Time is such an amazing phenomenon. It is unstable – at times unbearably slow, yet at times passes at the blink of an eye. It is almost like some sort of unrequited love – intangible, unforgiving, moves only in a single direction and you don't really know why it keeps on going.
Time takes away possibilities and confers wisdom as it goes by. Our potential narrows as we get older and we lament our want of choices. At the same time, though, we also gain the wisdom of experience.
Time is hard to grasp. What is ten years compared to eleven years? I don't believe I can fully appreciate that difference of a year unless I'm in it right now.
Yet time is, in my opinion, the most precious possession (if it can be called that) we can ever have, especially in our youth. The time we have now is more precious because we have a lot more opportunities where we are not burdened by a failing physical body nor a failing intellect. Besides, there is no telling when tomorrow will cease to be.
So why do so many of us go off in pursuit of more wealth than we might ever need, and then some more? Greed? A more comfortable retirement life? Hunger for power?
Young, professional “career ladder climbers” compete and spend much of their youth advancing their careers. In the end, only a handful rises above all the other CEO hopefuls. I'm not working yet, so I have hardly any experience on this. However, from what I have heard about fresh accountancy graduates slogging in auditing firms, they have hardly any leisure time. Even Sundays are lost during busy periods. Unless one is lucky, inordinate remuneration obviously requires inordinate effort (and the corresponding time).
Is it worth it? Is our youth really worth trading for money and a comfortable lifestyle in our old age? I wished I knew the answer. Then I would have a stronger conviction about my choice of study and the corresponding choice of career. I wished I will be doing something I would love to do, something I would never think of as work, like design, or maybe advertising, for example.
But I know that if I fail, I might not be the only one that suffers. My upbringing obligates me to fulfill my familial duty. I am not complaining since these values have become part and parcel of who I am and I suppose, most of us as well. How can I risk it all if it is not just myself that is at stake?
Time takes away possibilities and confers wisdom as it goes by. Our potential narrows as we get older and we lament our want of choices. At the same time, though, we also gain the wisdom of experience.
Time is hard to grasp. What is ten years compared to eleven years? I don't believe I can fully appreciate that difference of a year unless I'm in it right now.
Yet time is, in my opinion, the most precious possession (if it can be called that) we can ever have, especially in our youth. The time we have now is more precious because we have a lot more opportunities where we are not burdened by a failing physical body nor a failing intellect. Besides, there is no telling when tomorrow will cease to be.
So why do so many of us go off in pursuit of more wealth than we might ever need, and then some more? Greed? A more comfortable retirement life? Hunger for power?
Young, professional “career ladder climbers” compete and spend much of their youth advancing their careers. In the end, only a handful rises above all the other CEO hopefuls. I'm not working yet, so I have hardly any experience on this. However, from what I have heard about fresh accountancy graduates slogging in auditing firms, they have hardly any leisure time. Even Sundays are lost during busy periods. Unless one is lucky, inordinate remuneration obviously requires inordinate effort (and the corresponding time).
Is it worth it? Is our youth really worth trading for money and a comfortable lifestyle in our old age? I wished I knew the answer. Then I would have a stronger conviction about my choice of study and the corresponding choice of career. I wished I will be doing something I would love to do, something I would never think of as work, like design, or maybe advertising, for example.
But I know that if I fail, I might not be the only one that suffers. My upbringing obligates me to fulfill my familial duty. I am not complaining since these values have become part and parcel of who I am and I suppose, most of us as well. How can I risk it all if it is not just myself that is at stake?
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