未来 mirai
Words carry weight. I chose the Japanese word 未来 (みらい) or 'mirai' to be a symbol for this website. 未来 means future or literally not yet come. The word paints a picture of an ideal, abstract future not yet arrived.
There is a beautiful tension in this word, even just in the kanji characters themselves. 未 holds the meaning of uncertainty, openness, or potential however 来 implies something certain, fated and unfolding. The concept of something being open-ended and not yet determined, but in motion. In this way, I believe this word relates to our humanity: every person is always becoming. Whether they intend to or not, change is inevitable. The only choice is its direction. What is malleable however is the direction that we choose to point this trajectory, the path that we are walking. Every step appears to be insignificant, but over time it leads us to somewhere very real.
Unfortunately, humans aren't always keen on change (look at every older generation complaining about youngsters). This often leads us to slowly slip into stubborn routines, habits, and conversations. The illusion of stasis is a very dangerous thing. Day to day, this illusion goes unnoticed. Over time however, it becomes unmistakable. People don't just drift into joy and positivity. They fall into fatigue, fear, and frustration. That grumpy old guy in Walmart didn't set a goal in his younger life to be a curmudgeon, however, years of seemingly insignificant decisions changed his entire temperament. These decisions are frighteningly easy. A gut reaction. A moment’s pleasure. They take no real thought and they compound fast. The instant outburst of anger in traffic, the fast food meal calling out to you on your drive home, or the hour of dopamine-chasing on instagram reels when the alternative is studying or (God forbid) being bored. All this to say, the direction we point our future is a very present thing with very real consequences.
The good news: there is no barrier to entry or 6 month course you need to buy to point yourself towards a better 未来. You can start right now with the small decisions in your life; the decisions that truly make you who you are. It's really that simple. Hard and requiring a constant fight against mental stagnation, nevertheless simple. I write all this as a reminder for myself. A reminder to walk the path with intention and to treat every step as shaping where I will one day arrive. And in a more personal way, to never stop pushing myself to create, to continue writing, photography, music, and nurturing* a love of learning. Never final.
* I will use every opportunity I can to link to this masterpiece of an album on this site btw. You have been warned. Now go listen.