Day Six: Smiling because I'm free.

Life isn't bad right now. At least it's not for me. I have a friend who is going through some huge issues right now, though, and we've been talking a lot about it. He's miserable, but tied down to his situation by some major responsibilities and kind of stuck. Actually I'm pretty sure he did the opposite of what I discussed yesterday: he waited far too long to cut bait, sanity is a thing of the past and now he has to wallow in it, lest he deal with the rather extreme ramifications of booking it.

I realize now that you need to overreact to be free sometimes. Did Colonial Americans really need to revolt against the crown because of a tax on tea? (And yes, brilliant readers, I know the American Revolution was over more than tea. It's called exaggeration.) No, they didn't: but they did, and hey, it sure seems to have worked out. Did Mandela have to starve himself, spending the majority of his life in prison to end Apartheid? Probably not, but the guy sure made his point.

I guess what I'm trying to say is this: impatience is a sign of freedom, not bondage. As smart as it is to think everything through to the end about 99% of the time, in matters of the heart* I find it smartest to just go with what makes you happy. Sometimes it's irrational. OK, it's almost ALWAYS irrational...but sometimes that irrational decision is the best one. I look at my friend, and realize I don't envy his situation, but I hope he makes the decision to be happy, however he goes about it.

As for me, my grin today is simple: I, just like anybody else, am free to break the chains that bind me. No man, no act of God, no circumstance can keep me down if I really want to be happy.

...and the more I think about it, the more I realize that's where I want to be.

-Brett

*unless of course your matters of the heart are of the medical persuasion. In that case, I'd recommend the advice of your doctor/witch doctor/tribal shaman. You should think those through. Yeah.