Don't Live For Others, & Gibran Khalil Gibran

One of the greatest sadnesses is to wake up realizing you’ve lived a life defined by others.
‎أولادكم ليسوا لكم أولادكم أبناء الحياة المشتاقة إلى نفسها

“Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.”

Gibran Khalil Gibran’s quote above goes beyond the meaning of just parents. You are the possession of no one, and no one is the possession of you. You do not owe a single soul on this planet how you grow into yourself as a person.

Just because one is alive, does not mean they are living. Just because one is living, does not mean they are free. We build around ourselves an invisible cage, but it is a cage nonetheless. “What if I embarrass them?” “What if I lose them?” “What will they say about me?” “What will they think if I change?” To hell with what they will think; whether it’s a friend trying to mold you into their favorite version of you; a partner unwilling to accept the full version of you; a cousin gossiping every time you spread your wings; or a parent only seeing your success as defined in their eyes…or worse, the collective opinions of your acquaintances, neighbors, coworkers, extended family and distant friends.

In the end, when the day comes and you are looking back at your life at eighty years old, everyone that you let dictate your life will be gone; and who will it be living in sadness or regret: them, or you?

Live this life you are given for yourself alone, live it with love and respect and politeness, but live it for YOU.