure time of existence? Theologians would call the period of time, “The Garden of Eden”. Where we were not consciously aware of the box that we are in (the ignorance of our Naivety). Sadly (or naturally), we were kicked out of this kingdom by the Bringer of Light (also known as Knowledge, as we became consciously aware of the reality of the box that we are in). Only to return back to the Garden when we figure out that we never left. It has been here the entire time, only masked by the desire created by our knowledge. Thus, by becoming consciously aware of our own consciousness, realizing that the mind is the illusion standing in the way of the joy that we only think we are missing, we find our way back home.

As with all societies (and different types of ants—workers, queens, drones, etc.) there will always be those that seek to break the Farm; those that wish to expand it; those that want to conserve it; and those that don’t want to believe it exists at all (we call these types of ants, “Buddhas”). In its truest form, and to the least biased observer, you will see… the Farm was here long before us and it will be here long after we are gone. So, enjoy the Farm, or don’t enjoy it—it’s entire up to you—but this is it. This is the Farm that we may or may not look upon as a Farm that we call Life.

-to live out your best life is to live out who you truly are—and that, surely, will become a very blessed life, indeed!