I May Rewrite Myself in the Morning

Life changes beyond your control, aging at a pace that is disruptive to your internal schedule, coming up against unforeseen roadblocks hindering you from reaching a well-thought out goal, unable to check off major milestones, things just simply not going in the direction you had envisioned, or the unexpected deaths of people close to you can lead a person to question their purpose.

Betrayal

Doubt

Failure

Fear

Rejection

…are also a part of the problem as well. These powerful words causing a lack of self-worth take up residence in your headspace and cause you to lose sight of your purpose and what you may deem as the meaning of (your) life.

If you haven’t guessed yet, as we spring ahead during this unpredictable month of March (I’m specifically speaking in terms of weather), the word of the month is: Purpose. Purpose is the force that drives us to wake up every morning, work over-time if necessary, and / or stay up late – whether we’re chasing the dream or chasing the paper to fund the dream. You don’t have to be a creative to have purpose, but you have to create a life for yourself in order to feel like you have purpose in this world; a reason for living (cue one of my favorite Duncan Sheik songs).

Purpose could be anything (or a combination of things) that you feel gives your life it’s meaning:

• Your kids; even the furry ones

• The family you were born into and the family you’ve created along the way

• Your career (or your regular 9-5 job that is more to you than just regular)

• Your passion (this can be different than your actual career)

• Seeing the world

• Learning new things, having new experiences and pushing your limits

• Those collectible items that you hold near and dear

• All of the above

I recently came across Mark Manson’s blog and a post he wrote entitled “7 Strange Questions That Help You Find Your Life Purpose.” The post was a fantastic read and the 7 questions were more direct and to the point than they were strange, in my opinion. I put myself to the test of seeing if I have yet realized my life purpose by answering those questions for myself as follows:

1. What’s your favorite flavor of sh*t sandwich and does it come with an olive? AKA What struggle or sacrifice are you willing to tolerate?

1. What is true about you today that would make your 8-year-old self cry?

1. What makes you forget to eat and poop?

1. How can you better embarrass yourself?

1. How are you going to save the world?

1. Gun to you head, if you had to leave the house all day, every day, where would you go and what would you do?

1. If you knew you were going to die one year from today, what would you do and how would you want to be remembered?

The only thing I feel like I have sacrificed for my writing is sleep and time, and the only thing out of those two that I truly value is my time. Have I put off eating or avoided a shower because I was too engrossed in what I was writing? Of course I have, and I would do it again a 100 times over. I have never ever imagined the words I write saving the world in any way, shape or form but what I do know is that they have saved me plenty and if they have the ability to save me, then they have the potential to save someone else. Lucky for me I can write almost anywhere and everywhere, all day and every day, so there’s really no need to put a gun to my head, but for the sake of compliance with the question – where’s the nearest Caribou and just make sure I have a pen, some paper and my laptop.  Finally, with having death on the brain for the last couple of weeks, I would want to be remembered by the words I have used throughout my lifetime to convey my thoughts and experiences.

So, what it all boils down to…writing is my life purpose, which I’ve known since I was a teenager but didn’t fully accept until my 20s. Yes, life can throw some curve balls that will fly directly over your head, hit you where it really hurts and even strike you out of the game (of life), but as long as you remember your purpose in this life nothing can detour you away from living your best life. So, figure out your purpose so you can live life.