To live is to slowly be born

5-min read

This guy! Beautiful outlook. Inspiring quest. Unintentional leader.

Meet Jagjit!

When I was 16 years old I saw La Dolce Vita, a 1960 film about a man that lives the sweet life. Roger Ebert, a film critic, wrote that the protagonist is a man “Seeking happiness but unable to take the steps to find it, he spends his nights in endless aimless searching…”

The film is a great example of how content can remain the same while its viewers perspectives do not. Watching the film as teenager I believed that the protagonist truly lived the sweet life by wandering from one exotic environment to another meeting a variety of fascinating people. Reflecting back on my teenage years, I find it difficult to write about myself because I’ve grown so much on my journey that I don’t even know how I started. I'm so far removed from who I was even 3 years ago. But I can tell you about the steps I took, about my path to grasping at momentary happiness which occurred more recently in my life. I woke up one day, stopped calling my job a career and started referring to it as work. I found myself in a hole where I was cynical, and it was very difficult to dig a path back out. I realized that if I want to connect, find happiness and fulfillment then I could not wait until after 5PM, already tired from work. I had to begin my journey as soon as I woke up. Finding happiness is a minute to minute adventure and a lifelong endeavor. I was never an artist, but I realized that the key to my personal fulfillment was creating new things every day.

I took chit chat and created conversations.
I took talking points and created messages.
I took mundanity and created experiences.

I hate losing more than I love winning which is why I try to be inclusive. I took chit chat on the elevator, on the street, and in coffee shops and created conversations. When I talk to people I want to be understood. I want to appreciate the other person, whether it's an opinion they offer or a perspective they bring. If I walked away from an individual and I did not get a conversation, then something went wrong. I think you have to see a better version of yourself in people and thank them for it; just because they don't see it in you, doesn't mean it's not there. When you meet people that do see it in you, stick with them because they’ve demonstrated they recognize the good in you. They're better than you and in time you will become better than yourself. I have created a better version of me in the conversations I had with people. You may encounter rejection, but let your confidence guide you when it doesn't work out. I read the other posts on this blog for guidance and found amazing people with inspirational stories. I knew that I couldn't offer more than they have already but writing alongside people that are better than me has made me better for doing it. Watching La Dolce Vita more recently, like Ebert, I too pity and love the protagonist. I bring this movie to your attention because perspective can be both blinding and enlightening. When things seem to stay the same, I urge you to take a new perspective by creating something new. Somebody will help you do that, you just have to reach out.