Choosing Your Own Adventure

Danielle Benedict: Own Topic (1)

    

Growing up, one of my favorite book series was “Choose Your Own Adventure.” It was extremely popular in the 80’s and 90’s. The reader decides what the protagonist does and ultimately takes the plot in the direction they choose. The power to choose was both exciting and terrifying. Half the time you would hold your hand on the last page in case something went wrong on the plot course so you could skip back in time. Mistakes were erased with the mere flipping of pages. Characters were revived and wars avoided because you remembered to return to page thirty-five. What if “real” life could be just as simple? What if the things we cared about were listed in front of us and everything was a matter of flipping to the right page? I believe we are capable of making lists of the things we are dedicated to. What consumes our time and is it worth it? Will it lead to the adventure you truly desire? Once I was extremely overwhelmed with the chaotic state of my life so a friend once challenged me to write out everything I was involved in. Then they told me to numerically rank each activity. I came to the realization I was throwing away precious time on activities that I had no passion for and was sacrificing the things I genuinely cared for. It is all a matter of perspective. As adults, we make choices that lead us in one direction or another. They are not always obvious outcomes. The food we eat, the people we love, and the city we live in all put us on a life path, or adventure, that we had a part in. Are we going to be the ones choosing our own adventures or will we let others make those decisions for us? One of the worst things we can do with our mortal lives is to become a bystander in our own lives. This blog post is just a gentle reminder to think about what is propelling you forward and if that should be the driving force behind your actions.