Where I Lived, and What I Lived For

The essay "Where I Lived, and What I Lived For,” by Henry David Thoreau wants us as a nation to realize that we need to live life independently and deliberately. He goes on to say that the nation is too huge for its own good. The nation is always growing and is filled with many unnecessary items. We get caught up in the flow of the crowd and before you know it, it is too late to get out. Instead we need to step out of the flow and go in our own direction. People believe that all essentials that the nation has to offer are all necessary to have. There are a lot of people who are not working or even sleeping. They are too busy doing other things that are not very important and then none of their work gets done. The question that Henry David Thoreau asks is “Who will do their work that needs to be done". We are always on the go, we never rest not even to eat a meal, we would rather not eat and keep going on with our lives. The author gives an analogy saying that if people were to hear that something tragic was happening that everyone would run to the scene, but not because they all want to see it, but just to say they did.

All we want to hear is the new gossip and what is going on in our local news. The truth is that the news has the same old stories over and over again but it is just happening in new circumstances. When we choose to slow down our lives, everything around us appears clearer. Children enjoy life better than adults do, because children are not caught up in society’s world. We are all capable of living life the way God wanted us to live it. Do not let anything get in the way of living the life that you want to live. There will be difficult situations that one will run into but ignore them like they're nothing. One should never run away thinking that they can’t handle any situation that comes at them. Whatever you decide to do just try to fight through it, look it right in the face no matter what. He concludes with saying do not go through life wasting it doing unnecessary things. Use your head to find your way to the end of the tunnel. Life is short; it is what you make of it that remains forever.

There are a very few college students that aren't in the flow of spending a lot of time on the internet. College students are on the internet during some point of the day whether they are checking their Facebook, email, twitter or doing homework. Henry David Thoreau would not be too pleased if he knew that people spend their time on the internet. College students would rather be on the internet than what they’re supposed to be doing such as homework. This is why they do not get their homework done on time because no one else is going to do their homework for them but themselves. College students are also on the internet because they want to find out what is the latest gossip and news just like Thoreau saying that the first thing people want to do when they wake up is watch television.