Tuesday, August 09, 2005

The Price

by Skald

Im guilty of romanticizing the Hobopoet life... for I do, in fact, find it romantic. But I should add a caution for those considering a leap into this sort of life: there will be a price.

The price is different for everyone. For some it is loneliness. For some it is poverty. For some it is a loss of status and "respectability". For some it is a loss of comfort. For some it may be all of the above.

Some people hesitate when they realize this. Their illusion of non-stop thrilling adventures and perfect happiness is shattered. Doubt creeps in. Some give up. Some never try to work through the challenges.

But most worthy things have a price. Often, the worth comes from paying that price and accepting it.

And sometimes, by doing so, the challenge is transcended or overcome. And sometimes it is not. As Gandhi said, the reward is in the effort made- not the result.



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3 comments:

teabag said...

i don't think you are romanticizing though. methinks, you just write with your heart. whats truly in there, your passion in being a happy wanderer! and for those like-minded (like yours truly) who relates, we read with reverence every word on this site ;) when there is a deeprooted passion, whatever the price is, it is and will always be worth it.

ps i declare im a HoboFAN! ;) (a selfcreated terminology to add colour to your site i hope!)

AJ Hoge said...

Mucho Thanks
Thanks for the very kind comments... you are right- I write for like-minded souls like yourself.... for the passionate, the restless, the creative, the change-craving, the learning obsessed, the "fast mutators"...

By the way, I enjoyed the recent comments about Singlish on your blog

Anonymous said...

One of the things I've finally figured out in late middle-age is that one of the big decisions in life (maybe even the only one, if you think about it) is deciding what you want to worry about. You can worry about paying your bills -- but have a low-paying job that keeps you at home. Or you can pay your bills -- but have to worry about fighting Atlanta traffic every day. You get my drift.