So I’m checking out my blog, which I haven’t done in a while, and I notice something funny…
My most popular post by far is “How to Make Working Out a Lifelong Habit”
Which is hilarious. Because I’m definitely NOT working out right now (unless you count trampoline dodgeball) and it hasn’t even been a full YEAR since I wrote that post.
Lifelong my ass!
So I, Jaemin Yi, hearby retract my endorsement of that post. It no longer fully represents my thoughts and beliefs.
And while I’m at it, why stop there?
I retract EVERY post i’ve ever written. And ever will write.
In fact, almost EVERYTHING I’ve ever thought, believed in, or stood behind, I will probably retract at some point. So we might as well get it over with and do it now.
Because so far in my 26 years of living, there hasn’t been ANYTHING that I haven’t looked back on and thought: “Wow, that’s what I used to think? Uh, that’s kinda embarrassing.”
But that’s okay. In fact, that’s how it SHOULD be.
Ideas and beliefs are just like everything else in life. They’re not static. They’re constantly growing. Changing. Evolving.
So when you look back and realize how off the mark you were, that’s not a point of shame. On the contrary. It’s PROOF of growth.
If I ever stop looking back at my old thoughts and blog posts and am not slightly embarrassed, then something’s wrong. That means I’m not growing.
It means I’m not learning new ideas. I’m not striving outside of my comfort zone. I’m not testing my theories on life and seeing how they actually hold up in the real world.
It would mean that I’d still believe getting a girlfriend would fix all my problems (high school). Or that having a career as a filmmaker would make life absolutely perfect (college). Or that being location independent and traveling the world would magically solve everything (past 2 years).
That was retarded. Thank God I grew outta that.
And now I’m a little bit less of a dumbass than I used to be.
It’s like the conclusion I came to with Taneen and Jesse a few weeks ago: the only way to not be an idiot is to realize you’re an idiot.
And maybe that’s what growing up and being wiser is all about. Just realizing more and more how little you actually know. And being cool with it.
But then again, who knows. I’m probably completely wrong about this. I’ll let you know in a year or two.
– – – – – – – – – – – – –
Okay so now that I’ve forced myself to eat some crow (mmmm), now let me defend myself a bit…
So yes, I haven’t exactly made working out a lifelong habit, but the MAIN IDEA behind that post still holds true. In fact, it holds more true for me NOW than it ever did before.
The whole point was that you should change your reason for working out from looking better to FEELING better. To feeling great all the time. And right now, I’m definitely doing exactly that.
Not just on a physical level (thanks to SF’s hills and my girlfriend’s amazingly healthy cooking), but also on an emotional and spiritual level too. No, seriously.
With the help of meditation, reading, and learning to be less of an asshole to myself, I really have never felt f*cking better.
So there. I wasn’t COMPLETELY wrong.
But wait, does this mean I’ve already retracted my retraction? Goddamn.
Oh and that picture up above? That’s from my failed attempt at turning motorcycling into my next hobby. I rode that thing like 5 times before I sold it. Boom, retracted!
