Do you follow a routine? I do. I wake up, make food, eat, take a shower, brush my teeth and get dressed. I do it everyday. Some days I may find that I forgot to buy toothpaste or eggs or something mundane like that, but shopping is just a part of another routine, and I’m comfortable doing it. We all have routines. Something that you’re more than comfortable doing. Something that allows you to go on autopilot, something that slowly turns days into hours, hours into minutes, minutes into seconds. If you work, go to school, or do just about anything, you have routines, solely because as humans we seek comfort like moths seek light, and the best way to create comfort in something is to do it everyday.
Sometimes, though, something throws a wedge in that comfort. Your adrenaline spikes, your curiosity piques, suddenly minutes are hours, seconds are minutes, and your mind is opening to a world of outcomes. You’re forced to leave the routine, your comfort, in order to fix it.
It might be something like getting fired from your job, expelled from school, maybe you got a promotion, or maybe you’re on the student council. You may have to change your routine to make room for these new realities. But somehow, even during those changes to your world, you may find that you’re still somewhat comfortable. Even as a moth that’s away from the light, you can still see it ahead of you. No matter how eroded, there is a path there to follow, a path followed by many others before you, and now it’s your turn, right?
But what if it didn’t have to be? You’re not limited to what makes you comfortable; this is your life. Don’t wait around for red tape to be cut by bureaucrats and corporations, don’t wait for change, be the change. There doesn’t need to be a path in that darkness for us moths to follow, and that darkness doesn’t have to be scary. Get comfortable with being uncomfortable, get comfortable with not knowing what happens tomorrow. Forge your own path in that darkness, and maybe make it a bit brighter.
In my piece “Comfort Is a Curse” I had a goal that wasn’t really realized; I have a very strong belief, rooted in just about everything I do that comfort isn’t good for me. I think it has a strong correlation with monotony, and it becomes rather difficult to deal with over time. I don’t like being comfortable. It makes me complacent, sad, bored and several other negative emotions topped off with the single positive emotion of being comfortable. I believe, at least for me, that the secret to living a happy life without regrets is simply to keep yourself stepping out of your comfort zone as much as possible. In my piece I attempted to paint this picture as clearly as possible.