Under Pressure

   Everyone's under pressure today. Students, mothers, fathers, grandparents, lonely men...  You get the point. Standards are rising higher and higher, and most of us have moments when we're scared we'll never be good enough. Some of us even get caught in dangerous loops that keep telling us that what we're doing isn't worth it, that we're not talented enough or driven, that we'll never become anything. We see pictures, movies, tv shows and ads we all want to live up to. We want to be skinny, well built, have white teeth, become rich and/or famous and find the love of our lives, preferrably right now, the sooner the better. And most of all; we don't feel like working for it. Fame and money should just come our way, like it did for Kim Kardashian.
   Sadly, this isn't the truth for 99% of all celebrities. Most of them had to claw their way to the top, not all can be suddenly famous without any of the work. They started out doing small things, struggling to make a living of their art, and now they're idolized for what they've done. But more often than not, we notice all the things they have instead of all the things they did. Most people don't become an overnight sensation.
   For some people, one dream isn't even enough. Johnny Depp, an actor known all over the world, has claimed his dream is making his own wine, and Stephen King keeps giving us book after book, never really finished.
   We worry so much about our goals in life that other things become irrelevant. Family, friends and hobbies all fall to the side as we work towards our goals. They just don't seem to matter just as much, and we forget the people who helped us come to where we are, just because we think there are still places to go.
   The truth is; there will always be new things to do, new places to go. But your true friends, your passions will only come once in a lifetime. There will be no new things once you've lost everything. Be careful who and what you spend your time doing.
   Live your dream, but live it with the people who matter.