Designer curtains in a jail cell
The phrase “Designer curtains in a jail cell” is a saying I heard a few months back that has popped back into my head on a few occasions. From my understanding of what this saying means, is no matter what you hang on the wall, no matter how nice your cell is, a jail cell is still a jail cell. Now how does this apply to life?
Life is such a weird concept, it is one of those things that if you focus on it, it moves very slow, but the second you take your eyes off it, 10 years pass. One day you can be a college student whose only concerns are not failing your classes and finding a party and then the next thing you know you are celebrating your 40th Birthday from the desk of a job where you are underpaid, not respected, and don’t belong.
Change is hard, it is not easy to just pick up and restart your life. Rather than starting from scratch what most do is start to hang up designer curtains in their jail cell. They buy that boat, buy that car, that watch, they buy things and do things to hide their jail cell. They get these things so that whenever they are upset about the fact they are in a jail cell, they can look at their “things” and tell themselves that is the price they must pay for it.
Many are fine staying in their cells. They dislike it, but the alternative is worse in their opinion. They would have to sell their boat, maybe down size their house. What would their friends think?
We all must chose the path we take in life. The options become a lot more clear when you understand that the door to your cell is unlocked, you are free to enter or exit, but it is up to you.