The Importance of being Earnest

Kanashimi no mukou kishi ni
Hohoemi ga aru to iu yo
Tadori tsuku sono saki ni wa
Nani ga bokura wo matteru?

On the opposite coast of sadness
is something called a smile
But before we can go there,
is there something we're waiting for?

Every great man walked through a special path to success. Thomas Alfa Edison tried 1000 times before discovering lamp. J.K. Rowling has been rejected before she finally published Harry Potter.

Nigeru tame ja naku yume ou tame ni

In order to chase our dreams, we can't have a reason to run away

I believe that being earnest can't be studied in high school. You have to face serious problem to arouse the potency inside you. As I was always feel like a child, everything seems so simple. I want, and then I get it. This is how our young generation is taught. Have you ever seen a mother with her baby? When the baby cries, a mother run fast to get him what he want. You will say, it's natural, but it creates character, you know. The first 3 years is an important phase for our life. That's how we absorb basic common senses about the world. When you ask and you get it, it makes you think that is the proper way to get everything.

My little cousin is raised with full spoiled. He talks like people in the beach. He screams as nobody wants to hear. So, in order to get him silent, his parents bought him everything: cookies and toys every single day, even every single hour. Well, it won't last for long. There will be time when his father is really sick of him, so he yelled him. What kind of person do you think he'll grow up?

Ashita sae mieta nara tame iki mo nai kedo
Nagare ni sakarau fune no you ni
Ima wa mae he susume

If we find it tomorrow, we can't sigh
Because like a boat that opposes the stream
we have to walk straight on

Raising a child is a hard work. When I was working in my first job, my boss often asked me how to raise a child well. She had a very sissy boy. The son is so weak, not only his appearance, but also his way of thinking. He would cry when a teacher say he made mistake. I know the reason. It's the parent's love. She makes a perfect protection for him. Whenever he gets hurt, she will be the hero to save him. She will protect him from every cause of pain, even his own sister. That makes him unable to learn how to defense himself.

A child is like a seed. When you grow it, she would stay save inside the ground. But, when the time passes by, she would have to grow bigger. Soon, many parts of her will be out of the shelter. She would have to face the real world, whether it would be the wind, the rain, or the animal. She would have to be stronger by her own. Until the day she would the shelter herself.

Kurushimi no tsukita basho ni
Shiawase ga matsu toiu yo
Boku wa mada sagashite iru
Kisetsu hazure no himawari

In a place worn down by sadness
something called a miracle, is waiting
Yet we are still searching
for the sunflower that grows at the end of spring

I live my life simply. My parents are too good. They let me do everything I want and get anything I like. Sometimes I don't really have to waste energy to get it. That's why I don't think I have fought as much as I should. I could not value this life, because this is the life they brought for me, not what I get it myself. And it's bad.

That's why on my 24^th years now, I've been trying to reflect to my life. What have I done and what have I got. Most of the time, I got something less than I could. I could have done better, but I didn't. I honestly disvalue the actions I made. But, I thank God I choose the right path.

When somebody asks me, what is your biggest dream? I could never answer that. I'm too scared to hope, because when you're wishing, you eventually will be disappointed. I used to set my goal so high, but I failed. I didn't look depressed, but believe me it shape my personality.

So, what? Those stupidities only get me in the lower stage. That makes me one of the losers. I don't want it.

Kodoku ni mo nareta nara
Tsuki akari tayori ni
Hane naki tsubasa de tobi tatou
Motto mae he susume

Even if we've grown used to loneliness
only relying on the light of the moon
We have to fly away with featherless wing
just go foward, just a little further

People have to struggle to survive. Life ain't easy. You have to fight it. That makes the life more valuable. When you—like me—always get everything easily, you will lose them fast too. Sometimes you have the motivation, but when you see the barrier way too high, you might stop chasing. It happens all the time. Like when I tried to apply to a scholarship. One of the requirements is having reference letter from the professor. I and my friend think this is a greatest challenge because the professor is not a friendly person. I almost give up. But, I haven't tried anything yet. What's the point of giving up? What honor do I had by doing so? So, I called her and tell her that I need her autograph. She sounded unhappy, probably because the illness. I could not help my heart from beating so fast. I was so afraid she would reject me. But, she said, "I'll be at the faculty at 10 am tomorrow." I don't know if I get the scholarship, but even if I don't, I've tried my best. And I would lose in honored.

Being serious aiming what you want and doing your best for it might not be easy. You might get hurt but you just have to move on. That is the way I figure out myself. Who I really am? What kind a person I'm worth? We're only as much as we give. If we never put something on the stake, how we would ever get anything in return. No venture, no gain.

Amagumo ga kireta nara
Nureta michi kagayaku
Yami dake ga oshiete kureru
Tsuyoi tsuyoi hikari
Tsuyoku mae he susume

As the rainclouds break
the wet streets sparkling
Although it brings only darkness
A powerful, powerful light
helps push us to walk on

PS: Quotations are from the song "Only Human" by K, which is also the OST of melancholic dorama, 1 liter of Tears.