Month: December 2024

Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do some people succeed and others are punished? Those who believe in a God are confused by this. Why would God do this to people? There must be a system for justice. Right? But then there is also the topic of fate and free will. How much control over our lives do we even have?

While it is human nature to believe that good should be rewarded and evil punished, it is important to know why this system must remain. Without a punishment and reward system, the world would be in total chaos. People would do as they wish without a second thought. This is exactly why some believe that free will doesn’t exist.

It’s all about opinion and belief. And what is mine you ask?

Fate is a disappointing topic. The simple idea of it makes us question whether or not we have any control over our lives. When we make a choice, a decision, in this world, is it ours to make? Or has it been planned from the beginning of time? For me specifically, I like the idea of having everything planned because I strongly believe that everything happens for a reason. It gives me a (almost) stress-free life. I can sleep at night knowing that God has a plan for me and regardless of how awful some things might seem in the moment, everything will work out however they are meant to be. Yet, I still don’t know how it can be that I still believe in free will. I can choose to go to college. I can choose to be a nurse. And if I were to change my mind, that new plan would wok out too.

While it is human nature to believe that good should be rewarded and evil punished, it is important to know why this system must remain. Without a punishment and reward system, the world would be in total chaos. People would do as they wish without a second thought. This is exactly why some believe that free will doesn’t exist.

My religion is not exactly by the books. It is my safety net and a reliable support system that I have in my head. But whether it has any true value is beyond my understanding.

One thing that I will never understand is how Job continued to stay loyal to God, and continued to fear/worship God even as he was angry at him for all of the terrible things that were happening. He felt as though he was being punished but for what? He was as serving as a follower could be.

Some things will simply never make sense to me and this is one of them; Why are good people punished?

A house is not always made of four walls and a roof. A house is where one finds safety and comfort. The Garden of Eden is also a house; the home of Adam and Eve. Eden is where they were innocent, almost as if it was their childhood home of growing up. 

Just like in any other house of young, innocent children, mistakes are made. As parents or guardians in a house tell their kids not to do something, it somehow only makes the child want to do it more. While God never directly told Eve not to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge, he tells Adam. They both, however, end up eating the fruit, much like a young child being disobedient in their house. 

And similar to all humans without a fully developed frontal cortex, we tend to think we know everything or simply don’t worry about what we don’t know; much like Adam and Eve when they leave the garden. In Emily Dickenson’s Poem “Eden is that old-fashioned House”

Reminded of someone…

While Adam and Eve are painfully ignorant of what they’re leaving behind, I, on the other hand, have a better understanding of what lies ahead. Yes, I will dearly miss my family, yes of course I will get homesick, and yes college will be hard. But I will not miss my newfound freedom and independence. Surely that’s what Adam and Eve were thinking when they left, but they did not know the gravity of “But discover it no more”. They would never be allowed to go back to The Garden of Eden which was their home. However, my mother is so insistent on me staying close by, probably in hopes that I will commute.

I do plan on staying on campus, hopefully. And while I’m not sure how far “Until we drive away” I’ll be, I look forward to however close or far it is from home. It’s a very special thing to be grateful for; knowing you will always have parents there for you, as much as it is always stressful never wanting to disappoint them. It’s all about balance, and I hear that college life teaches that very well.

Who will I be when I come back- Or will I

College is said to be a place of growth of the mind and spirit. I don’t know to what extent, but I’m sure it’s significant.

My goal is simple: Make long-lasting friends, get an education and a job, when I graduate from 4 years get my employers to pay for my 5th year accelerated program and get my master’s, live life to the fullest, and buy a cute little mansion.

Now, if everything goes well, I’ll be in Beverly, Mass. And yes, it’s awfully far away I believe it’s where I need to be during these upcoming years of my life.

If however, plans change, I know that I will always be welcomed back at home, yet I will quite possibly never be the same person that I was when I left. But I am not afraid of this. I believe that change is always for the better or a lesson.