This I Believe.
My english assignment adapted from the This I Believe, Inc. mission to be a place for public dialogue about belief - one essay at a time. Each essay is supposed to be limited to 500 words. Mine is a little over. Peace.
I went into my advisory period one day during my junior year and sat down near two of my friends. “Guys, I have something to say… I think that, after I graduate from high school, I’m going to move to Alaska and get a job as a crab fisherman. You know? It’ll just be me and the boat and the open seas. I think I’d like that. What do you guys think?”
This was followed by two blank stares and retorts of “Yeah right,” and “David, there is no way you would do that” and “Why would you want to do that?” And my response was, of course, “Why not? You don’t think I’d make a good crab fisherman?” But this was just an extension of my joke, they were right, I was kidding. It was my idea of a silly joke: put on a serious face and say something ridiculous, but their reaction got me thinking. What if I was serious? What if that truly was my dream?
First of all, I would want people to be supportive of me. Now, I’m not blaming my friends for going along with my joke but I think I learned a valuable lesson from it. People are going to decide for themselves. These decisions may be confusing to some and others may do things differently but the individual has the final say. Now it may be naive of me to think that this can work and some people will ask about leadership and teamwork and I don’t mean to say that nobody should ever be a follower. Following is a necessary part of any society but I think the vital part of following comes with recognizing who you are following and recognizing what they stand for, and always having the courage to break away if and when you need to. Conformity is something that should never be forced on anyone.
We are surrounded by choices. I believe that making these choices is what makes us who we are. People should decide for themselves and with their own convictions. This idea may scare some people. There are people who make bad decisions, decisions that hurt themselves and the people around them, but unless these decisions are allowed to be made for themselves, there will be no advancement, no amendment, no progress. Errs are what we learn from. Lastly, and most importantly, is the idea that along with this individual opportunity comes the individual responsibility to work towards this progress. Progress can take myriad forms and it is important to note that some of the most important acts, in the name of progress, have come as a choice to stand up against the way things are and say “No.” People should work to drive their convictions and never follow blindly. If this means that I want to (gasp) not go to college and move to Alaska to become a crab fisherman, I should not be judged as someone who has failed or fallen short just because my dream takes a non-traditional form. My dreams are my own and my ideas of progress may be different than yours, and that’s okay. This I believe.
