No, the picture of the both nutritious and delicious food is not taken from the internet somewhere. That’s a picture of what I made myself for dinner last night.
What? JP can cook? Heck yeah, I know how to cook…or at least survive (though you can call me Chef Jean Paul…but say it with a French accent…everything sounds better in French). Surviving is something I’ve learned to do both in and out of the kitchen. And it’s something that’s quickly come in handy my second week of college.
Now, to be clear, I’m not talking about surviving as in not dying (to all you people who have misconceptions about the dangers of NYC, I’m talking to you). I mean not compromising on yourself physically, mentally, or spiritually. Living on your own for the first time, especially in college (and even more in NYC), puts you at risk to do just that.
Personally, not compromising physically has been the easiest thing. Between basketball and the gym, I’m going to get it in one way or another (even if that means starting a workout at 11pm). But I will say that it’s been harder with regards to my food. Unlike most school’s, The King’s College doesn’t have a meal plan for you to purchase. The students are adults, and are expected to act as such. Part of this expectation is our fending for ourselves as it pertains to food. Admittedly, it took me a little bit to get used to this and allow time for myself to cook. I was living off oatmeal, granola bars, and soup for a good portion of the last two weeks. Now I’ve got it down though. Which means I can spend more time not compromising mentally.
I’ll readily admit that this has been a much bigger challenge for me. Not because the coursework is hard (though it does require a lot of mental energy…I wouldn’t say dissecting Plato’s Apology, let alone keeping up with the often time-consuming homework from other courses, is as easy as riding a bike), but rather because I push myself more than most. In addition to my coursework, I’m also managing this up and coming website (writing, marketing, and everything else for the three different series I have), running Statement Apparel (marketing, financing, and operations…all by myself), writing and editing various books (none published yet, but I have to keep working to get published) and screenplays, trying to get some pleasure reading in (and, sadly, right now none of that is fictional), and so much more. I need to get this down soon, or else I’m in danger of compromising mentally in the same way I’ve compromised spiritually.
I hate to say it, but I’m not in the word nearly as much as I should be. Forget daily devotions; my faith has been on the backburner for so long that it’s amazing when I do one devotion any day other than Sunday! There’s not really much else to say about it. I’ve fallen behind, stayed behind, and now need to get back on track. It won’t be easy, but it’s necessary for my survival.
For to be the best version of me, I know I need to excel in, and balance, my physical, mental, and spiritual pursuits. Compromising any of these three puts me makes it harder to maintain the other two, and compromising either of the other two makes it that much harder to get back to where I need to be. Life requires you to be balanced. Just as there’s no such thing as a great basketball player who never shoots, a great quarterback who never handed the ball off, or a great soccer player who never passes, there’s no such thing as a great human who doesn’t know how to survive. There’s no such thing as a great human who doesn’t (at least strive to) balance their physical, mental, and spiritual pursuits without any compromising.
I don’t know about you, but I want to be great. So as a new adult in this ever changing world, I’m going to do everything in my power to balance these three pursuits. I’m going to do everything in my power to survive.
See you next time.
– JP
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