This I Have Learned

Of all of the school assignments and lessons I’ve endured over the past 4 years, learning about the arrival fallacy has been by far the most impactful. The arrival fallacy is the illusion that once a goal is reached, it will bring perfect happiness. I first learned about it in psychology, and then was reminded of it during our discussion of Waiting for Godot. In the story, Vladimir and Estragon waste their time waiting for the mysterious Godot to arrive and give them some sort of direction or peace, yet Godot never comes. All our lives, teachers, parents, and peers have told us that the work we put in now will all pay off when we have prestigious degrees and successful careers. Yet none of us truly know for certain if we will ever achieve this vision for the future, or if we do, that it will actually make us happy. We've all been told to wait for the future, but like Godot, it could never be coming.

Instead, I have learned to prioritize my current happiness. As Master Oogway says:

“Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it’s called the present”

We have no way of knowing what tomorrow will bring. We can make educated predictions, but there is always a chance of terrible accidents or even random good fortune that can alter the course of our lives forever. This doesn't mean we should live our lives entirely from moment to moment, only focusing on short term happiness, though. There is importance in planning for the future, but living for it is pointless. All we can really do is live in the present, and hope we are well enough prepared for anything life decides to throw at us.

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