For those of us who are science fiction nerds, we know all about prophecy. Prophecy in the world of science fiction is a fickle friend. Many a time, the character who leads the charge as the book’s main protagonist is wary of prophecy, or ignores it altogether with the intent of making his or her own path. Through the trials and tribulations of his or her story, the character defies the odds of fate and what the world around them deemed inevitable. Most of these characters only buck prophecy after being required to sacrifice greatly, both physically and emotionally. The funny thing is, this type of world, set in the stone of “unbreakable realities”, is much like the one we live in. In 2017, being overweight is the norm, diabetes is on the rise, and people wanting things given to them for nothing is becoming commonplace. We’ve removed hard work, struggle, and growth and replaced them with laziness, complacency, and comfort.
Why you ask? I’m not sure that I have the answer. It could be that our trials and tribulations are so miniscule today that we do not know what hardship is. It could be that we’ve bought into the world of instant gratification, fake smiles online, and are overwhelmed by feeling anything that isn’t happiness. Possibly, it’s because the snapshots we see of others lives are only the positives, and we’ve fallen into the trap of social media and it’s constant lies of glamour and glory. We are, as a culture, unable to handle differing ideas from our peers without showing aggression. We are lost.
I ask you though, what could be a better story, than taking those who are lost, and letting them find themselves? This is the narrative of your favorite book’s protagonists, and the difference between them and their antagonists. We can all be like our favorite book’s protagonists. We can work hard daily, struggle when we fail, and grow through our hardships. We can, as many of our great characters have, right our own prophecy. Prophecy to me, is something that is self fulfilling. In fact, by definition, a self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior. Well, then what are we waiting for? Like our characters, we will struggle. Like them, will will endure hardship, and like them if we do not waiver in our resolve, we will succeed.
If you want to be more fit, more financially successful, have more meaningful relationships, or really live your life: YOU MUST CHOOSE TO DO SO. Create your own prophecy, act upon it, and be your own hero. Wherever you are in life, strive to be better daily.
As my favorite character once said, “Your life is yours alone, rise up and live it.”