Burdens and Expectations
"The greatest burden a child must bear is the unlived life of its parents." - Carl Jung
I’ve always like this quote. I think it explains the pressure and expectations children get from their parents.
I recently wrote about the concern over losing your edge by meditating. Does my unlived life impose a burden on my future self?
Because I’m worried about never reaching my goals, I’m afraid to do something that may change my priorities?
"Does my unlived life impose a burden on my future self?" - is an interesting question.
"Does my unlived life impose a burden on others?" - is a separate question that's no less interesting (IMO). Maybe this is why so many people feel the need to control others? And not just their own children, but complete strangers.
-----
> Because I’m worried about never reaching my goals, I’m afraid to do something that may change my priorities?
I guess this sort of implies that failing to reach a goal necessarily implies an "unlived" life? Personally, I'm not sure I accept that.
I guess I come more from the POV that we don't necessarily know what our "true goals" are in life. That a journey towards one goal may just be a step up towards another "truer" goal. A step towards where you're "meant to go" all along. In that sense, abandoning one goal isn't bad at all. Maybe that's why some people like believing in destinies...
Anyway, I'm rambling now, and I don't know if any of that made sense. So, I'm gonna go sleep on it now. 😂