But if you really want to live, why not try and make yourself?

I woke up this morning with that Incubus song "Make Yourself" banging on my brain. I even did my best to explain the deep intricate meaning of the song to Sonny. There are a few people I would just love to pull from the single file line of life. "Listen to this. LISTEN TO IT!" I'd shout, duct taping the headphones to their skulls.

"If you let them make you, they'll make you Paper-Mache,
At a distance you're strong, until the wind comes..
Then you'll crumble and blow away...
If you let them fuck you, there will be no foreplay,
Rest assured, they'll screw you complete, 'til your ass is blue and grey!

You should make amends with you,
If only for better health!
But if you really want to live...
Why not try, and make yourself?"

Ok. Sure, it sounds kind of funny. But think about it. The next year or two of my life, I'll be focused on dragging my ass out of the ditch I kinda carelessly flung myself into. I've had "up" days and I've had "shitty" days. But this song always reminds me that *life is what you make it*. You can build yourself to be the way you want to be or you can let others build you. You can be a victim of your circumstances and fall into the oppressive labels created to categorize people (ie Welfare Mother) or you can rise above it and make your own path. Idealistic drivel? Maybe. Romantic rubbish? Maybe. But what could it hurt to believe it? To join in the bet between my friend and I that life is what you make it. What do you have to lose? More importantly, what do you have to gain?

This song is my gym anthem. It's the song I play on repeat when I'm doing that extra ten minutes on the bike or when I'm walking that extra 1/2 mile on the treadmill. It's audio rocket fuel. I love that it begs the question, "Why not try and make yourself?" How can you answer that, honestly? There are so many reasons you can't make yourself, but none of them are solid barriers. They're excuses. I know this now; every reason I can possibly come up with not to lose that extra 30 pounds, or finish that novel or get that degree...none of them are 100% valid. There's a way to achieve whatever goals you make yourself get up and go after.

So...Why not try and make yourself?