Successfully Outside of "The Norm"

     You know that something is wrong with society when the happiest people declare how they do things outside the norm.  If the happier folks are avoiding social norms, then everyone else is suffering self-imposed confinement.  That's the way it seems regarding comments that I observed.  
     In a previous blog post, I narrated the life of an acquaintance, Andy, and how his life choices led him to further success/enjoyment.  Andy recently began this conversation thread online, and it may be educational:

Andy - Holy cow, I was looking online at people I went to high school with, and I'm an "apple so far from the tree"!  I didn't take the same road as any of them.  I went out of my comfort zone and never came back.  I don't have kids, not married, living life to the fullest, and I'm 27!  Are you experiencing this?

(Others replied, and their mindset is a sample of our world).

-26 and no kids.  Very normal in Los Angeles.  Just not normal in small towns where people are away from information.  

-No kids and not married.  25 with a boyfriend whom I really love.

-It's too expensive in America to follow the "sheep". 

-Just turned 28, and I love the path we're on.  Gotta support each other.

-35 and in the "same boat".  LIVING!

-Dodging bullets left and right.

-I avoid looking at those sad people, forsaking what their lives could've been if they hadn't succumbed to family/social/religious peer pressure.

-Sad people?  Doesn't sound like you're in a very inclusive group.  No one takes the same road.  That's the beauty of watching us all grow, bringing new people into the world.  No two lens of perceptions are alike.  Sure, there is debt, but that's an unavoidable part of the experience.

-23 with kids, not married, lots of travel.

-I'm 31, no kids, not married and A-OK!

-Childfree for life and exploring the world.  Folks are having babies and setting aside huge sums for their kids' cars and colleges, while I'm deciding what country to visit next.  The important things are being happily content and contributing to leave the world a better place.  Some do it by making families.  Some focus on evolving and helping change.  

-Others accepted pricey instant gratification, whilst people like us kept seeking curiously.  Our path unfolded beautifully.

-Yeah, I'm the only one who made it out of my community.

-31, I own a health center, no kids, still savoring life.

-30 and think it's funny that former classmates are finally just experiencing the world (without the jobs they initially were taught to want).  Now their college debt stops them.  Their parents want to hold them close by.  Grandparents expect babies.  Church expects money and time.  Their jobs demand their spare time.  Their commute and living costs (from too many purchases) take a piece of them.  They look wistfully at me via Facebook and wish they hadn't followed the American "path of values".

-You "flew the coop"!  CONGRATS!  Reap your rewards.

-Following social norms, I saw so many confining places--all of which made me spend my waking hours doing things that didn't really matter.  At 60, I stepped into a brand new life.  I've outlived a lot of people I used to know.  I'm like Kate Winslet's character from "Titanic".  There's still so much more in me to create.

-They believe that theirs is the only way!  A family, mortgage, cars, tiny vacation, bills, obligatory family events, no freedom.  They're repeating what everyone around them does... forever.  OMG, how boring.

-They're too afraid.  They watch life online or on television.  Their excitement comes from soap operas, daytime talk shows, and habitual internet shopping.  They accumulate more stuff (which soaks up more of their time/money to maintain), instead of more experiences.

-I'm loving you and your authenticity.

-29 and no kids, not married, still dreaming.

-It isn't just high school friends.  It's family.  Both my 22 and 26-year-old sisters have kids/husbands, and five cousins age 23-38 have kids.  They're all stuck--can't relocate, afraid to change jobs, reluctant to start over.  

-My life might seem normal: 30, married, with a 6-year-old.  But, being a military family keeps our life interesting.  We move from place to place, see the world, get treated great.  My kid saw more countries/cultures than a lot of people I know.  We now have friends all over the globe.

-Inner wisdom means you follow your own beat--courageous that the abundant world will provide for you.  Weaker folks cling to their "small piece of cheese", afraid to explore what they don't yet know.  They're doubtful, fearful, lazy, and unimaginative.  They're easily controlled--caught like fish.  They feed the machines of industry, taxation, profit-seeking religion and education.  You don't have to be wealthy to do what you want to do.