so let's look at life here during the last 4 months.
never thought so many things could change after 5 months away. even after Erasmus adventure what totally moved my world upside down.
but here I am. almost finished the first semester of my dream studies which I never thought will be so hard, again heading South, again without certain plan. and no possible answers to questions about getting married. btw, it's impolite to ask that.
survived in the cold, between neverending train routes Jelgava-Riga-Jelgava, still amazed by people in the public transportation (my as well I guess), handled the judgments and for the first time felt awkward for my age - being the youngest in university and one of the oldest in youth organization.
so my two remedies:
- learn from Mexico. no matter how much Latvians are always swearing about mañana philosophy and getting stressed about things not done in the right order in the set deadlines, there is some wisdom in that. chill. don't stress about what you cannot change. don't torture yourself if it doesn't help to solve the problem. it doesn't mean people in Mexico do not have worries, even from the telenovelas you've seen that they do know how to make drama but in the next moment (day, week, whenever but soon) the issue is forgotten to give place to more important things - relations, family and friends, small life pleasures. it's not bad to think about yourself and love yourself.
even if the studies are total headaches, even if I've never read Rousseau, have no clue about Michel Foucault or never used words "discourse" instead of debates (current issues, way of talk), "narrative" or "arbitrary" literary translated into Latvian (naratīvs - stāstījums, arbitrārs - patvaļīgi pieņemts) which says as much as the same word in English transcription and "empirical epistemology" is still a weird way of saying "knowledge gained from experience"... there is always a way how to make things simple and get an inspiration even from very academic issues.
One of the coolest lectures I've had this semester was about (dis)enchantment of the modern world by Jane Bennett (here a quick glance into). some of the checklist questions to everyone:
Do you (privately) believe that we are better off than nonmodern peoples precisely because we approach the world with the confidence that "one can, in principle, master all things by calculation"?
But does this picture of the world as a "causal mechanism" also leave you wondering about the purpose of it all? In other words, has science stamped "imprint of meaningless" on your life and death?
Is it ok to pretend you are super-smart or actually do something for good with the knowledge you gain? I prefer the last option.
- find things that fulfill life and take up responsibility. AIESEC. "why you need to work for free?", "what's the point of your activities?", "do conferences mean sex, beer and girls?" questions again I answer very avoidably. no, conferences do not mean that, there is point and working for free can give much more than work from 9 am to 6 pm every working day. I enjoy being in top management of the organization that truly stands for changing the world for a better place. Look around - it's us, especially the young people, who will do the big things. Not mystical they that would come and solve everything for you. 110+ countries and territories come together with common goals - this is truly about peace and human kind potential fulfillment! Even if it's sounds a bit "sectarian'' :P
Where else you can actually see the good results and changes in lives? Where else you can make actual impact on global issues? And where else I will enjoy working after midnight? :)
to stop for a while, read some books and let life take you where you enjoy being the most.
hasta luego!
i agree with so many thoughts from your post, especially about accepting things you can not change and having your own vision instead of running after goals put on you by the society.. but the best one was the last sentence about leting life take you where you enjoy being most.. we tend to think that we should have a 5-year plan, that we should always be focused and run after our goals, otherwise we will miss something important in life.. some people enjoy living this way and i guess it's good if it makes them happy.
ReplyDeletebut there is also another way, to LET life take you there, to give up endless planning and stressing out, and just LIVE.. it's not easy to give up the planning part, because that's what we all have been taught ever since we were little.. but the moments when you manage to let go, they are definitely worth it:)