As the year comes to an end, it’s time to reflect on past misgivings. Sadly, I had done nothing of importance to be considered for the Top 20 Under Twenty before I turned 20 myself. In response, I wrote this lamentation:
Due to the unfortunate condition that will be imposed on me in a moment’s time, and the utter urgency for me to perform some magnanimous action, I have decided to compose this short literary masterpiece. Although some people will consider this a futile exertion of mental substance, blatant empty rhetoric generated for awe and grandeur, it will hold for all that follow to be a brief analysis into societal preoccupations by way of satirical penetration through the veil. As I pass through my youth, with no great achievement yet on my life resume, I am forced into melancholic pensiveness.
Will I ever achieve true greatness?
My contemporaries are already being awarded for their contribution to the world while I bask in my education. They are being honoured and exemplified as if it is some outstanding achievement to be a human being. We all travel through the same life cycle: birth, growth, regression, death; and yet they are presented as the divine gifts of God for deciding to do something in that short span between birth and death, especially while so young at heart. Admired for overcoming the challenges of today’s world and balancing strenuous activities such as volunteering, part-time work, running a small business, sports, theatre, and education—just to name a few—my compassionate peers serve as a demonstration for making a difference.
The difficulties they face are so overbearing, yet so inconsequential and unimportant. There likely exists underprivileged and malnourished youth wishing they had meat on their chests rather than a shimmering medal. These children would love the chance to make it beyond their youth, let alone with an award by their names. However, this suffering temporarily goes ignored to honour those who try to alleviate it. Glorious celebration of the altruistic facade persists, and as long as the richness of youth exhibit significant levels of innovation, leadership, and achievement, it will continue. Regardless of intelligence, race, gender, or creed, as long as the leadership and innovation lead to the betterment of society in some way, you are considered worthy as an individual.
It is pitiful that individual worth is measured by how much an individual contributes to the world around her instead of by her essence. How many friends do we have for the wrong reasons? How many of us have friends who appreciate us for how much we give to them rather than appreciating us for who we are in isolation? But in modern thought, benefit outweighs value, or value degenerates into benefit. Those deemed worthy by society are now open to the perquisites that play into this nobler state—the revelry, the connections, the discourse.
Meanwhile, the rest of us underachievers are left to squander our lives on petty occurrences, fighting the frustrations of daily living. We are forced to feel badly as society judges us with their whispers of contempt, thinking that we mediocre creatures are immune to their hard glares. We are not. We too feel the joys and the pains of life. We too experience happiness and sadness, health and illness. Is it our fault that we have not been subjected to some great misfortune, making us more compassionate people? Is it our fault our parents did not force us to become cultured? Is it really our fault that our decadent world has left us morally bankrupt? We are tossed into this salad of fragmented mythologies and expected to do something about it. We are made to feel guilty about forgetting the dressing. But have they not yet realized we prefer it raw? Unlike many, a few of us remain that have not forgotten beauty.
We perceive what others miss. We embrace the unmeaning we are presented with instead of clinging to the familiar. We go unappreciated but we do not complain. We prefer being removed from societal construction, while enjoying life within it. We are luckily clever enough to see past the subtle subterfuge, to discern the underlying reason for awarding upcoming brilliance.
Simply, for the fading generations, the awards symbolize hope, the hope for fixing all the problems they ignored for their selfish indulgence. They award the youth to lull them into a false sense of appreciation, thereby encouraging them and others to continue with their ways of betterment. The young leaders are unwittingly forced into responsibility. They suspect that we will fall for this ploy, those wise deceivers.
However, we are united and will not be enchanted by the spell of glory. We are too strong-minded to sacrifice our lives for those of others. I refuse to become victim. I would rather remain deviant and criminal. For the recipients, awards represent satisfaction and offer an increased sense of meaning. But do such dynamic individuals need praise? I would assume that these freshly baked loaves would not go stale without preservatives. These awards preserve vocation, offering them reassurance from the elders that they are doing the right thing by remaining loyal to the clan.
But should reassurance that they are following in the right footsteps be given?
True greatness does not need encouragement from the rest of humankind. True greatness is a self-propelling wheel. True greatness is sure alone, forging its own path. True greatness does not remain a pupil but becomes a teacher of a new breed. That is why I would rather create a new disease than find the cure for the old. It is fruitless to fertilize an orchard that does not bear any fruit. It is better to plant new seeds.
Thus, I return back to my original question, the one I often ponder: “Will I ever achieve true greatness?” Yes, but to the world’s displeasure and misfortune, not before my twentieth birthday.
Signed,
Anonymous