Tyler Lotz 
Meghan Lawrence 
Gavin Lane A “personal” definition, now that’s a difficult one. When I really think about it, I have so many examples of other peoples “good life” that I never really think about which one, if any, match up with mine. I hear about all these movie stars living their “amazing” lives up in the clouds, then quite the opposite, my own grandfather recalling his best days back in the 1930’s when he was just a kid playing with his homemade scooter from a plank of wood and some old wooden wheels he found. Two very different ideas of the good life, and yet each equally important to the individual.So I suppose the question is, should my definition of the good life really be based on what I have been told, surrounded by, and influenced by? After all, each of those experiences and alternate thoughts from so many different people have got to have some validity, if so many people think of unlimited wealth and no worries as the good life, why shouldn’t I?
Well, I have a little bit of simple reasoning to share. If I had all of the money I could ever need, what would I do? If my finances were never even a speck on the radar of my thoughts, how would I spend my life? This question has been posed to me many times, usually in relation to career choices. I thought about it for quite a while, and I just couldn’t figure out what I would do. Until something hit me, with all that money and no worries, why should I be the only one to enjoy it? As a matter of fact, I couldn’t enjoy it even if I wanted to with no one else to share in that happiness. And there I believe I have my answer. With no worries, no requirements, and not even a thought about losing anything, what could make me happier than to share that with others? Nothing, that’s what. So I have my answer, my “good life” is found in helping others. In sharing what I have been blessed with, and helping others to realize how good it feels to give back.
That is the end of my official blog, but exercising that “subjective” part of the assignment one more time, did anyone else have Frank Sinatra songs going through their head the entire time they were writing their blog?
Emily Bibb
5:38 pm, 01.21.13
Jonathan,
Thank you for identifying two very opposite views of “the good life.” We are bombarded with “the good lives” of celebrities almost every time we turn on our TVs. But their “happiness” is often short-lived. And yet, the story about your grandfather’s homemade scooter seems to bring him “happiness” just in his recollections of the memory many years later. I also liked your reasoning on how it would not be possible to enjoy unlimited wealth and no worries without anyone to share it with. But even with so much money and no worries, I feel like life would be a bit boring. Isn’t the “bad stuff” that happens to us what makes our relationships stronger? However, I appreciate that your definition of “the good life” is your willingness and desire to help others.
And yes, I couldn’t get past thinking of Frank Sinatra songs for a while when I was thinking about this assignment.
Tyler Lotz
11:06 pm, 01.21.13
I agree with you in the idea that the “good life” can have many different angles depending on the individual. Though some may claim fame and fortune are the highest aspirations, others grow weary of these things and seek a calm and/or productive existence surrounded by only their closest friends and family. Is it for us to judge which of these is “Right”? I think everyone is entitled to their own perspective. Good post.