The most inspiring thing in the world may just be the laugh of a child suffering from cancer. When a young girl or boy still manage to laugh and smile each day while struggling with cancer, there is never a reason for us to frown. It seems as if cancer patients are the only ones who know to cherish every moment and live life to its fullest potential because they never know how much longer they may have to survive. Yet we live our everyday lives pretending we’re fine. Just because a doctor doesn’t tell you that you have six weeks to live doesn’t mean you shouldn’t start living. Life isn’t something to be procrastinated, but we still manage to push things to the last minute.

If someone came to you and told you that you had one day to live, how much of your bucket list would you possibly scratch off in 24 hours?! Would you be fulfilled, would you look back and say that you’re happy where you stand? If someone told me tomorrow would be my last I don’t know what I would do. So much for backpacking through Europe, going skydiving, or taking a spontaneous trip somewhere with a group of friends; I’d be dead by the time the plane landed.

There are certain things that make us think twice about the life we’re living. We complain, we whine, and we’re generally more negative than we are positive. We get caught up in our everyday lives and we’re not inspired to live them until we see someone who refuses to give up on theirs while simultaneously fighting off death. One weekend is all it takes to change you. THON is inspirational, not because of the cause, but because of the lessons it teaches you. We begin to realize that the most courageous and strongest people in the world are the ones that refused to give up. The young children that suffer each day from cancer yet still maintain a positive character are the ones we need to look up to. Some of them survive, many of them don’t’ make it, but none of them ever made any excuses.

• “Work’s a bitch”
  • Why are you working somewhere that doesn’t make you happy? If work is a bitch, get a new job! You’re going to do it 40+ hours a week for the rest of your life, why would you ever want a stressful job? What good is a dollar if it’s going to ruin your day?
• “One day” or “Maybe another time”
  • Maybe another time??? MAYBE there won’t BE another time!! Are you going to travel the world when you have job and you’re only allowed two weeks off a year? Or maybe when you have kids and they consume the majority of your time? This is the only opportunity you can be sure of, the one that exists in this very moment. Whatever the suggestion may be, you have to see it as an opening and you never know when there will be another. Go for it!! Saying no builds the foundation for regret and saying yes is the prelude to any adventure.
• “School drains the life out of me”
  • Turn the clock back a bit and pretend you decided not to go. You wouldn’t have your friends, you wouldn’t have an education, your future would be dim, and you would be dumb. School is a drag but it will also provide you with unforgettable memories, lifelong friends, and a brighter future.
• “I don’t have enough money right now”
  • The point is that one day you will have enough money. That’s what credit cards, loans, and parents are for; have fun now, pay the price later. Always choose the adventure over doing nothing at all. Money isn’t any good if it’s just sitting in the bank!
• “What if I fail or something goes wrong?”
  • Guess what! If you don’t give it a shot, it’s a guaranteed failure. You can’t be 100% sure every endeavor will be successful, but you can be 1000% sure that if you don’t make an attempt, there won’t be any results. In order to be able to win you have to risk taking the loss.
• “It’s too risky”
  • Too risky?!?!? When have you ever had any fun following the rules? LIFE IS A RISK; you can’t play it safe because you have no control over the random factor! Get hurt, end up in the hospital with a black eye; it will just add to your story. Would someone want to read a story about your life? Fuck it; an even better question – would YOU even read a story about your life?

No matter how good or bad we have it; each morning we need to be thankful for life. Because every morning; someone, somewhere else will be desperately fighting for theirs. Ever wonder what it’s like to be a cancer patient and wake up knowing that you’re dying? Well, what’s it like to wake up every morning pretending that you’re not?

-Inspired by THON

This world works in mysterious ways but if one thing holds true in life, it’s that our heart and our minds can stretch and pull us in opposite directions. That’s what life is, it’s a balance between doing what you feel is right and doing what is socially acceptable. Our hearts have no boundaries, they can make us do things that can be looked down upon or potentially hurt others. Our minds function to regulate our hearts by using logic and reason. Sadly, our hearts control pain and emotion. When we don’t follow them our minds try to suppress the pain, but that never ends well. Following your heart is the key to happiness and we always manage to forget that.

Some of the greatest people in this world lie, cheat, and steal and it’s not because they are bad, it’s because the truth can hurt those they care about most. Lies allow us to follow our hearts while simultaneously allowing our actions to remain socially acceptable. They’re a part of life and sometimes we lie to the people we love most. We keep secrets because we don’t want to hurt those around us and also to protect ourselves. The sad truth is that the society we live in today does not condone following your heart. We are considered rebels for following dreams that don’t conform to the rules and regulations decided upon by the majority. I will be the first person to tell you that following your heart can be dangerous. Our minds are very risk averse; they use logic to calculate the ‘safer’ path that we should take. What is socially acceptable? What will not disappoint those around us? Our hearts are impulsive; they do whatever feels right at any given moment. They have no regard for risk, because risks are a part of life and if we never take them, we never truly live.

We can’t let the forces of our society push us in an undesired direction. Following your heart means to rebel, to give in to impulses and do what makes you happy, even if it means going against the grain. People follow the crowd because it’s easy, they do what is socially acceptable and suppress their own wants and needs so they do not hurt others, and when they reach their old age and a lifetime has passed them it all comes down to one thing; At the end of it all did you have a stronger heart or a stronger mind? Did you do what loved or did you settle for what is acceptable? The entrepreneur vs. the laborer, the artist vs. the student, the writer vs. the teacher, risky vs. safe? Follow your heart and people will eventually forget about any pain you could’ve caused them and actually be happy for you.

So it all comes down to one question…Have you been rebelling or are you conforming?

There is no doubt that life throws its fair share of curveballs at us. Some are moving at 100 mph, some are bigger than your average baseball, and some of them are even on fire. Sometimes we dodge them, screaming “THAT WAS A CLOSE ONE!” Sometimes we smack them out of the park and proceed victorious. And sometimes those little suckers hit us square in the face…and those are the ones we never forget.

Here’s the thing about curveballs; you can go pick them up afterwards and hold on to them as souvenirs and reminders. If you think about it, curveballs really aren’t that special. Sure, they keep us on our toes and act as wake up calls when we least expect them. If you’re a smart player though, you’re always prepared for “the curveball” because it’s such a common pitch. It might change up on you last minute, but it won’t hurt you because you were ready for it…most of the time that is. That’s where shooting stars come in to play.

We always suspect a devious pitcher to throw a curve ball at us, but we never look at the sky prepared to see a shooting star. They are nowhere near as common as curveballs and every bit more inspiring. If life throws us a curve ball we react to it, but when a star streams across the sky for a split second we are left motionless. Shooting stars are so beautiful and rare that you can’t help but make a wish when you see one.

What do you wish for when you see a shooting star? In some way, we all make the same wish…we wish that we can fly; because at the very moment that a star trails across the sky all we want to do is chase after it. A shooting star isn’t just the visible path of a meteor as it passes through our atmosphere; it is a dream, a wonderful fantasy. Define your shooting star and I bet ANY wish that follows can translate in to chasing that dream.

Curveballs exist to remind us of the different obstacles that can come our way. Please take note, a curveball CAN hurt you!!! No shooting star has ever hurt a person; it has only left them wondering “What if?” It’s the difference between the reality and the dream, real-world and fantasy. We prepare for curve balls and other devious pitches every day of our lives. We play this game and constantly give it our best effort. But when the crowd leaves and the lights turn off, the only thing left to do while sitting in the middle of the field is chase after shooting stars.

So while curve balls remind us to keep our eyes open and our feet on the ground, shooting stars remind us to never stop following our dreams. You may never see a shooting star again, you definitely can’t go pick it up and hold on to it, but you will always embrace the moment when you see one. Keep on dreaming and never stop wishing. You’ll never get tired of chasing stars and when you finally catch yours, you’ll never let it go.