I Would Rather be Ashes than Dust

“I would rather be ashes than dust.” Is one of my favorite quotes. It comes from Call of the Wild author Jack London. The full quote is –

“I would rather be ashes than dust!

I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot.

I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.

The function of man is to live, not to exist.

I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them.

I shall use my time.”

― Jack London

What he is speaking about specifically is how one lives their life. He recognizes that we all have one life and he is choosing to life a full and bold life and burn up and become ashes instead of just letting life happen to him, rotting away, and becoming dust. He wants to live spectacularly because he understands that there are no second chances at life. This “meaning of life” is shared with many philosophers from the past – from Nietzsche to Camus. The general understanding of this meaning to be that life is about living with passion, desire and effort.

The same sentiment is made by Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption. Andy only comes to this realization after all of the horrible trials he is faced with in prison. He has been beaten, assaulted, denied justice etc. It is only at his bottom that he states “Get busy living or get busy dying”. He too chooses to take control and make the spectacular choice to break out of prison.

So why am I bringing up these examples on a weight loss blog. Well, unfortunately, I see clients all the time that expect results to “just happen to them”. People typically want quick and easy results – results with minimal effort! Unfortunately (especially when it comes to weight loss), this can set the person up for major disappointment. This disappointment can then lead to the resentment of what they are putting their hopes in and ultimately the feeling that “Nothing is going to work”. In our Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky weight loss centers we attempt to be as honest and transparent to potential clients as possible. We want individuals who are motivated and understand to certain lifestyle changes are going to be necessary in order to achieve their goals. We try to make the process as convenient as possible but there is no “magic pill”. Ultimately, we want people who have the desire to live to eventually become ashes not dust.

So I encourage anyone trying to better themselves – lose weight, get healthy, etc. to take control of their own life. Don’t expect life to reward you simply by living it. This can only lead to disappointment. If you are trying to lose weight and using our system, read the guides, use the recipes, meal prep, communicate with us your struggles. If being a healthy weight was easy we would have no obesity problem. Excel in life! Do not simply exist.