When are we truly satisfied with our lives? Is it when we materially achieve what we long for and desire? Or, on the other hand, maybe it is when we finally reach a sense of fullness? These are the kinds of questions I have always tried to answer. Not because existential philosophy is my intellectual goal in life although I have no problem with that. Still, I believe that at many moments throughout our lives certainly in mine it happens often finding those answers becomes a necessity.
I have never been an ordinary person. As a child, I did not feel that I fit into what other kids usually agreed on. For me, an explanation has no value just because an authority says it. Some might call me irreverent or rebellious. I believe the approach to truth is something incredibly noble and pure. What do I really mean by that? Well, if I ask why Earth is spherical I deserve an answer that actually responds to the question not a simple it is a planet, and they are all round.
This preamble helps explain the need that all human beings have to long for better and greater opportunities. From my perspective, this is what gives life its meaning. The value of individuality and the ability to reach what we set our minds to. Sometimes irony and even a certain injustice take hold of our theoretical possibilities. To give another example, I will use myself. I am someone who has valued and cultivated intelligence on many levels, yet I have not been able to enjoy much material benefit from that habit. Am I worse than others because of it? I do not know, but every night when I go to sleep I feel that I still have several things pending.
And I like calling them that pending. Because unless I want to see Earth from space, in many ways I believe I can still achieve them. I am aware of certain limitations such as emigrating to a better country with more opportunities. That is where what you see in the photographs comes from. And that is also where the idea for this post and the importance of starting from scratch a new beginning comes from. The girl you see in the images is one of the women I have loved the most in my life. But do not get confused not in the way you might think but more like a sister. She is my best friend, and she left everything behind in her country of origin to begin what she needs and desires.
So the rhetorical questions I asked at the beginning of this post start to make sense. Can our longings and desires become reality? I think they can, but depending on each person's circumstances. In my case, no. I do not have the means to immigrate to a specific country. At that point, opportunities shrink within a certain margin. In her case, theoretically yes. And I do not say this to sound fatalistic or negative, but because it will also depend on the dedication, effort, and luck she has in achieving it. It is fair to say that nothing she has done was driven by impulse. Behind her new beginning there is planning, sacrifice, and effort that is admirable. I have also not told you about her abilities as a human being. Brilliance, intelligence, and capability are qualities she possesses and that I believe will make her life infinitely better according to what she has planned for her possibilities.
Writing about this makes me feel much better. I am someone who does not process grief and pain in conventional ways. I am not someone who cries easily. Quite the opposite, in fact. I remember watching her cry over a reality that is both devastating and common at the same time. Physically, last Thursday was probably the last day we hugged and saw each other. I think it will take me a long time to fully adapt. For me she is not only my best and greatest treasure but also someone truly irreplaceable. I do not say that to flatter her but simply to describe her importance to me.
I love seeing that her possibilities both her desires and the opportunities ahead of her are now one step closer to becoming real. The fulfillment of her life involves stability in many aspects but also finding passion. And what is passion for her? Traveling, learning to refine photography as an art, and above all learning to unlearn. And I quote her own words: I do not want to think that life is just working from Monday to Saturday, 9, 10 hours every day. That would destroy me if I did it for 20 straight years. I want the independence to be and to do what here I could never do. That statement seems noble, beautiful, and above all admirable to me.
I share it with you, fellow Hivers, because I know there are many people who live with constant fear as if that were completely acceptable. I am not here to tell you what to do with your lives. I would never be that disrespectful or presumptuous. But I do want to show that possibilities are there. In one way or another, they exist. For some people it means starting from absolute nothing in a foreign land without knowing anything. For others it means doing it with their children, spouses, or simply alone. We are what we dare to do. Everything else is part of the process.
