Life is a sacred thing, it is short and we don’t usually realize that until we lose someone, or until we reach certain age and regret about the things we haven’t done before. Last summer, I went for the first time across the big pond, in United States of America. Travelling alone for the first time in a faraway country, spending time in a different culture, I got an experience of a lifetime. I couldn’t stop myself from thinking what is life all about?
In our life span we feel happy, sad, exited and so on, but why is it so? How we can improve the life we have, what we can do for ourselves?
1. To feel: We need to show and give sincere feelings
Everybody’s brain works different. Child’s brain starts to develop early, even in the stomach of the mother we learn. For example, if you play classical music to an unborn baby his brain will develop better. Then in our youth we learn to love, to show care and other different feelings. Most criminals have troublesome youth. For example, either they had a really hard poor life or were really rich and didn’t fight for anything in life, or faced no love in their childhood. Their feelings are not as developed as of a normal child who was loved and who now loves somebody. Growing up without the felling of love and care, as an adult he/she might show problematic behavior.
2. To work: We need to work and constantly improve ourselves
In our youth, it is very important to understand our position in the society. Now we learn how to be better, because in a blink of an eye we will lead the same society we live in now. We learn we work not because we want to, but because we must. We have to be hard-working for the good of our family, friends, the people on the Earth, the whole universe. If we don’t work, we will never know if life in the space exists or if life can ever be infinitive. If we don’t learn, we will never know the shape of the atom and so on. We work for a better life for all of us, for better future, so one day we can become perfect. A perfect human knows everything, that’s why we try to reach perfection. After so many good or bad years, we realize that only with our brain and bodies we have accomplished so much. Thus, we must learn and work, so we can accomplish more, because hard work always pays off.
3. To travel: We need to travel and to open our minds
Every human must travel a lot because seeing is believing. By traveling we see new things, new things lead to ideas and ideas lead to success and success leads to happiness. Starbucks coffee was an idea that became a reality. A couple of months ago, I went to my first overseas trip – to United States. First country out of Europe, first time flying by plane. I spent the summer in Chicago, Illionis and there, I discovered a whole new world. Big buildings filled with desk and offices, discrimination on its lowest level, people in different colours and shapes. My mind was blown away. Back in my country, we don’t have big buildings or people in different colors, shapes and genders. There, I tried different types of foods too, some were good, some were bad but the point is I haven’t previously tried any of that. As soon as I tried deep dish pizza, in my mind crossed an idea to open a restaurant for deep dish pizza back home. That is an idea that can lead to successes. My trip to U.S. changed my life completely. Now I know differences between genders, my English language skills got better, I became more open-minded. Now I understand the world better. When you travel you get a knowledge no book can give you. When you know stuff, less and less people can lie to you. So people especially young people, travel everywhere you can, your mind is an empty book, fill it as much as you can because life is short and you can pass down your past experiences to different people and make the world a wonderful place with no judgment, with creative people and full with happiness.
Text and Photo: Filip Alchevski
Disclaimer: Filip Alchevski, is a 15-year old boy from Skopje, Macedonia. He is currently enrolled in first year secondary school at Gymnasium “Georgi Dimitrov” in Skopje. The text above reflects his believes and opinions and in order to keep its authenticity, it has been only mildly edited and proofread.