I read an article not too long ago about how higher level educated people are less happy than their non-educated counterparts. It went in depth to say that when intelligent people are presented with an obstacle, they weight the moral, social, personal, future, and other impacts of their decision before choosing. Needless to say, much effort and thought is put into what they may choose to do or not do. The article assumes that the lesser educated people tend to ignore potential consequences of their actions and proceed to follow the path to whatever makes them happy at that moment.

Perhaps that is the key: the moment. I don't believe I am wrong to say that the aspiring intellectual often lives to achieve their dream of their future.They avoid commitments and decisions that may deviate them from their path or burden their journey. Conscious (and perhaps unconscious) decisions are made everyday to ensure that they achieve their own idea of success.

Is there a connection between the well educated person's perceived lack of happiness and substance use? Alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs are used by many people, educated or otherwise, but the reason they are used is what is intriguing. The dulling of the senses and decision making capabilities of most of these substances allow their user to forgo their natural logical thinking and simply follow their emotional and instinctual desires. The result: a release from their organized and structured life if only for a moment. 

I cannot argue against having done exactly just that. 

Writing just for the sake of writing. It's somewhat alleviating to transfer thoughts from mind to paper or computer screen. A cleansing ritual of sorts that wipes the mind clean of disheveled thoughts that run rampant and chaotic within their confines. They become organized as they journey to their new medium, emancipating the conscious from their occupation. Somehow, and always, they are never satiated in their new dwelling and creep into the mind yet again.

Will

The human spirit has a substantial capacity for hope. Despite all odds, circumstances, or even sound logic, hope drives a being to it's very limits to accomplish its goal. Hope is fuel for a person's willpower, which is consumed with the menial tasks and hard labor of everyday life. Willpower is used to get past the trials and tribulations on the road to one's goal in life, whatever it may be.

Used as a vehicle to transport a human from one stage of his life to the next, will is completely essential. Drivers may change over time: hope, anger, fear, regret, ambition, perseverance, love, etc. Unfortunately, drivers have only so much influence on the integrity of the vehicle, as willpower fades and slows its user down. Fixing it can be a long process, but a speedier one with the support of family and close friends.

Somehow, willpower get's a person to his/her destination, with every person's destination being exponentially farther than the next. The question is: what drives an individual's willpower the most, and is it enough to take him/her to where they want to go?

Insatiable.

The mind devours information, yet hungers for more.

The soul soaks in life, yet is displeased by it.

The heart aches for compassion, yet receives little.

The thinker questions, yet discovers no clear answer.

The doer acts, yet is yielded no reaction.

Doubt plagues thoughts, yet is unsatisfied until it has won.

Decency. Where has it gone? I feel too many people these days hardly mean what they say for the majority of the time they say anything at all. Although in "serious" conversations, the indecency of lying to someone face to face is more than rude, the lack of care in small talk can seem pretentious. I call this "coasting." Automated responses ingrained into people's brains when they hear a certain arrangement of words. The order usually follows this outline:

"Hey (insert name here), how are you?"
1. This first statement is usually made out of obligation by the initiator after seeing the other person from afar or while walking down the same hallway in opposite directions.

"Good, how are you?"
2. Some people will actually use "well" instead of "good," though it hardly matters. Again, this is the automated response the brain is triggered to command the mouth to say. This response is usually not a honest answer, but one of ease. This person understands that the initiator does not really want to know the honest, complex answer of a "how are you?" question.

"Great"
3. This answer is hardly necessary, as both parties have probably already left each other's eyesight. If it is said, it is usually said with hardly any honesty, and to the back of the second person's head.

Now, I'm sure there are times when both parties honestly care about each other's condition, but this is what usually occurs. I'm sure these accusations can be defended by saying that both parties are in a hurry, but my response to that is just to simply say "hello." Simple, with no attachments. Neither party is lying to each other, and they both fulfill the obligation of acknoledging each other's existence in their immeadiate area.

The bottom line, no one likes to be lied to. "Coasting" is a growing problem in society, and it's truly sad when people cannot give each other the time of day.