Ageless Pursuits
As a 20 something recent college graduate, there is something about this moment in my life that allows me a summary perspective on whom and what I have truly journeyed to find. A few nights ago, I had an opportunity to revisit an old time classic. After an unconventionally busy Sunday, I decided to relax and watch my personal favorite “The Patriot”. Beyond the Hollywood style romantic telling of the great American Revolution, this film fueled my ongoing thought of this concept I have come to call the “Ageless Pursuit”.
The movie opens with the narration of Mel Gibson, who plays Benjamin Martin a French and Indian War veteran and widower with seven children. The drama unravels when the South Carolina General Assembly approves a levy to support the Continental Army’s revolt against Great Britain, despite Benjamin’s choice to abstain. The plot thickens further once Benjamin’s eldest son Gabriel, played by the late Heath Leger, joins the revolution despite his father’s wishes.
At the beginning of this film, Mel Gibson’s character is quoted saying “I have long feared that my sins would return to visit me, and the cost is more than I can bear…” Alright, I won’t go further into describing the rest of this movie. However, this quote resonates as a tribute to a man in search of peace and simplicity, despite his deep understanding of the complexities of his true self and calling. This depiction of the ageless human struggle for attaining an ideal greater than self and understanding is an emblem of our organic natures. The sins of our lives do eventually return to visit us, some call it consequence, but I dare to call it opportunity, in either case it is a cost that we must all bear. It is during these times of reprimand in which man must answer the call on his life. Though the choice of inaction may satisfy the immediate, our sense of being goes un-rested until action is matched with purpose.
Choosing ones preferred course in life does not come easy, we structure our thoughts and decisions based on previously set criteria. These standards, in which we put into place, are to assist us in selecting specific choices that make us best off given our limitations. Throughout this process in which we all must partake, there remains a soft whisper that strives to remind us of our true selves and purpose.
Our sense of being is brought to life only when we begin to reflect, choose, and seek ideals. As we grow we began to reflect on the experiences that provide us wisdom, derived from our purpose in our pursuit of life. Through our search for achievement, our lives speak of our gestures, our being, and most importantly our true selves. This “Ageless Pursuit” is one that changes as we progress. It is one that grows as we develop. It is one that transforms and renews us as many times as we allow it to.
Like this story? Sign up for my newsletter to get more of my best work.
