BACKlikeWEneverLEFT

Growing up, your always told to clear you plate, eat everything there, don’t leave any leftovers.   Most times as a kid, you may want some more, but parents make specific instructions: about finishing your vegetables, clearing the first plate, etc.  Of course you don’t want to eat ALL the veggies on the plate, but if you want another piece of chicken you will follow instructions.  It’s at that point when your hunger kicks in, and you do everything you have to get that next piece of the good stuff.  Normally it’s something that is only in small portions, another piece of chicken, steak, fish, something that tastes a little better than the veggies.  After having a recent conversation with a friend, the thought about staying hungry crossed my mind.

The hunger that I speak of is not in the sense of eating food of the dinner plate.  It’s actually about staying hungry in life.  Hungry in life, yes the thought of constantly wanting more, never getting full, and doing what you need to get to the next plate.  When you are hungry in life, your drive and determination are limitless.  You realize that your appetite is not being met; therefore your stomach is steady growling.  The enemy to that hunger is a dish better known as contentment. Content can be defined as being satisfied with what one is or has; not wanting more or anything else. Continuing with the food on a plate, a person who is content is happy with the piece of food and their veggies.  No matter how much, you may want another piece, how good it taste, you are satisfied with what you had.  Sounds simple enough… I got my plate; I’m good I don’t need anymore.

For many people, this is how life can be viewed.  I got something, I’m cool no need to strive for more.  Here is when people start to feed you clichés, the main being “something is better than nothing!!”  Now don’t get me twisted, I understand the concept of that statement, but I don’t agree.  I mean I disagree on several facets, but I guess the main is, that seems like the easy answer.  Of course something is better than nothing, nobody will disagree with that, but the problem is most people tend to get comfortable with that something.  I think it happens out of contentment, fear, for some lack of ambition.   All three of those bother me within society.  The act of staying content can cause one to lose opportunities.  A person can lose hunger and become blind to new chances to expand and grow.   Growth can happen in several different forms, being overly content closes off access to any.  For those who have decent  jobs, but not the career you want, you could overlook a blessing in disguise. 

The concept of fear is there as well, people fear the unknown.  People fear possible change, people fear being successful.   Continuing with the concept of work, fear engulfs many minds.  The people, who are fearful, are still hungry in a sense; they just are not sure how to channel their hunger effectively.  They worry too much about that ‘what if’ factor.  What if I ask for a raise and don’t get it, what if I go back to school and fail, what if what if what if.  The biggest way to limit your hunger in life is by fearing the next step.  You don’t strive for more because you have no clue what will happen and sometimes that is all the motivation that one needs.   Last many people lose they hunger, due to lack of ambition.  Without ambition these people, can’t even see anything wrong.   Lack of drive, doesn’t even open your mind up to being hungry, this has to be stated by somebody close to you.  The acknowledgement for the lack of drive or ambition comes from somebody who sees more in you, when you don’t see it in yourself.   They help you realize, that you are getting opportunities because they aren’t there, but because you ARE NOT trying to achieve any.

Sometimes I am hungry, other times I fall into one of these categories.  As I am writing this to encourage myself, I want to motivate some of my readers out there as well.  Staying hungry in life, gives you something to work forward and really wake up to.  For some, you maybe working at your dream job, cool find a way to make your job better.  For those who are not where they want to be educationally, embrace the chance for success.  To piggy back off my last post (give the flowers before they go), I applaud all of you who stay hungry, keep fighting for more.  I want to keep moving forward, trying not to become stagnant, can’t say that it’s easy but I things happen.  An interesting phrase that comes to my mind is “it’s hard to see the forest through the trees.”  Often it takes a moment of clarity (pulling back, looking at the whole picture)to know how to make the decisions that we are required to make because it’s hard to see what the real answer is, or what the right decision is to make. Currently this phrase can be applied to many aspects of my life, so on that note it’s about that time to grab my fork, my stomach is growling.