I Feel Like a Zombie Come Back to Life.

posted 17th October 2011    Written by: Hannah    CATEGORY: All Posts, Hannah, Job/Career/Work, Quarterlife Crisis, Season 5

 

“There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world. ” -Robert Louis Stevenson

As I write this I sit on the beach in Monterosso in the Cinque Terre in Italy.  Kids squeal as they dunk each other in the deep blue green waters of the Mediterranean.  Couples cuddle on beach towels giggling and whispering to each other in Italian.  German tourists bare more than some of us want to see while trying to catch some sun.  I sip cold, cheap beer and listen to the waves pound the sand near my feet.  I’m trying to read my book like Mister who is sitting next to me, but I’m too caught up.  This is a beautiful moment.  People all around me are loving life.  And so am I.

And I wonder, “What would it be like if most days we all loved life?”

“The idea that you have the right to a good job that you enjoy and pays well has got to be an almost entirely unique concept in the history of the human race that only my generation could assume.”  This bold statement on my 30 year old friend’s Facebook page caught me totally off guard and I’ve been thinking about it ever since.

There were lots of comments, but this one got me the most, “I will concede the part about liking your job.  That is something that our generation was spoon-fed along with our attendance and participation trophies.”  I don’t know if it was that everyone agreed with him or that no one felt it worth their time to comment, but not a single person spoke up in disagreement.  Is it just me?  It made me so sad.

Kahlil Gibran wrote, “Work is love made visible.  And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work.”

At home I look around me and see people in every direction who are bored, complacent, or just plain miserable in their work.  Most spend 40+ hours a week at their jobs for at least 45 years of their lives (if they don’t start working until after college and actually retire at 65).  After subtracting vacation and sick days, that’s a total of 84,600 hours of something that makes at least some of us feel like uninspired, unsatisfied (dare I say?) robots. Are you depressed yet?

I am. And apparently so are a lot of others.

Katy Perry’s song “Last Friday Night (TGIF)” has been on the Billboard Top 100 chart for the last 20 weeks.
Rebecca Black’s song “Friday” has almost 31 million views on YouTube.

Take Usher’s stance on the matter:
“Thank God the week is done.
I feel like a zombie come back to life.
(Back back to life.)”

I don’t believe in working for the weekend.

It never once in my whole life crossed my mind that I might settle for a career that didn’t thrill me (AND pay the bills).  My parents were supportive in whatever venture I took on.   I felt that the expectation from them was not that I make a lot of money and “be successful”, but that I find something I genuinely love that makes me really happy and actually be successful.

It is so sad to me that in our day and age someone young, smart, and talented does not believe he deserves happiness, success, and yes, money to live to a certain standard.  And I’m sure he’s not the only one which fires me up even more.  I know I talk about this a lot, but it is so close to my heart.  We deserve happiness.  Every last one of us.  We deserve to feel inspired, to love our lives, to learn and grown on a daily basis.  We deserve to wake up every morning without the dread of the day’s tasks weighing on our hearts like a bully sitting on our chests.

And I get it.  I’ve heard and used every excuse in the book.  It sounds silly, but it’s HARD to do what you love!  It’s hard to take risks.  It’s hard to let go of expectations.  It’s hard to be weird.  It’s hard!  But I’m willing to work hard.

“The heights by great men reached and kept.
Were not obtained by sudden flight,
But they, while their companions slept,
Were toiling upward in the night.”
- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

I’m not trying to preach to you, but rather to preach to myself. Find something you love and explore it with everything you’ve got. Embrace your form (or forms?) of genius.

You are deserving of a life that you love. A new mantra, maybe?

I AM DESERVING OF A LIFE THAT I LOVE!  (Attendance and participation trophies optional.)

[Photo Credit: Brad Coy]

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Comments (6)

6 Responses to “I Feel Like a Zombie Come Back to Life.”

  • Laskmy Says:
    October 17th, 2011 at 4:46 pm

    I completely agree with everything you've expressed. This is definitely my favorite post of the day.

  • Diane Says:
    October 18th, 2011 at 11:06 am

    Seconded! Thanks so much for posting this. I'm striving to steer my path toward the work attitude you talked about and away from the panicky "that's not a real job" "you'll never make enough money" stuff that I allowed to make myself miserable :P I'm actually enjoying the 'night toiling' part of it all; it's hard but it's getting me to where I want to be and sometimes that's the best part of my day!
    Best wishes, Hannah! You do deserve it!

  • HannahD Says:
    October 21st, 2011 at 8:26 am

    Aww thanks! I'm glad to hear someone agrees! Based on the FB post and lack of response, we may be the minority :)

  • HannahD Says:
    October 21st, 2011 at 8:28 am

    So completely with you on the "not a real job" and "you'll never make enough money" concepts. There are so many reasons not to do it, but really there's only one reason TO do it. It makes you happy! And if you're happy, that's a good place to start. :) I'd much rather be happy than rich.

    Also agree that the toiling part is the best part of the day :)

    Best wishes to you as well!

  • Stephany Says:
    October 21st, 2011 at 12:18 pm

    I agree with you SO much on this! I really don't care if others around me think it's a naive way to approach life, I get one shot at this life and I want it to be a good one! I want to be happy in everything I do, including my job. And if I'm not, I want to have the guts to change it. Awesome, awesome post.

  • erinmakesitwork Says:
    October 25th, 2011 at 8:24 pm

    "back to life, back, back to life" Why would we want to come back to life just to go back to zombie status come Monday morning? I full-on embracing my life now (after years of floating through it). I can't imagine going back…even though most days I'm scared out of my mind. Thank you!

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