And everything went fairly well. The discussion went on as planned and everyone was in a good mood.
One of the most interesting questions to come up was the concept of free will. Does it exist, and do we have it? Emma asked jokingly if we had sat down to discuss Sophie's World out of our own will, or if Mr.Summers somehow had control of the whole thing? Funnily enough, Mr.Summers appeared at the door about half a minute later.
I don't know if there's any way to tell whether or not we have free will. It might not even matter. What's important is that we are happy with our decisions in life. Even with the freedom of choice, we are pressured everyday to make the "proper" one. We are told that there's a specific way to live well, one that works for everyone.
Go to school. Get good grades. Join extracurriculars and win awards and leadership positions. Make lots of friends who are interesting and diverse, but still like you. Get into a good college and get a good job.
Do whatever, it doesn't matter as long as you're happy.
At age 17, I feel that I'm getting these messages more than ever. We're getting to the point where we'll soon have to start making serious decisions about our direction in life. As excited as I am for the independence that comes with college, it's confusing. I hear everywhere that I should do what makes me happy, but the same people that say this think that there is only one way to be happy.
I have the perceived free will to stop typing right now, to leave and hide somewhere in the mountains for the rest of my life, free from societal pressures. But I don't see it happening that way. As much as I want to be independent, I want more than anything to fit in.
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