 What is the formula for "a good days work"? Well, let me begin with this. There are many people out there that think the world owes them a handout; that their existence alone demands respect from the rest of us who are out here killing ourselves trying to make a living. It's simple. If you've never worked then why would you feed guilty about not working? You surround yourself with people who have the same outlook as you, and then, this close-minded lifestyle begins. And believe me. Once you're in that whirlwind, it's hard to get out of it. Personally, I didn't finish school. I scoffed at the thought of making peanuts out there in the world just because I was a teenager. So, I would jump around from job to job, and since me giving college a lash didn't work out, I suppose underachieving was becoming the heading on my resume. Then I turned twenty-three, and thought, "fuck this bullshit, it's time to get out of here." So up I got, said goodbye to Whitehaven, England, and said hello to New York, USA, where I met a whole new breed of people with ambition, multiple jobs, and goals. The only goal I achieved in England was on a soccer pitch, and that was a rare occasion, let me tell you. But here I was, culture shocked and excited for a new life. Eight years have now passed, and yes I can truthfully say that the formula of a good days work is coming home knowing you can put up your feet and complain about your legs aching because you've earned it for the past ten hours pruning peoples landscapes, seating buckets of sweat, suntan lotion, and soil. The formula for a good days work is being qualified to raise an eyebrow to the lazy people of this world. The only drawback to this luxury is every winter, when the gardening season is over, I find myself cloaking my future ambitions in self-doubt and self-pity. When my fiancé tries to guide me to greener prospects I take it as pressure, which pushes me away from her. Thereby compelling her not to understand my mindset, leaving me not having the mental acuity to explain myself in the right context with the right tone of voice. But the truth is, that she is my partner, who is as worried about the future as everybody else out there who isn't a rocket scientist or a rock star. Where does this leave me? Well I never had a sack full of ambition as a teenager, or a young adult. And I dislike myself for that flaw. But everyday I realize that the future waits for no one. Time waits for no one. nd love will always push you forward with the best intentions at heart. Gareth John Harkness |
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