Fear not! For life has only begun. A lifetime of dreams, goals, ambitions, loves (both lost and those still to be found), desires, wants, emotions, and so much more still await. Still waiting to be found, fulfilled, enjoyed, crushed, deflated, lost by each of us in today’s society. We are influenced by those around us (yes, even by the guy in the back of the room who is known by no one. By the same guy who gets average grades, lives a mediocre life with friends who have accomplished the same things. By the guy who rides an old beat up bicycle to his destinations like work, the doctor’s office, or even to pay bills.), industry, and the general society. Drink Coke. Do the Dew. Did somebody say McDonald’s? No matter where we go, we can’t avoid it. Pollution. Technology. Subdivisions. Automobiles. New Age everything. We must follow the stereotype of the average to middle class American. If not, we become lacking in culture, esthetic refinement. We’re philistines. To be accepted by other people, we must be just like them. We must agree with what they say. We must share their beliefs. Is there an Intelligence Quotient prerequisite to being alive? To living life to its fullest? Being happy? How are our boundaries decided? Are we predestined with them? Can we set them ourselves? Can they be adjusted? Can we do it or do we have to hope that they are adjusted to our needs individually?

And what about love? Is there one true love for each of us? It sounds to me that until we find that idealized significant other, that we wander aimlessly looking for him or her. I know that’s not right, but it almost makes sense. Doesn’t it? I’m not saying that our lives, relationships, existence, or whatever mean nothing until we find that perfect person. Is it even possible for there to be a “perfect” partner? We all have idiosyncrasies that people either adjust to or they don’t. Does adjustment constitute perfection? People eventually look over other peoples’ quirks and accept them. But does that make them perfect for each other? What happens if we never find that one person who has everything we could want? What happens if we are lucky enough to find them in our first relationship? Could that be called luck? It almost sounds like a bad thing. If it is the case that we find them first thing, then we have no experience to base a relationship on. On the other hand, why would we want to base something off something that didn’t work in the first place? Maybe there was something about relationship #1 that doesn’t work in relationship #2. But maybe it was the detrimental thing that caused relationship #1 to fail that would cause relationship #2 to work. But if we never find that perfect person, we’ll never know. No one wants to spend eternity alone, but there are some people who are destined to be that way. Forever, perhaps? We certainly hope not. Maybe they’re happy that way. Is it possible to be alone all one’s life and remain content, let alone happy?

So this is where the mind overloads and crashes. The system is down, but I feel better. You wake up several hours later with a splitting headache. You can’t focus your eyes and you’re shaking violently. You’re cold and scared. You’re confused because you don’t know where you are and you don’t remember where you are or how you got there. You’re in a room with white walls and no windows, except for the one in the small one in the door, but even it is made of safety glass. Did I say “even”? I guess I forgot to tell you that the walls are close together in this room, and even better, they’re padded.