Horses and Rats

Have you ever wanted to run away? Just let your hair down and run, without a care in the world? That is kind of how I picture horse racing, common creatures all running towards something, and not knowing the benefits of it. I recently read that captivating book we all love, The Outsiders  In it Cherry Valance says this quote:

 Rat race is a perfect name for it, “She said. “We’re always going and going, and never asking where, Did you ever hear of having more than what you wanted? So that you couldn’t want anything else and then started looking for something else to want? It seems like we’re always searching for things to satisfy us, and never finding it. Maybe if we could lose our cool we could.

I read this book about two months ago and that quote stuck with me, because it's true. I live in a suburban town outside of New York City. My area is full of those girls you see on MTV shows like My Super Sweet Sixteen, everyone is always running to get the latest designer clothes, and shoes, but never really knowing why. I am not priding myself on how frugal I am, because I am not, I admire high end labels, I am currently saving up for a $50 pair of shorts, but I also love thrift shop styles. I like how a bag of studs can make mom jeans look amazing. As I was watching the horses run today my friend said something to me about how she feels bad for the horses, how they are forced to run, and sometimes they get hurt. I didn't know what she meant then, I found it all fun, horses love running why deny them? But then later I realized, what do the horses get out of races, no pride, no money, just passion. I hope to be like that, someone who doesn't run for the glory, but the feeling of running, no string attached. All our lives we are brought up sheltered, hidden from the bad so we can abuse it later on. People learn early how things are bad, but maybe if they could see for themselves, they wouldn't be so bad. I live around people who say "Oh my gosh we are never going to drink" and "Do you realize your mom is having a beer?" I have met only one sane person other than myself, and she said to me, "Of course I am going to drink, I will probably even drink under age, come when I am sixteen I will probably hook up with a different boy every week, but we are teenagers, we are supposed to act like immature idiots, and not be raised to be over protective grandparents, if my friends are out partying I am not staying inside and knitting" Now that I type that it seems like she is going to go be a Snooki, but what she meant is, live life to the fullest, the nights you remember won't be the ones where you got a full nights sleep and took a bubble bath. So here is what I say, don't be irresponsible but don't act like a prude either, don't keep going, stop and look around, you always get the best experiance out of books when you re read them, you notice more.