Digits Defined (Column 1)

Each morning I wake up to the sound of a quite bothersome ringtone and as I roll over to press the snooze I glance at the time like I somehow did not expect it to nudge me out of bed just yet. But because of the numbers staring back at me I have to get up and begin my day. Those very numbers determine where I will be and what I will be doing. And as I hit the snooze for the third time I suddenly begin to question numbers and their meaning of existence in my life.
I did some research and found that numbers were first invented around 3000 B.C. So they have been around for quite sometime now. But back then numbers were just a simple guideline to help us through our day. But being the all-powerful humans we are we have made numbers to be a lot bigger than what they have to be. First of all we have turned time into an object. An object that is chained to the movements of society. Because of the number on our clocks we must be at a certain place at a certain time. In time’s case numbers have caused us to hurry our way through life. What is the hurry, when life is short enough as it is?
In our attempts to control numbers we have actually made them the enemy. We have made them the enemy as we step on scales all around the world just hoping the number staring back at us is smaller than our last go at the awful weighing machine. So we have anorexic and bulimic people walking this earth thinking they are not good enough. We have made numbers the enemy as we reach into our pockets only to find that the things we want in life we cannot have because we cannot possess enough money to buy them. We have made them the enemy as students all across the world begin to hate any number in the seventies and their hearts ache if ever they see numbers below those dreaded digits. Because to see a number that low one feels they are tabbed as a failure. A single number can make a person feel like a failure. See what we have done?
Yes I do fall into these categories at times but I try hard not to. I think it is important to have a plan in life but if that plan revolves solely around my clock I would not be as happy. I do not want ticking digits having that much control over me. I also think it is important to stay active and I am concerned about my body, but I will not get caught up stepping on scales or denying myself the pleasure of food because of the number my body carries around each day. That is just me, and that is who I am. I have seen my share of numbers in the seventies since I have been in college and at times even lower. At first I was horrified at the sight of them. Now, I realize they are just numbers. If I can walk away from a class and say I truly enjoyed it then the number that goes with does not matter to me. Most students will remember a small amount from what they learn in college anyway.
In the end numbers are just numbers. Simple guidelines not rules that cannot be broken. Do not let numbers define the person you are. Do not let numbers make your life go any quicker. Let the time tick away and the money roll in but in the end those numbers do not portray you as a person. The person you are is defined on how you handle the numbers that life has given you.