Hey, Simon? Do you have any advice for someone that’s not sure what to do with themselves? I’m gonna graduate high school soon, and the only thing I know I want for my future is “escape my family”. I’m not even sure how I’m gonna do that, honestly…I guess I just need a bit of reassurance, if you’ve got the time to give some.

If that’s your only goal, your all consuming notion, then likely your home life is exceedingly stressful. If that is true it is likely why you cannot think about anything else. Stress shuts off the rational mind in humans…and well, for me too. Makes me ravenous. Point being, that the stress has prevented you from having any desires except “I need to make this suffering end”.

My advice has two paths.

Firstly, if you have the capacity to, get into a college or some sort of school. Declare a major if you must, but by no means should you consider that decisive. Take classes on anything and everything. Absorb. You’re not there to do aimless meaningless work. You’re there to explore. If you’re not enjoying a subject, avoid it in the future. By degrees and out of the stress of your family, you’ll uncover things that evoke passion. Follow them.

If you haven’t the capacity to go to a higher educational establishment, travel. I know people often complain that traveling requires money, but that’s not true. You can walk anywhere. You can pick fruit for food. I’ve done it the world over. Itinerary labor is still real, and if you haven’t any standards, you can see the world and explore it without a bank account. It becomes more difficult if you have a lover or children, but if you are alone, all you need are supplies and a means of staying safe.

You need to explore. You need to not be afraid of exploring. You have the drive to escape but all to frequently that is desperate. It ends as soon as you are free. Don’t let it. Keep exploring.