"Should"

Should.  It's a powerful word.  It can be the cause of responsible adult behavior.  We SHOULD go to work every day.  We SHOULD pay our taxes.  It can also be the cause of guilt.  You SHOULD go see your mother.  You SHOULD have that mole checked out by a doctor.  But it also tends to cause us to live our lives by the expectations set by society.  You SHOULD get married and have children.  You SHOULD wear a size 4.  You SHOULD go to college and have a set career path based on your degree.  I, being Type A, can get on board with the responsible behavior. (Struggling to pay your rent?  Stop going out to a bar every effing night of the week.  Welcome to adulthood.  It can suck here.)  I, being raised Catholic, can get behind a little bit of niggling guilt that resides at the back of the head...it tends to keep us honest.  But what I cannot abide is the third version of "should".  I'm not saying everyone that fits in societies set molds is a sheep...that is certainly not the case.  Some folks that are prototypical "shoulds" are perfectly happy and content because the life they live is what they desire.  But....I look around and see an awful lot of people living their lives according to what they "should" be doing according to our society, and not what they WANT to be doing.  But breaking the mold always causes a mess.  Some people can't handle the fall out and instead, to quote Thoreau, "lead lives of quiet desperation". They can't take the mess, the disarray, and the backlash and instead fall in line.  I challenge you...take stock of your life.  How much is what you "should" be doing, and how much is what you WANT to be doing?

In the words of Carrie Bradshaw - "Why are we 'shoulding' all over ourselves?"

G