The Rat Race S1 Epitaph
Originally published on Medium on September 21, 2018.
Why its worth taking a break…
I’ve wandered the south of England this past week, visiting family and friends before I disappear into the west. Between the leaving drinks, the packing procrastination, and emotional goodbyes, the common question has been ‘so why?’ The flippant response is ‘why not?’, yet as I sit, crammed into a 767 crossing the Atlantic a more nuanced response would be that its because life is short and life is long.
I’ve reached that milestone where people start making real decisions; around the last corner were the heady days of our 20s, where all we cared for was earning enough to have fun, stories enough to make each other laugh and material wealth enough to be comfortable. I watch as friends make the conscious or unconscious decision to ‘settle down’, ‘put down roots’ or ‘get serious’; all of which is a synonymous with what we classify as adulthood. Yet I still struggle to understand why.
We are wedded to the idea of being wedded; that lifes milestones and the assumptions behind those milestones are just as relevant today as they were 20 years, 50 years, or 100 years ago. That we still need to worry in the middle class western world (and I speak with an acknowledged chip on the shoulder) about the material wealth that will keep us clothed, fed and under cover. That the sum of our value is the sum of our production. That cadence of our lives from birth to death is the same now as it was in the 1800s.
Our lives are longer now than ever before with life expectancy well into the 80s and it not uncommon to be a fit and healthy 90 year old. Expanding that out we can see our millennial lives extending into the 100s with ease. We’ll be working into our 70’s, contributing to society into our 80’s and regularly seeing our great grandchildren in our 90s.
Our lives are also shorter though, we are ruled by the systems around us and routines enforced upon us. Live flies by at an ever increasing blur, because we’ve slotted ourselves into a place of comport. We get up, commute to work, hopefully achieve a feeling of value, commute home, watch entertainment and go to bed. We have entrapped ourselves in the easy path, taking the [drug in brave new world] without comment, spinning from ‘same old, same old’ day to another.
So I’ve chosen to break out of my routine for a time, to slow down as I turn the next corner, to appreciate the feeling of wind in my face and rubber on the tarmac. Whether I find clarity, direction or new passion is up to chance, whether I find friendships, memories and a broader perspective on life is up to me.