“Show me the heart unfettered by foolish dreams and I’ll show you a happy man.”
“But only in their dreams can man be truly free. ‘Twas always thus, and always thus will be.”
Dead Poets Society, 1989
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I have decided that discovery is too broad of a term that one Philosophy class would not even suffice to explain it.
Now let me tell you a story to illustrate, in the simplest way there is, the wonder of the word mentioned.
Once upon a time, there was a girl who believed that the very purpose of her existence was to go to school and ace her subjects, graduate on top, go to a respected University and get a job that would earn her money and allow her, at the very least, to live a luxurious life.
Typical? Unfortunately, yes. And unfortunately, most of us will probably go through the same phase no matter how much we convince ourselves that ‘it is now time to live my life the way I want it; carpe diem!’ At the end of each day, it’s still a matter of survival, right? No matter how much we want to push for other pursuits, time gets in the way. There’s absolutely no time to spare for poetic quests, for we have enough in our plates already.
Well, as I have not written The End yet, the obligatory ending of all cliché tales and stories, I am going to continue.
Fortunately, she seemed to be woken up from the nightmare of merely trying to go through life, instead of actually living life. It was magical. It was better than Snow White’s or Princess Aurora’s awakening. She didn’t have a prince; she had a life waiting to be finally lived!
She discovered that intelligence was not to be measured in the confined walls of academia and that grades do not measure how much one knows and more importantly, one’s worth. She discovered that recognitions and medals do not represent her entirely-- just the part of her who is patient enough for school. She discovered that it was greater to have friends, than being locked up in her room, studying, as she misses out on adventures and opportunities. She discovered that textbooks were only a speck in the array of books that are worth reading. She discovered that she should invest on things entirely outside of school—for life is the ultimate educator, and the world is our grand classroom.
She finally, thank goodness, wanted to discover what she really wants to do and not what society wants her to do. She discovered the beauty of nonconformity and the beautiful sensation of knowing that you are exactly where you want to be. She discovered self-discovery.
It was okay to be a nerd; to be Hermione Granger who buried herself in books and who loved the smell of quills and parchments, or to be Quentin Jacobsen who cared much about not getting into trouble, or to be Colin Singleton and be a child prodigy.
But she also discovered that it is perfectly okay to be Fred and George Weasley, to be Margo Roth Spiegelman, to be just like a member of the Dead Poets Society “dedicated to sucking the marrow out of life,” to feel infinite, heck, to be infinite in every freaking moment of her life like Charlie, Sam and Patrick.
She allowed herself to venture in the road to self discovery and get lost in it. She discovered, and decided with much conviction, that it was not wrong to find your inner self and meet your alter-ego.
And it was not wrong to refuse what path society tells you to take. Sometimes, just because a road is the one frequently traveled, it does not mean that it is the right place to go and be in.
One of the most interesting discoveries you can invest on is self-discovery. And she took the liberty of discovering herself, and it was liberating for her.
And in this light, I give you another quote from the Dead Poets Society, specifically from John Keating (to whom I owe the creative juices which made capable of writing this): “Boys, you must strive to find your own voice. Because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all.” (Dead Poets Society, 1989)
I hope you discover something that will liberate you, too; free you of the clutches of whatever it is that is confining you. And I hope that it will inspire you to discover greener pastures, more starry nights, more. I hope you discover more.
Written by Alexa Yadao
Photographs by Alliza Andal
Contributor
Alexa Yadao
I like to believe that I am Hermione Granger and Margo Roth Spiegelman in one body
Photographertwitter: @AllizaAndal
Alliza Andal instagram: @allizaaandal
A shutterbug who's deeply in love with black and white
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