Reality

As a general high school teacher I must say it is quite easy to get lost and caught up in a false sense of reality. My students prove to me every day that they are incapable of assessing and dealing with certain issues head on. After much careful thought on the topic I've realized that facing reality isn't just an adolescent issue that fades with time. In fact I am becoming more accustomed to hearing "If it is meant to be it will be", "I'm just going to sit back and let it play out", or my favorite, "It's out of my hands there is nothing I can do" from the group of peers I choose to surround myself with. A few months ago at the beginning of the school year I decided to recycle my annual Essential question: Are the outcomes of our lives affected by fate, chance, or choice? I have posed this question to many different people in different forums and while many debates occur an often general consensus decides it is choice that determines the outcome of our lives. Yet it is the same people who believe so strongly in the power of choice that are ultimately leaving their lives up to the twists and turns of an unknown fate.

I can't say wholeheartedly that I can control every single moment of my life. There are events and moments that simply occur. I do know that the moments I can control, I take full responsibility and ownership over. There have been many times when I thought about leaving situations to resolve themselves, but I realized that leaving life up to fate removes my power and encourages weakness. Copping out with "if it is meant to be it will be" replaces communication and the importance of honesty. Facing situations head on is the basis of living life to it's fullest capacity and is the basis of living a truly fulfilling life. I don't claim to have all of the answers but I do know that I have an impeccable sense of reality. I can always see what is right in front of me even if it takes a while, I have learned to appreciate the pain of reality rather than the comforts of a falsified dream world.