Does It Enrich Your Life Or Define It?
You know, Charlie, there are two kinds of thieves in this world: those who steal to enrich their lives, and those who steal to define their lives. Don’t be the latter. Makes you miss out on what’s really important in this life.
This is a quote by Donald Sutherland’s character, John Bridger, in the movie The Italian Job. I watched it last weekend on Channel 9, and this sentence stuck in my mind. I’ve been thinking about it ever since. Now, he talks about thieves and stealing because that is the context of the film, but it applies to everything we do. From the simplest daily routines to the bigger and more complicated things, such as our careers, can be evaluated under this mindset. And I think we should do so regularly.
I know quite a few people who are teachers, doctors, mechanics, etc and that’s all they are. Their lives revolve around their jobs, and therefore there jobs DEFINE them. They don’t have a social life and no hobbies, their relationships are going down hill; and they are the teacher, the doctor and the mechanic. That’s all! It might be fine for some (for as long as they don’t notice it), but the majority of us don’t want a life like that. We want to live a life that has a bit of everything in it.
Computer related activities are particularly the type of activities that draw us away from other things in life, according to my experience. The main reason for it is that we can spend hours behind a computer very comfortably, without any feelings of loneliness or boredom. It is much easier and safer to talk/chat to someone on the net than it is in person. And as per our nature, we always choose what seems safe at the time being, which may not be the best thing we could do.
So what is true in your situation? Do the things you do define your life or enrich it? I certainly hope it is the later.