Don't put yourself in a box, don't let others put you in a box & don't put others in a box.
Have you decided your major for college yet? Have you landed a full-time job? Are you in a relationship? When are you getting engaged? When are you having babies? Aren't you getting too old to do that? Wait, you are quitting your job?
Listen, I get it, we all have those people that every time we see them they ask thee same most basic questions. We are humans & those are the most common curious questions most humans ask. All due respect to those loved ones, whether they are family or friends, or even strangers but these questions are very limiting. We all have done it & I am trying to train myself out of it, I am trying to ask more meaningful, open-minded questions. These specific "things" have somehow been deemed thee stepping stones of a lifetime. It is as if we should all be focused on the same things & once we accomplish one, we check it off the list, then move on to the next. Traditional or not, we can all step outside of the boxes that we put ourselves in or that others choose to view us in.
Fight the urge to become complacent. If you read this & think "oh no, I think I am already there", it is never too late & you are never too old to change & to grow! Think outside of the box & then mentally & physically JUMP outside of the box. If you want to be an [idiosyncratic] person, you must continuously challenge yourself. You do not have to pick one way to be just because you have always thought that or others make you feel it too. It is okay to go against the grain.
We are meant to evolve. It is okay that some of the "things" we grow up learning & thinking we must do, might be or might not be the path we end up actually wanting for ourselves. Sometimes we just find ourselves feeling stuck on a path we accidentally walked onto when we weren't paying attention & simply were going through the motions of life. We start to feel safe in a place & continue to stay because for us & our families, that old vision of who we are is easier than dreaming up & following a more vivid vision.
Don't fall into the trap; you must keep opening new boxes. No, I don't mean the amazon boxes that are delivered to your door daily. I am talking about the boxes that help you to be authentic, be prepared, & be bold in the pursuit to fulfill the most wild of dreams. It does not matter how young or how old you are, it does not matter how big or small your boxes are, it does not matter what color your boxes are, what matters is that you know you can outgrow your box & you choose to jump out into the wide open. Sometimes you might land flat on your face, other times you will feel as if you are soaring through the air. Embrace all of the stages of the life you are building. Continue to be open minded, even when others seem to be closed minded, welcome their opinions & thoughts kindly & move on confidently knowing you do not have to explain your journey. Keep inspiring yourself so you can inspire others. You are not a tree; you are not stuck, move your body, change your mind & keep on living intentionally.
