Saturday, August 8, 2015

Destiny Entry 2

   This entry is going to be a little about the new book and a lot about life in general. When I got past the first few chapters in Destiny, I found that my main character wasn’t quite the standard good guy. Now, I don’t think he was bad at all, but he was faced with hard decisions like we all are. Sometimes you have to do the wrong thing to get what you want, but how do you know when to do that? Is wrong always wrong, or are there exceptions? I think finding the answer to that and owning your actions is part of becoming an adult, and Eric learned the same lesson I did a long time ago.
   Sometimes life isn’t about how right or wrong you are. It’s about what you’re willing to be wrong for. I know what you might be thinking. For some, wrong is always wrong. I get that. No justification you make will turn a wrong into a right, but no one is perfect. If you’re going to be imperfect, then maybe you should pick what you’re willing to be imperfect for. Who or what would you lie for, fight for, and even die for? Whose life would you destroy to make the world right for someone else? It’s a hard question, and I would like to tell you there’s always a right path, but that’s not necessarily true. At times, you have to get your hands dirty. Sometimes when you look into the mirror, you might not even be able to recognize the person staring back at you because of what you’ve done. The key isn’t to be perfect, though. It’s weighing your actions and knowing that it was all worth it. Every wrong eventually catches up to you. Can you live with the consequences, and maybe most importantly, will you try to make things right in the long run? That’s what growing up is really about to me. It’s not about being able to tell right from wrong, always doing the right thing, or even learning to play fair. It’s about learning to pick your battles. Nine times out of ten, you should do the right thing and be the nice guy/girl because the consequences of your actions just aren’t worth it, not to mention that you might just be destroying someone else’s life with your selfishness. What about that other ten percent of the time, though? What about when doing the wrong thing can give you or someone else exactly what you deserve? Maybe the wrong thing will produce even better results for everyone in the long run. Know when to act, when to be still, and when to apologize. That’s the last part of the lesson you learn when growing up. Even if you have a perfectly good reason for doing the wrong thing, when it all catches up to you, the most important part of being a man is admitting that you’re wrong. That doesn’t mean you have to regret your actions, and it certainly doesn’t mean you have to let someone run you down for them, but it does mean that you have to acknowledge who you’ve stepped on to get to where you are and try to make it right. Sometimes we have to do some horrible things to get the right results for the people we love, our kids, friends, or even just to get ahead in work. In the right circumstances, that’s understandable. It’s never okay, and it will come with problems later on, but ask yourself two questions before going into something you know is wrong. The first is why am I doing this, and the second is who is this for. Answer honestly, and you’ll know exactly what you should do.
   To sum it up, I’m not encouraging anyone to do the wrong thing. I’m simply saying this. You might have to step on someone else to get the person you love or get the job that will give you a better life. That might be worth it and completely understandable, but don’t let that absolve you of your responsibility to the person you just stepped on. Be the person who goes after what’s meant to be theirs, but also be the one who has enough wisdom to take a step back and say you’re sorry. Otherwise, you might just find that you’re the bad guy in your own story.

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