Stayin' still, eyes closed
Let the world just pass me by
Have you ever heard that sentence? The two sentences are fragments of the lyrics of the song from The Living Tombstone entitled "My Ordinary Life". The lyrics 'ask' us to be still, while the world continues to move past.
Apart from the song, do you know about The Ordinary Life? The ordinary life is an art of living, you know. So, this art of living contains the principle to live in an ordinary level without having to be “extra ordinary” as is 'glorified' by the current environment.
The Demand to Be Exceptional
You must have often heard or received demands from people to be special. He said, we must be successful at the age of 30 years. The standard of success also seems to be set arbitrarily. Have a double-digit salary, buy a house without credit, and so on.
In fact, young children are also victims of their environmental ambitions. For example the pressure to get 1st rank in school, to get a scholarship, to study in a top 10 college.
It is true that pressure can motivate a person's enthusiasm and performance in life. However, it feels like this socialized standardization is a bit excessive and cannot be applied to everyone.
Does if we don't reach those standards mean that we fail and become losers? Does one have to be extraordinary and live an extraordinary life?
Of course that's not the concept.
Ordinary life is not bad
From these environmental demands, you can actually choose to do two things: obey them and live an extraordinary life or live an ordinary life.
It's not wrong if you want to take the first choice, even most people are like that. On the other hand, choosing an ordinary life is also not a bad choice.
In the midst of the mainstream society competing for predicate, title, and success as it has been set, we can choose to step aside and seek our peace.
In particular, if being ordinary is our own choice, and we are happy with that choice, what's so bad about it? That's exactly the best.
Live a Calm by Being Ordinary
So, do you believe that by being ordinary, we can enjoy the serenity of life?
Yup. Because usually extraordinary life is marked by demands, expectations, and urges to succeed.
On the other hand, ordinary life teaches us to be peacefully productive. The orientation is not on goals that must be achieved immediately, moreover it must be on the standards of others. But how do we live the process happily.
So take note, an ordinary life doesn't mean lazy.
Being Ordinary Like a Philosopher
Montaigne, a French philosopher during the renaissance, once taught the principle of ordinary life, without the need to be exceptional. This teaching is one of the main points in his great work The Essay (Esai), which consists of 3 books. In the third book of them it is written that:
"Storming a breach, conducting and embassy, ruling a nation are glittering deeds. Rebuking, laughing, buying, selling, hating and living together gently and just with your household - not getting slack nor being false to yourself - is something more remarkable, more rare, and more difficult"
Well, hopefully this perspective on ordinary life can help you to find the peace you are looking for. It's okay if you want to try living an ordinary life, as a lifestyle or as a method of rest if you are tired of living extraordinary.
Keep your spirits up in facing the challenges of this increasingly 'cruel' world, don't forget to stay happy!