Why are we here? A question I ask myself often. What is my purpose here on earth? Is there even a purpose? For people who believe in God, they believe there is a written destiny for us that He has mapped out. We live life trying to figure out how to fulfill these unknown pieces of the puzzle to our lives. In order to satisfy the hunger of the questioning head, some try to plan everything out. Little do they know that life’s ever changing cycle will get in the way of their precise paved paths. Right now I am in a position in my life where I am confused and trying to figure out what I am going to do with the rest of my life. Me, along with pretty much everyone else in high school. I’m not really sure at this point of time. For the past year or two, I’ve made the decision that I want to become a pediatrician. Then at times I realize that I am not on the right path to becoming one, at least in my head. I have been told throughout my whole life I that you can do anything you put your mind to and I know you’ll go far in life. What I failed to realize in these past couple of years is that I was that the only one who wasn’t in the right mindset was me. Although it is true that in life there will be people who will try to knock us down on our knees, they’re not the only ones doing the knocking. Our biggest bully in life is ourselves. Everything begins with you. Believing the voice within. We, along with other people and things in life, are the most influential in life. I am just realizing the power in believing in yourself. With good work ethic and some determination, the only thing stopping you from achieving your goals is you. It is not just about getting to the finish line, but taking the baby steps to get there. Through trial and error, lessons will be taught. I must learn from the mistakes I’ve made and grow from it. It’s all about getting back up when you fall. Somewhere between the blur of trying to figure out what I should do in the future and trying to keep my grades to an acceptable standard I have lost my passion for the things I love. I have already let life get to me and I haven’t even set off into the real world. My plan this upcoming summer is to start looking at colleges and just what I want to do after high school. It’s really ludicrous how much the plan to go to college after high school is enforced. It makes you feel like that is only option and if this is not fulfilled, you are guaranteed for failure. I don’t really understand the purpose of life. People stress all the time the importance of finishing school and especially going to college. It’s as if you don’t go to college, there is no way that you can be successful. So, while in high school, us students spend our time trying to fulfill scholarship requirements, keep our grades up, and also have a social life (which can be challenging at times). Although I do love learning, sometimes I believe that the things we are learning in school will have nothing to do with what we do in the real world. It is crazy how we are all set to learn the same things and then are expected to pick jobs that may or may not have to do with your career choice. It is crazy how some letters on a transcript, an application, and an essay can determine your self worth. What if I don’t want to be judged off of the knowledge I hold in my brain? Maybe the things I learn in school are nothing compared to the things outside out of it. I am all about following your dreams, even if that dream doesn’t include the pretty diploma at the end. Then again, everybody can’t be a rapper from the ghetto or a little business turned million dollar success. People sometimes have no choice but to be the statistic: to succumb to the life paced to you. It is hard to ignore these ideas and try to venture off into something different that you want to be that doesn’t include going to college. I heard something eye opening the other day. This guy on the radio or tv said that most of the things you are taught on college you can learn by yourself simply by finding the same assigned textbooks in a local library. Then, I look at some of the most famous people in the world Kanye West and Jay Z, along with many other celebrities, whom have found more than success in life. But then again to quote Cookie from Empire “everyone wants to be Beyoncé, but no one wants to put in the work”. Everyone wants to live the rags to riches story, but what they fail to realize that in order to get in their position you have to go through trials and tribulations. This thing called life is nowhere close to easy and I’m just trying to figure out the purpose.