No. 022: Maybe Problems Aren't Your Problem.

Maybe problems aren’t your problem.

Granted, maybe they are. But then again maybe it’s more that every time you get a minute, you hear that whisper chiding: use it, fill it, make it count. Cherish these days; they fly by so fast. Their childhood will be as magic as you make it—so don’t you want to make it? You could make green eggs and ham. You could read them two chapters a day from a whimsical fortress of hand-stitched quilts. You could hunt for salamanders in the creek and teach them the names of all the trees. And if you could, I guess you should.

Maybe it’s more that every “yes” is followed by a “but”—every satisfied exhale by a tension-building inhale. Questions come with every breath: Where are we going? How will we get there? What’s the next step and, while we’re at it, the step after that? Here are 28 gadgets from Amazon that might get you there faster: Do you want them? Do you need them? Your grass could be greener. Your teeth could be whiter. Your mind could be sharper. And if it could, I guess it should.

Maybe it’s more that every time you look in the mirror you can’t help but notice your potential draping loosely across your frame, and you wish that you could fill it up. If you set your mind to it, you could become the Ideal Wife, Ideal Daughter, Ideal Sister, Ideal Friend. If you keep your head down and play your cards right, you could even become Somebody! You could make good on everyone’s investments. And if you could, I guess you should.

Maybe problems aren’t your problem.

Granted, maybe they are. But then again maybe it’s this mountain of solutions standing between you and your peace. And sure, it’s a mountain you probably could climb. You could make it to More. You could make it to Better. But in case you needed to hear this, please hear it from me: you really, truly might be better off if you don’t.