Continuum; The Light on the Other Side of an Endless Tunnel.

“Growing up is losing some illusions, in order to acquire others.”  – Virginia Woolf

 

The formative years of one’s life are unlike any other experience in this reality. A constant trip, where the individual is expected to develop the necessary skills to succeed, through experiencing challenges and taking the teachings of their elders to heart. A strict diet of nurturing and discipline, instilling values upon these impressionable youth like folding colored clay.  A melting pot of emotional turmoil, the journey to adulthood is filled with the highest highs and the lowest lows. Succumbing to adversity, and triumphing over it, this delicate process is highlighted by the media, creating expectations for every small step, every leap and bound.

 

Growing up is easy. Only being responsible for yourself, life is full of constant excitement and wonder. Ignorance to the troubling world around you creates a safe bubble, you become the center of your own universe. Things happen all around you that you have no control over, but you roll with the punches, looking up to your parents and other adult figures in your life for protection and closure. Sadness is quickly countered by a special blanket or plastic action figure. Being lost in a dream while the world is wide awake around you .

 

Growing up is confusing. Before you know it, that bubble bursts and the once coddled youth is exposed to the poisonous culture of society. Without their parents monitoring intake, the world seems much bigger; much less innocent. Suddenly that turtleneck that your grandmother got you as a gift is the ammunition for ridicule and condemnation. Your appearance becomes clearer to you than ever, so much so that I found myself looking in the mirror and not knowing what was staring back at me.

 

Growing up is hard. Every year brings a new set of responsibilities, expectations, and privileges. Caught in a constant juxtaposition between being irresponsible and setting a good example for younger people. Your age becomes an excuse for malicious actions, and a scapegoat for generalizations and stereotyping. The media perpetuates these ideologies, labeling the time in your life when you first begin to question authority as ‘angsty’ and ‘ignorant’, in an attempt to force you back into the box from which you came. Immense pressure to succeed when you realize that you aren’t ready to stop being a kid. The thought that I wished a good portion of my adolescence away, dreaming of being older.

 

Growing up doesn’t end. There is never a point in a man’s life where he ceases to learn, therefore there is never a point where he ceases to grow. Your mind and body undergo constant metamorphosis, preparing one for the inevitable end. New coping mechanisms are developed to combat life’s ever-changing, broadening obstacles. The metaphorical backpack is filled with the baggage of your past experiences, reaching capacity only when it’s owner submits to the weight. Suddenly, your parents don’t seem like the superheroes which you made them out to be. They too, carry immense baggage, and continue to make mistakes, all the way to the yawning grave. I will continue to find and lose pieces of myself as I age, but the knowledge that the puzzle is never quite complete is comforting. I don’t need to strive to be anywhere in time except right here, wherever that may be. And my backpack is far from full. 

 

Oliver M.