The Golden Ticket
It was brought up to me today that meditation is probably not the best way to find your destiny or your purpose in life. It is designed for deciding who you are. Well I for one feel relatively content in my purpose and decided that I should probably do a little bit of narrative to put it into context. After all, the vast majority of leaders only have one thing in common, they write their goals down.
I explained to my friend that my purpose in life is best described by relating to the Golden Ticket of Willy Wonka. I am a boy with a dream and an innate sense of purpose that is following a path that should lead him to his destiny. Charlie (the boy who eventually wins the Golden Ticket) simply led his life according to his philosophy and believed in what felt right in his heart. Despite towering circumstances, his dreams ended up coming true and he went on to accomplish all the things that were meant for him.
So how naïve is it for a grown man (sort of) to believe that he is living a fairy tale. Pretty naïve, but at the same time, I cannot lose. The beautiful thing about destiny, or fate, is that it is inescapable. There should be no sense of failure or disappointment, there can only be the satisfaction of pursuing the path that feels right to you. If you fail and fall into mediocrity, that was indeed your destiny in the first place, and you never really failed at all.
So where does that leave me? Waiting. I must wait for my Golden Ticket to arrive, and like an athlete waiting for the big race, I will train as hard as I can. I know what I need to be good at. It is the talents that have gotten me this far. The ability to relate, the need to make connections, the power of unifying opposing forces, the sense of moderation between extremes. All of these things are the skills that have been given to me for fulfilling my purpose. The ability to write, to discern character in others, to remain optimistic despite the perils of the world, all these will come in handy like a tool belt at a home improvement site.
I know that I feel destined to change the world for the better, the only question is to what scale. I sincerely believe that I can lead people towards a better way of treating each other, loving each other, and respecting each other, but how I am to be used in that path is beyond me. The only fear that I have is that there is no guiding force and that I am supposed to surge forward on my own initiative. Instead I feel that there is a time and a place designated for my usefulness, and for that I wait. I wait for the golden moment, the Golden Ticket.
My job now is to train. Experience other cultures. Learn as much about the world as you can, despite personal desires of comfort and familiarity. I have prepared for a long time to give up a life of personal amenities for that of a life of service, and when that time comes the road will be long and hard. If this torch passes me by, so be it, I will live a happy life, but my purpose seems not for the simple road. I was built for the purpose of uniting those around me, and I can only hope to make that circle of influence as wide as possible.
I explained to my friend that my purpose in life is best described by relating to the Golden Ticket of Willy Wonka. I am a boy with a dream and an innate sense of purpose that is following a path that should lead him to his destiny. Charlie (the boy who eventually wins the Golden Ticket) simply led his life according to his philosophy and believed in what felt right in his heart. Despite towering circumstances, his dreams ended up coming true and he went on to accomplish all the things that were meant for him.
So how naïve is it for a grown man (sort of) to believe that he is living a fairy tale. Pretty naïve, but at the same time, I cannot lose. The beautiful thing about destiny, or fate, is that it is inescapable. There should be no sense of failure or disappointment, there can only be the satisfaction of pursuing the path that feels right to you. If you fail and fall into mediocrity, that was indeed your destiny in the first place, and you never really failed at all.
So where does that leave me? Waiting. I must wait for my Golden Ticket to arrive, and like an athlete waiting for the big race, I will train as hard as I can. I know what I need to be good at. It is the talents that have gotten me this far. The ability to relate, the need to make connections, the power of unifying opposing forces, the sense of moderation between extremes. All of these things are the skills that have been given to me for fulfilling my purpose. The ability to write, to discern character in others, to remain optimistic despite the perils of the world, all these will come in handy like a tool belt at a home improvement site.
I know that I feel destined to change the world for the better, the only question is to what scale. I sincerely believe that I can lead people towards a better way of treating each other, loving each other, and respecting each other, but how I am to be used in that path is beyond me. The only fear that I have is that there is no guiding force and that I am supposed to surge forward on my own initiative. Instead I feel that there is a time and a place designated for my usefulness, and for that I wait. I wait for the golden moment, the Golden Ticket.
My job now is to train. Experience other cultures. Learn as much about the world as you can, despite personal desires of comfort and familiarity. I have prepared for a long time to give up a life of personal amenities for that of a life of service, and when that time comes the road will be long and hard. If this torch passes me by, so be it, I will live a happy life, but my purpose seems not for the simple road. I was built for the purpose of uniting those around me, and I can only hope to make that circle of influence as wide as possible.
posted by Anthony Jackson at 8:00 PM
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