It's All Quite Disgusting

We all chase them. Dreams. They dictate our choices, our thoughts, our habits, our lives. We spend much of our youth chasing after them, what with the extremely competitive emphasis that the current American education system places on "college" and "your career" and some vague idea of "the future." Whatever that means. I'm certainly not saying that those things don't exist or shouldn't be taken seriously, but I feel that we're all being pressured to look ahead for these things instead of enjoying them as present moments of growth or happiness.  

What I'm describing is oftentimes labeled the rat race. In middle school, they tell us that this is in preparation for high school. In high school, this is in preparation for college. In college, this is preparation for the workplace. In a job, this is so you can retire. WHAT?? I'm supposed to be happy—I'm supposed to take in the fruit of my hard work—only when I reach retirement? This is a travesty! This idea of this "ladder of success" leaves people always looking at their efforts as simply a means to an end. When we view life as simply a successive series of checklists, we forget to cherish and enjoy the immediate fruits of our labor, resulting in a misguided and ultimately unsatisfying experience.

We see Fitzgerald scathingly exaggerate the incredibly material emphasis his characters place on success, as they all base their goals or American dreams on some vague and material idea of happiness that is unfortunately only an empty Winter's dream. They're searching for happiness in the wrong places, and they realize, once they attain them, that they weren't as special or magical as once thought. An example would be that Gatsby's vision of Daisy only serves his own selfish and chimerical dream of happiness, a vision too large for anyone, much less the flimsy and acquisitive Daisy Fay, to fulfill to his satisfaction.

My point is that we build up these dreams, these goals, these far-off vague ideas of success and happiness, when we should really be focusing a lot more on the now. We say, "someday, I'll stop being lazy and be super successful and own a Lambo!"

No! Stop it!

What can you do now? Why not stop being lazy now? What is the present? We need to ask ourselves what can we do now that will bring immediate joy and also aid the future?

Note: I'm sorry. This post turned out to be the destiny's child between a self-help guide and the crazy rants of a high-strung lunatic. I wrote this post mostly for myself, so don't feel too put out.