Is there a contrast between the truth of our lives and the story that we tell?

You know Hunter typed ‘The Great Gatsby’? He'd look at each page Fitzgerald wrote, and he copied it. The entire book. And more than once. Because he wanted to know what it felt like to write a masterpiece. He was so hungry, yeah. Innocent, and yearning.

 -- Johnny Depp on Hunter S. Thompson

We all have our idols, and the thing that has always gotten to me about these famous individuals is the autonomous nature of them. Their tale is often one of an underdog story in which they face diversity. Hunter S. Thompson actively fought authoritarianism, Emily Dickinson passively fought gender inequality, and J.K. Rowling fought poverty at the hands of a Conservative government.

What have I fought?

I haven’t fought gender inequality, homophobia or any war. I am turning twenty-one this year and in a generation of smart phones and social media I have passively sat back like the rest of us. Sure, I’ve read a book or two but I’ve seen no Punk movement. No revolutions. I have no historical life experience if not for this realm of perpetual monotony.

I, like them, am a victim of circumstance

While I do believe there is a link, I sincerely hope – for my sake at least – that there isn’t a contrast between the truth of our lives and the stories that we tell.

We all die. The goal isn't to live forever, the goal is to create something that will. 

-- Chuck Palahniuk