Today, I choose to live. I choose to meditate in the silence of the morning, wrestle with the emotions persistent in my dreams, and continue on steadily the path I’ve chosen.

I don’t believe that passion is fun. The marrow of life consists of determination, concentration, and perseverance. Survival is struggle: our inheritance from our primal ancestors meant to keep us alive in a world full of threats and hunger guiding us one step at a time.

We haven’t changed much over the millennia as our ancient bodies jettison into technological dystopia. Life has never been easier. But everyday we rediscover the wisdom of ancient teachers. The Buddha would be right at home in 2025. No matter the advancements or luxuries, the one constant in existence is suffering.

The only difference is that today running from the pain has never been easier. The most valuable companies in the world are our drug suppliers. To take shelter from the suffering, we turn to cheap dopamine both physical and mental - substances, porn, gambling, algorithmic content, consumerism, and video games. There are an endless number of vices and avoidance methods - most involve a temporary preoccupation of our minds and an emotional payoff of some kind.

Well isn’t that the point of life - work and reward? To quote our AI overlords, garbage in - garbage out, or more clearly cheap work yields cheap rewards.

fuck that. Choose to live, fully. Choose to suffer, fully - from boredom, anxiety, sadness, challenges, and pain. Do it on your terms. When you sit with the discomfort for long enough, you can accept it and make it your own. Knowing your suffering means no longer being controlled by it.

I often think of the vast sacrifices made by my family - to leave war torn, poverty-ridden countries for refugee camps and a dream to grant a better life for their descendants. They suffered horrendously, were stomping mats, and clawed their way to the right of peaceful existence. And it worked - our lives are better for it - but they bestowed onto us not only our comforts but also their pain. The combination of the two are deadly. The pain keeps us stuck, and the comforts are painkillers to treat broken bones.

The only way out is through immense struggle - setting the bones correctly and waiting for them to heal. At first, you are not going to succeed. The overlords know this. Numbness is only a click, swipe, or tap away. That is by design. But with consistent effort that ignores the failures, you will.

A meaningful life is choosing to suffer on your own terms. Choose to run towards something, not away from everything.