Life Isn't An Adventure

P.S. That's a miniature stone behind him.

You’ve seen these posts on Facebook or Instagram.  Or whatever the new platform may be. A slew of pics and a story about someone’s’ vacation or wedding or a big party where everyone had a great time.  It fills you with joy or sickens you because you missed it.  It’s the inescapable charm and curse of social media. 

I can’t complain about that stuff.  Most of the time, I love seeing all of it.  My issue is (It took me a while to consolidate my thoughts on this) the inevitable post that describes life as one big adventure.  They are off to their next adventure, series of adventures, or that life, itself, is one big adventure.

Come on, man. Life isn’t an adventure.  Raiders of the Lost Ark is an adventure.  And, it’s a good example.  Indiana Jones has a very weird side job where he searches for and steals artifacts for his university.  That’s the adventurous part, for sure, and more adventure than we’d ever experience.  However, his full-time career is a professor of archeology at a stuffy New England school. Not an adventure.  Just driving to and from work, grading papers, wondering when there will be a cure for polio.  (It was the thirties.)

Why do we do this to ourselves?  Why do we put this pressure on our lives, as if it doesn’t have enough pressure as it is?  We have to work and take care of our families, be there for friends, try to be healthy and a good citizen, fix our cars, clean our toilets, clip our toenails, walk our dogs, eat our vegetables, and not lose our shit when the world feels likes like its upside down and on fire.  On top of all that, now we have to make it an adventure, too? Screw that. 

By all means, have adventures if that’s your thing.  I bet it’s fun.  Adventures take time and money and those are both things I want one day.  But I have to clarify that I’m not saving up for adventures.  I know the stats show that most people prefer experiences to material possessions. I do, too.  But there aren’t really any specifics on what those experiences should be.  I’m interested in peace.  Just peace.  Quiet is fine from time to time, but I want peace in my life.  Conversation, one-on-one time, games, movies, long walks…I can’t wait to be as free from demands and responsibilities as any adult can possibly get.  Nowhere in there is a craving for adventure, and certainly, I would never want my life to be an adventure.

I understand it’s just a frame of mind.  You can look at your life through any prism you choose.  There’s just so much mundanity in our lives that I think it’s a tall order to try to act like you’re on a constant adventure. Life just isn’t that exciting. It’s not.  You know it and I know it.  Why do we take photos when we’re on vacation?  Because its special.  It’s rare.  You don’t take selfies in front of the paper towels at the grocery store or in your garage when you’re looking for that hammer you always lose.  Why?  Because that boring shit fills all of our days.  It’s the fun we want to remember, right?  At most, we want as many tiny adventures as we can grab spread throughout our boring-ass lives. 

It doesn’t have to be exciting to be precious.  It doesn’t have to be a thrill to be sacred.  It doesn’t always have to fit neatly in a movie script and not every moment is worth a photo and a description.

Is it that you think life is an adventure, or do you want me to believe that YOUR life is an adventure?