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Living under pressure  is like fresh from the ocean shrimps being cooked to food. It’s like there’s this invisible weight on your shoulders, you can’t tell what’s really there but you know it exists.  More like, Quang Duc’s self-immolation in Vietnam a midst social oppression; You look serene, but you're letting your insides burn. I couldn’t really fit into each and everyone’s description of it, even if I had the right adjectives and analogies to describe it. Photo by  Andrea Piacquadio  from  Pexels   Truth is, pressure treats everyone differently. Only one thing is certain: No one likes being pressured. Or you could be one of those straight-A students who live for the competition and expectations of others P.S. That’s gonna burn out soon, and you won’t like the smell of it.   We’re caught up in the drama of life, face it. More often than not, you’re gonna meet the most depressed souls roaming and just letting their lives slip by (and not in a Happy H...

Almost a month ago, I watched a movie called “Hacksaw Ridge” that stars Andrew Garfield-- not that it’s important but good to know. It encompasses the horror that the soldiers from World War 2 went through in an effort to fight for the safety of their respective families and communities. After what felt like a two-hour salt in my eyes, I had a phase, in which I promised myself to be as brave as can be, at all times. That phase waned quicker than the elated face I wore during the first few days of high school. Sooner than expected, I was back to my old cowardly ways. Given the time period when this happened: a few days into the quarantine period, what could have I possibly done differently given the situation? The straight forward answer to that is: a lot of things.

Photo by  Ba Tik  from  Pexels I made peace with the fact that death is inevitable and comes unexpectedly. I was just made aware that I’m practically dying. The timer started the day I was born, and now I know that. What I did not know, and I did not approve of in the first place, was the lifelessness that I would feel, even when I’m still alive. I’m talking about: having no control and essence in your life. People determining what is right for you, and what is not, what you should do, and what you should stay away from. There exist this social construct, wherein you would have to reform your pentagonal shape to fit into a quadratic hole because it’s what the normal is. I had to deconstruct myself in the approval of people. There were times in my life when I went below their level of expectations, and then, in a snap of a finger, I equated to nothing. I used to be no one in high school after I wasn’t announced for the first time as an honor student. I...