Book No. 48 – On The Road

Have you ever wished, even just for a second, that you could drop everything and leave your life behind? What if you had no responsibilities in this world except for yourself? What if you defied societies’ standards and expectations and lived by your own set of rules instead? What if. For many of us, these questions will always be left unanswered, but for Sal Paradise and Dean Moriarty all the answers they needed were found On The Road.

On The Road by Jack Kerouac is a classic novel that is an absolute pleasure to read. It is the story of two friends who decide they don’t just want to live life, they want to experience it. They take off together on the road and the stories of their adventures unfold before the readers eye. From hitchhiking to robbing cars, to picking up women in bars, nothing is off limits for Sal and Dean. I’ve always believed there are two types of people in this world. There are those who live in society and base most of their decisions on monetary values, and there are people who live for themselves and base there decisions on people and love and life. I’d like to say I am the latter, but unfortunately  just like the majority of Americans, I am not. Our lives are governed by obligation and responsibility and because of it, our lives are no longer our own. Do you remember what it was like to be a little kid? You had no cares and no worries in the world and creativity and innocence ran through your veins. What I wouldn’t give to feel that way once more. When you get to a certain age it can sometimes feel like all the life has been sucked out of you. I have seen the life sucked from peoples eyes and the hope stolen from their soul. 

Dean and Sal spent their lives on the road. They traveled to small towns and big cities, and they met new people, and fell in love with different women; all of whom taught them something new a long the way. They understood the concept of time and the illusion of forever that so many people desperately hold on to. In a sense, they were trying to escape death by living with madness, passion and intensity. Nobody wants to be the person that looks back on their life wishing they would have done things differently. We only have one opportunity to get things right and we have exactly one lifetime to experience every thing we want to. 

So I encourage you all today to sit down and think about what you want to do with the time you have left. Write it down. Do some research. Grab a friend. And then GO DO IT. Take a stroll through the snowy streets, go dancing in the rain, start a conversation with a stranger, be impulsive, be daring, buy a plane ticket to paris and climb the eiffel tower, learn to play the guitar or plant a garden. It is too often that people become afraid of wanting things for themselves. Deep down you know what it is you want more than anything else in this world. Go and get it. Drink too much coffee and laugh way too loud, become a youtube sensation, go skydiving, or write a book. Whatever it is, it is yours for the taking. 

“The only people for me are the mad ones. The ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, and desirous of everything at the same time.” -Kerouac

 

When’s the last time you did something for the first time? 

Be mad.

Just for the day.

xo

TJ