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Yesterday I got an amazing selfie from my friend @lizanomadsoul and she's currently live at steemfest. It happened that I saw an inbox on my Facebook messenger and it turned out to be Liz and she told me she's currently with @theycallmedan and she's currently speaking with him on how I could have been there but couldn't make it due to some externalities and right that moment to took that selfie and told me that Dan sends his greetings back as well and at that moment this encounter made me realise that I've been living inside a cubicle, a shell that's covering me from experiencing a separate reality that could blow apart the ideologies and opinion I hold dearly due to being sequestered in places where I hardly dare to dream to experience.
Liz and I have formed a formidable friendship over the years and while I can say she's living her life to the fullest I'll say I'm living a half baked version to my own life. The moment I say this you might think I'm referring to money as the huge difference but that's not entirely true. Throughout my life I've been battling with health issues and through this health issues I've been chasing a degree as well as having to fulfil my responsibilities to my incapacitated mom and render my duties as a first born son in a family where first born children are semi fathers no matter the age, financial status or psychological readiness. So the fact that I don't have money to go to steemfest isn't the issue, the issue is that I'm living in cage, a setting where you're chastised for craving freedom away from responsibilities in other to enjoy the impact of comfort, a drink with a friend or two, a ticket away from unfriendly environment and a wild adventure that rejuvenates the soul for just a moment in one's life.
Dan and Liz; a Replica Of Fufilment. Image gifted me by @Lizanomadsoul
I'm not saying Liz has got it all in life, far from it but sometimes there's this chance of living in the right environment where your aspirations are basically sponsored thoroughly by the mental sophistication and advancement of a modern day society. I consider being in the right environment as the prerequisite to be free to live a life blended with fulfilling one's wildest dreams and also their realistic dreams. I believe it'll be a great disappointment for me to just live grow old and die without getting to have the maddest experiences in life and while I might fully regret I look at all my problems in life and I can attribute it to being around people with the wrong mindset, being exposed to dream killers and held back by my body and series of events which might still be here while I've lived and gone. So while we might be thinking money is the ultimate problem, have you taken time to sit and ask why you don't have money in the first place? What's the limitations to the vision of the people around you? Is it clustering you from exploring a whole new world of opportunities?
When you can correctly answer the affirmative to these questions then that means the means to money and true freedom is what you essentially lack in life. And like it's famously said life is short but truth is many don't know just how short and this ignorance is the reason why we haven't had the purpose of finally breaking through. Like Liz there I've found a replica of life which I crave to live and looking and imagining her Various experience meeting people, eating different food going bikini swimming and having the nicest of laugh is just about it.
An African proverb says a beautiful laughter amongst people who you chose to be with is better then being clustered in a mansion filled with riches
Now if you look well it says the people who you choose to be with and not people who you that you need to be with, need and want is what makes the difference, I might choose to be with Liz enjoying the fun but I've stuck with the people who I need to be with and the barrier of choices in life keeps becoming a hindrance to living a minimally satisfying life. In essence it's about getting to a stage where you make money simply because you want to enjoy the fun it'll bring rather than making money which becomes a ghost immediately you touch it. I can't stand firm and say I've reach a stage where I can comfortably indulge in the former and that's why I can't be in steemfest and simply not because I'm poor. When you're free that's when you realise that money is hardly the problem but the freedom to have money for the things you really crave.
I feel your pain and frustration in this post. Both figuratively and literally. Social and familial responsibilities can feel like a weight sometimes, and in the West I think there is a lot more freedom from that but at the same time it's a double edged sword because family isn't as strong, at least in my experience here in the UK.
I'm also limited by (chronic) illness m8, and it's been the hardest thing I've ever had to deal with. I'm lying in bed right now unable to sleep because my abdomen is so distended it's pushing on my ribs and causing pain. It's extremely frustrating.
I did plan on living the digital nomad existence before this SIBO (the condition I suffer from) robbed me of that dream. But we gotta make the best of life, that's what I allways tell myself anyway.
What a great selfie Liz sent you of her and Dan. I did get to meet Liz briefly in Krakow at SF 3 last year at the closing dinner. She is an awesome person, and I'd say she is living the dream, although being a digital nomad can be a lot of work also.
I've traveled in the past, to Thailand, Mexico and Egypt a few times so I always remind myself of that when I start to feel down about not being able to live the life I would like to right now.
Hope you're well Jose. I might not be on steem much over the next month as I've joined NanoWrimo (national novel writing month) and need to focus on getting my first draft finished. Steem distracts me too much lol. I'll be more active once December rolls around 😉
P.s. steemfest fomo is real 😉
I understand you. I do 247 and you can’t tell someone how it is well enough till one collapses for real. You may not know it but I had your voice here:
Well definitely some responsibilities feel like a weigh in the freedom we should enjoy, the saddest thing is that these responsibilities will remain definitely even when we're gone and it still weighs us down irrespective. The truth is that we can't exceed some certain limit my health issues have made me avoid a lot of strenuous activities and funny enough I have to always make a calm face while making my videos.
I'm really sorry for what you're going through man I swear it can be painful, but what do we know, we keep fighting.
As for Liz, she's obviously the most selfless person I've ever met and well most of the things I've achieved here i owe it to her.
Well I hope you get back soon mate, in a week time I'm going for a degree and I'll be sparingly available.
We can't live to live enough all our aspirations, I'm careful not to go past my limitation because it might harm my health, I've some things I should basically not have because I want to stay afloat and thrive and well I hope it can be better soon even if my health issues might be life long. @surpassinggoogle it might have been a long road and I haven't lived up yo expectation but sometimes the numerous pain in life sometimes makes us cling to life and things that might prolong life more
Would have loved to meet you here at Steemfest, maybe next year if we can somehow make it possible. Very sorry to hear about your situation. I met Liz for the first time here at Sf, she is awesome, and she told me that you two are friends, what a small world, as I consider you a friend as well. Sending my best wishes from Bangkok and look forward to meeting you one day.
Exactly Dan, she's probably one of the amazing people I've met her on the platform really and we've shared a lot over the years she's been wanting me to come over for steemfest for like two years now. But somehow it's been really crazy though, and everything I've gone through. I'm so grateful Dan for the gesture and I'll also be looking to meet you for the first time. I'm so glad you dropped by Dan it's an amazing delight for me
Awww so much love here ❤️❤️ would love to meet you some day, you are a great steemian and we need more people like you here! Take care my friend 😊 thanks @theycallmedan for the kind words and support of the community😊
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Thanks a whole lot @lizanomadsoul I can't wait as well it's amazing to see that this self ramble really received a good reception. I'm waiting to also see the amazing memories through post as well. You're amazing and thanks for being a friend Liz
So profound and so true! And you were right to point out the word chose.
I also met Liza briefly at SF3 in Kraków and she did seem very pleasant. Unfortunately we didn't get a proper chat.
I do hope things start looking up very soon.
Liz is more than amazing and well and well I became very emotional seeing that selfie with Dan lol. She's been wanting me to attend hahaha and she just messaged me saying she's currently talking to Dan about me hahaha.
Well yeah Ade that word chose it reflects freedom and when we can really chose it's a whole new Level of freedom sometimes that people underestimate.
Thanks a million Ade I'm grateful for your illuminating comment
It was as if I was the one typing this post, it's kind of exhausting when you can't live life fully to the max because you ve got the family bags on you weighing you down, I know they say family is everything to alots of people but i still think alot of people are trapped by their family and the mite responsibility attached to it.
But worry not, because more meet up and steemfest are still coming and you will definitely meet up with one of them, hoping by then too I might be buoyant enough to also meet you there, just keep the fire burning
There are dates now. I told you once in the old past. No worries I spoke in your voice and Liz took care of me as she takes care of you.
Again, there are dates now.
I watched with keen interest obviously why I'm replying late. I can't really begin to break down, it's emotional but well time heals and perfects
wow super nice beautiful post keep it up thank you very much
Thanks for taking time to read
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