Habili-blog 4/7/18
“Let It Go ”
by Jared Mayes
I believe it’s human nature to want to feel a part of. It is rare to find someone in this day and age who feels comfortable in their own skin. We have been taught from a young age to look up to celebrities that dictate what we wear, the phrases we speak, and even the hobbies we partake in. Somewhere along the line it became cool to do drugs and commit crimes. You can blame it on the music industry, the movie industry or video games but what it comes down to is the majority of humans are impressionable and just waiting for the next fad to jump on. The fear of being different or unaccepted is too much for most to handle. That is the basis for a lot of addict’s decision to turn to drugs. Whether it is to fit in with the cool kids or to mask their insecurities the age-old myth of being predisposed to be a drug addict needs to be once and for all laid to rest. The generously handed out list of emotional and mental disabilities need to be given a second thought. There is one cure to all the depression and anxiety disorders that we are labeling our youth with before they even have a chance to discover their own identity. No, it’s not a red pill, a blue pill or any other color pill. It’s teaching them self-reliance, resiliency, and the value or earning something. The end result? Confidence. The missing ingredient to our stir fry of character traits that will eventually lead to self-acceptance. You can take an emotionally crippled drug addict and show them that they are capable of accomplishing a project and you begin to see that spark ignite into a flame and a phoenix-esque leader will emerge from the ashes of their lost shell. I am a self-proclaimed follower from a young age and some of the best advice I ever received was if I don’t know how to do anything except follow others, why don’t I make sure I’m following the right people long enough to learn how to do the right thing myself. Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Act as if long enough and you shall become.” Practice makes perfect and if you want to be a leader you must act like a leader. Confidence is very powerful and the easiest way to obtain that is to do something you never thought possible. Get out of your comfort zone and push yourself passed the brink of what you thought your limitations were. Define who you are and create your own potential. There’s no greater feeling in the world than to not have to live up to someone else’s expectations and not to have to put drugs in your body to cover up when you fall short. We all have the authority to control our emotions and how we react to a situation. Today I have a direction, a purpose, and a reason to live. What’s yours?