What Do I Stand For

I am back yet again with another speech. Haha.

"If you don't stand for something, you'll fall for anything." - Peter Marshall.

What do you stand for?

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Success: It’s attaining your goals, bouncing back upwards every time you fall, championing all odds and rising to the top…

Or maybe, it’s not.

Let’s be realistic: you will miss goals in life, you will not bounce back up every time you fall, and there is only so much space at the “top” for people to rise to. A cynical thought indeed.

In truth, we are obsessed with ranking, with rising. But we do not realize that even in the midst of that, we all fall. After all, we can’t blame gravity for falling in love.

Take a leaf and a seed for example. Both start off with the same goal: height. The leaf wants to grow at the highest, sunniest spot, and the seed wants to grow into the loftiest tree.  At one point, both have to fall. Consequently, the seed begins to germinate, and matures into a tall sturdy tree. In contrast, the leaf – if not by some miracle – will never be able to rise up to its former height. However, is it accurate to state that the leaf has failed? No.

I am a firm believer in fluidity and transformation. The leaf falls. Yet, now, it has a novel goal; an imperative part of the soil, it nurtures and supports countless future trees. Humans are no different from leaves, we constantly respond to the ebbing and flowing of the tide of life. Therefore, acknowledge that things change, recognize some goals are trivial in the first place, and focus on what unexpected results going along with the fall will get you.

I stand for falling. People are too obsessed with the top – with rising above others. Personally, the concept seems trite and boring. Do not be fooled, falling down is not the same as complying with failure. It is merely a medium for change, for flexibility, for open-mindedness; it is for people to open their eyes to the many opportunities they are missing by staying ensconced at the top. That is why I’ll fall. I’ll fall down. Fall left. Fall right. Fall under a spell. Fall in love. I’ll fall – to succeed.