on missing almost everything

As part of my 24 Things to do Before I Turn 24, I've been busy working my way through watching all of these 100 Best Movies and reading half of these 100 Best Novels. Meanwhile, I've added numerous books and movies and shows to my to-read and to-watch lists. Movies and books and shows that I'm genuinely interested in but, for the most part, have gone unread and unwatched because I've been too busy getting through the other lists.

It's taken a lot of time to do and, while some of those books and movies were surprisingly worthwhile, I found that I really didn't care for a lot of them. I would even complain about having to watch a movie or read a book that I already knew I wouldn't like. A coworker didn't understand why I would put myself through it, that life is too short to waste on things I don't like. I argued that it would make me more well-read, more worldly, more scholarly or what have you.

And on top of all of that, on top of all of the lists of things I feel I should complete and all the lists that I want to complete, I realize that I will never be able to read every book or see every movie! Every now and then that realization hits me like a blunt force to my chest. I become almost short of breath to know that there is a book out there that I would absolutely love but that I know nothing about.

I thought I was alone in this until I read an article via even*cleveland called "The Sad, Beautiful Fact That We're All Going to Miss Almost Everything." It might look like a long article, but please take the time to read it if you're at all interested. After reading it, I don't necessarily feel better in the fact that I will miss out on so much, but I do feel okay about it.

In conclusion, while it's been an enlightening experience, I should go back to reading and watching the things that pop out at me and that spark an interest in me, the things that jump out at me over and over to the point that I feel I'm meant to do. The way I did it before...